How to set up your company in Pillar
Pillar opens on a setup wizard the first time you sign in, and it walks eight short steps: your menu, logo, web address, business details, locations, trade, hourly rate, and colors. Every step can be skipped, and every one of them can be changed later from Admin.
Open the setup wizard
Where to clickAdminSetup Wizard
A brand new account opens the wizard for you: the first time you sign in as the owner, Pillar takes you there instead of the dashboard. It has a screen of its own with no sidebar, so the only thing in front of you is the step you are on.
To open it any other time, press Admin at the bottom of the left sidebar, then press Setup Wizard in the Quick Actions grid on the admin overview. Only the owner sees that tile, and only the owner can run the wizard.
Finish setup later sits at the top of every step and leaves the wizard whenever you want. Your dashboard then carries a Finish setting up your account card, and its Resume setup button drops you back on the step you stopped at.
Choose your menu, logo, and web address
Where to clickSetup WizardChoose what you want to seeSave and continue
Step 1 of 8 is Choose what you want to see, a checkbox for every module in the left sidebar with a plain line explaining each one. Ticking and clearing boxes only tidies your menu, because every feature stays switched on and every page stays reachable.
Step 2 is Add your logo. Press Choose an image, pick a PNG or JPG up to 5 MB, and it shows up on your estimates, invoices, and the pages your customers see.
Step 3 is Claim your web address, the name that sits in front of .pillarfsm.com where you and your crew sign in. The line under the box checks the name while you type and says whether it is available.
Afterward, the menu lives behind the Navigation tile in Admin, on a page headed Features & Navigation. The logo lives in Admin, Company Settings, and the web address is changed by running this wizard again.
Fill in your business details and locations
Where to clickSetup WizardBusiness detailsSave and continue
Step 4 is Business details: your business phone, business email, street address, and timezone. These are the details printed on the paperwork customers receive, and the timezone is the one every scheduled time in Pillar is shown in.
Every field here is optional, so Skip for now is a real answer if you would rather come back to it. Admin, Company Settings holds the same form.
Step 5 is Where you work from, and it opens on one question about whether you run more than one shop, yard, or branch. Answer No, just the one and move on, or answer Yes, more than one and add each place with Add this location.
A second location switches on a location filter across Pillar, which starts on All locations so nothing gets hidden. Hours, contact details, and defaults for each one live in Admin, Locations.
Set your trade and starter pricing
Where to clickSetup WizardYour tradeYour hourly rate
Step 6 is Your trade. Pick the closest match under What kind of work do you do?, then answer Want us to pre-fill your price book? with Yes, pre-fill it or No thanks.
Step 7 is Your hourly rate, the one number your starter price book is built from. Type what a customer pays for an hour of your time, not what you pay a tech.
Pillar prices the standard services for your trade from that rate and shows you what it would add before you agree to it. The button names the job it is about to do, for example Add these 34 items.
Anything already in your price book is skipped rather than replaced, so a second run cannot duplicate an item. Edit or delete any of it afterward in Admin, Price Book.
Pick your colors and finish
Where to clickSetup WizardYour colorsGo to my dashboard
Step 8 is Your colors: Primary for buttons and links, Secondary for headers, and Highlight for badges. The preview underneath shows roughly how a customer facing page will look before you save.
The last screen is You are all set, with quick links to add your first customer, create a job, connect Stripe so customers can pay their invoices online, and invite your team. Press Go to my dashboard when you are done.
None of it is a one time decision. Your colors, logo, trade, and standard hourly rate all live in Admin, Company Settings; branches live in Admin, Locations; and your services live in Admin, Price Book.
Common questions
Do I have to finish the wizard in one sitting?
No. Press Finish setup later at the top of any step, and your dashboard carries a Finish setting up your account card whose Resume setup button picks up on the step you left.
Can my dispatcher or a technician run the setup wizard?
No, it is owner only. Anyone else who opens it is sent back to their own home screen, and the whole Admin area is owner only too.
What happens to the steps I skip?
Nothing is lost, and skipping counts as answering the step. Every step has a permanent home in Admin, so you can fill it in later without running the wizard again.
Will running the wizard a second time duplicate anything?
No. Price book items are matched on their item code so anything you already have is left alone, and the locations step checks the name and address of your existing branches before it adds one.
Can I change my web address after I claim it?
Yes, by running the wizard again from Admin, Setup Wizard. Your team signs in on the new address from then on, so anyone holding a bookmark of the old one lands on a plain Pillar sign in page instead.