> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.autocampaign.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Getting Started checklist

> Follow the in-app setup checklist from your business profile to your first launched campaign.

## Overview

The **Getting Started** checklist walks a new workspace through setup: business
profile, a connected channel, contacts, an audience, and a first campaign. It
lives in the sidebar as **Getting Started · N%** (`/getting-started`), where `N`
is your setup progress.

<Tip>
  **In short:** 1) Answer five quick questions about your business. 2) Work through
  the checklist cards. 3) Watch progress reach 100% and the checklist retire.
</Tip>

Steps tick themselves off. Autocampaign AI checks your workspace's real data, so a
step shows **Done** as soon as the thing exists. It doesn't matter who on your
team did it, or where in the app they did it.

<Info>
  **Time to complete:** \~5 minutes of guided setup, plus the time to build your
  first campaign  ·  **Difficulty:** Beginner
</Info>

## Before the checklist: welcome and guided setup

The first time you open the **Dashboard** in a new workspace, you see a welcome
screen with two choices: **Get Started** or **Skip for Now**.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Tell us about your business" icon="building">
    Enter your **Business name**, **Website (optional)**, **Industry**, and
    **Timezone**. These save to your workspace profile.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Pick a goal" icon="bullseye">
    Answer **What do you want to accomplish?** — get more leads, follow up with
    leads, book appointments, get more reviews, bring back customers, or automate
    your marketing.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Connect a channel" icon="plug">
    Pick how you want to reach customers: Email, SMS, WhatsApp, Website Chat, or
    Voice. You can connect more later.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Bring in your contacts" icon="users">
    Choose **Import contacts** (CSV upload) or **Add manually**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Review your recommended setup" icon="wand-magic-sparkles">
    Under **We recommend**, you see a starting point based on your industry and
    goal. Click **Use this setup** to jump to the matching feature, or **Start
    from scratch** to go straight to the checklist.
  </Step>
</Steps>

Every step has **Skip for Now** — setup never blocks you from the app.

## Work through the checklist

Each card shows the step, a one-line description, and a **Go** button that opens
the right page. Completed steps show **Done**.

| Step                                      | **Go** opens                      | Marked **Done** when                                                                                                         |
| ----------------------------------------- | --------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Complete business profile**             | **Settings → Organization**       | Your workspace has an email, phone, or website saved.                                                                        |
| **Connect a channel**                     | **Settings → Messaging Channels** | At least one SMS or email channel is active.                                                                                 |
| **Import contacts**                       | The contact import page           | Your workspace has at least one contact (imported or added by hand).                                                         |
| **Create your first audience**            | **Segments**                      | At least one [segment](/getting-started/glossary#segment) (a saved group of contacts) exists.                                |
| **Create your first campaign**            | The campaign builder              | At least one campaign exists, even as a draft.                                                                               |
| **Create your first AI agent** (Optional) | The new AI Employee page          | At least one AI Employee exists.                                                                                             |
| **Connect a knowledge base** (Optional)   | **Knowledge Bases**               | A [knowledge base](/getting-started/glossary#knowledge-base) (the information your AI answers from) has at least one source. |
| **Invite team members** (Optional)        | **Settings → Users**              | You've sent an invitation, or the workspace has two or more members.                                                         |
| **Launch your first campaign**            | **Campaigns**                     | A campaign is scheduled, active, paused, or completed.                                                                       |

Related guides: [Create your workspace](/getting-started/create-workspace),
[Channels](/channels/overview), [Import contacts](/contacts/import-csv),
[Segments](/contacts/segments), [Campaigns](/campaigns/overview),
[Knowledge base](/automation/knowledge-base), and
[Invite your team](/getting-started/invite-team).

<Note>
  Only SMS and email channels complete **Connect a channel**. Connecting
  WhatsApp, website chat, or voice alone doesn't tick the step.
</Note>

## How progress is calculated

The percentage counts the **six required steps** only — business profile,
channel, contacts, audience, create campaign, and launch campaign. Each is worth
about 17%. The three steps tagged **Optional** never change the percentage, and
you can finish setup without them.

Progress belongs to the workspace, so every teammate sees the same percentage.

## Skip, dismiss, and reopen

* **Skip and explore** (bottom of the checklist) takes you to the **Dashboard**.
  Until you skip or finish, opening the **Dashboard** brings you back to the
  checklist.
* After you skip, a **Getting Started** panel appears on the right side of the
  **Dashboard** on wide screens, with the same steps and progress. Click the
  **Dismiss** (X) button to hide it.
* To reopen the full checklist anytime, click **Getting Started · N%** in the
  sidebar. It stays there until setup is complete.

Skipping and dismissing are saved per person — your choice doesn't affect
teammates.

## When the checklist disappears

When all six required steps are done, you see **Congratulations!** with a **Go to
dashboard** button. After that, the sidebar entry is gone, and opening
`/getting-started` takes you to the **Dashboard** instead. For teammates, the
entry disappears as soon as the workspace reaches 100%.

## FAQ

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Who sees the checklist?">
    Anyone whose role allows at least one of the steps — for example, creating
    campaigns or importing contacts. If your role can't do any of them, you don't
    see the welcome screen, the checklist, or the sidebar entry.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do I have to do the steps in order?">
    No. Steps complete independently, in any order, and from anywhere in the app.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I bring the checklist back after it's complete?">
    No. Once every required step is done, the checklist is retired for that
    workspace. Optional steps you skipped are still available from their normal
    pages.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I bring back the dashboard panel after dismissing it?">
    Not the panel itself — but the full checklist stays in the sidebar until setup
    is complete.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Does a new workspace get its own checklist?">
    Yes. Progress is tracked per workspace, so each new workspace starts at 0%.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Troubleshooting

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Why does a step show a lock instead of Go?">
    Hovering the lock shows "You don't have permission for this step." Your role
    doesn't include that action. Ask a workspace admin to complete the step or
    adjust your role — see [Users & roles](/getting-started/users-roles).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Why isn't a finished step marked Done?">
    Refresh the page — status updates within a few seconds. Then check the exact
    condition in the table above. A channel must be **active** (not pending), and
    a knowledge base needs at least one source. A campaign must be scheduled or
    sent, not just saved as a draft, to count as launched.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Why does the Dashboard keep sending me to the checklist?">
    That's expected until setup is complete. Click **Skip and explore** at the
    bottom of the checklist to use the **Dashboard** right away.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Why don't I see the Getting Started panel on the Dashboard?">
    The panel only shows after you skip, on wide screens, and until you dismiss
    it. Use the sidebar entry instead.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

<Card title="Navigate the app" icon="compass" href="/getting-started/navigate-the-app">
  Learn the sidebar, search, and account menu.
</Card>