How to start a new business with Otto

Pick the kind of business you are starting, and it opens with sales stages and a starter price list made for it, plus a launch plan.

Updated 2026-10-27

When you sign up, or from Start a new one in the menu under your business's name, press Start a new business with Otto and pick the kind of business you are starting. The card under your pick shows what Otto does, what you do, the price list it starts with and its sales stages. Type a Business name and press Continue to setup.

What each business starts with

Every business started here opens with sales stages of its own. Where the business sells services or packages, its price list is filled in too. The prices are US starting points: change any of them, or delete what you don't offer, before you send a proposal or make your first sale. The price list is under Quotes → Price list, or under Invoices for a business that sends no quotes.

AI automation agency: automation audit $2,500, automation build $15,000, AI receptionist setup $1,500, lead follow-up automation $900, review and reminder automation $500, care plan $1,500 a month. Stages: Lead → Audit booked → Audit done → Proposal sent → Won → In build → Live → Retainer.
AI marketing agency: marketing audit $500, AI campaign launch $1,500, AI video ad pack $600, social content plan $900 a month, cold outreach for clients $1,200 a month, growth retainer $3,000 a month. Clients' ad spend is billed separately and is never on these prices. Stages: Lead → Audit sent → Discovery call → Proposal sent → Won → Onboarding → Campaigns live → Retainer → Past client.
Copywriting: website page $500, sales page $1,500, email sequence $750, blog post $300, ad copy set $400, monthly retainer $2,000 a month. Stages: Lead → Brief call → Proposal sent → Won → Writing → Delivered → Repeat client.
Marketing services: marketing audit $750, 90-day marketing plan $2,000, campaign setup $1,500, ad management $1,000 a month, marketing retainer $2,500 a month. Stages: Lead → Discovery call → Audit sent → Proposal sent → Won → Onboarding → Retainer → Past client.
Social media management: social media audit $300, account setup $500, starter plan $750 a month, growth plan $1,500 a month, content shoot $400 a visit, social ad management $500 a month. Stages: Lead → Audit sent → Discovery call → Proposal sent → Won → Onboarding → Active client → Past client.
Websites for small businesses: starter website $2,500, business website $5,000, landing page $1,000, online store setup $4,000, care plan $150 a month, extra changes $90 an hour. Stages: Lead → Discovery call → Proposal sent → Deposit paid → Design → Build → Launched → Care plan.
Virtual assistant or bookkeeping: virtual assistant $35 an hour, VA plan of 10 hours $350 a month, monthly bookkeeping $400 a month, bookkeeping catch-up $60 an hour, invoicing and payment chasing $250 a month. Stages: Lead → Discovery call → Proposal sent → Trial month → Ongoing client → Past client.
Tutoring or coaching: single session $100, package of 4 sessions $360, package of 10 sessions $850, group session $40 per person, monthly program $400 a month. Stages: Inquiry → Intro call → First session → Active client → Renewal due → Past client.
Templates and printables: single template $15, template bundle $39, custom template $150. Stages: Subscriber → Free download → First purchase → Repeat buyer → Lapsed.
Online course: online course $199, course with live calls $499, one-to-one session $150 an hour. Stages: Subscriber → Free lesson → Enrolled → Finished → Alumni.
Content creation: what brands pay for, invoiced to the brand: sponsored video $500, sponsored post $250, story set $150, UGC video $300, usage rights $200 a month. It starts with Invoices and sales stages switched on: Brand found → Pitched → Negotiating → Agreed → Content delivered → Paid.
Ecommerce store, Print-on-demand shop and Reselling: no price list, because your products and prices live in your store once connected. Their customer stages are kept ready for the day you switch the pipeline on: Subscriber → Abandoned cart → First order → Repeat customer → Lapsed for a store, Follower → Subscriber → First order → Repeat customer → Lapsed for print-on-demand, and Subscriber → First order → Repeat buyer → Bulk buyer → Lapsed for reselling.
Review and affiliate site: no price list, because you earn commission. Stages, kept ready until you switch the pipeline on: Program found → Applied → Approved → Links live → Earning.
Airbnb arbitrage: no price list, because nightly rates are set on the listing. It starts with sales stages switched on, for finding landlords: Landlord found → Pitched → Viewing → Sublet approved → Lease signed → Furnished → Listed.
Car rental on Turo: no price list, because each vehicle has its own daily rate under Fleet. Stages for direct renters, kept ready until you switch the pipeline on: Inquiry → Quoted → License checked → Booked → Returned → Repeat renter.

You can change the stages during setup, or later under Settings → Stages and fields. Switch the pipeline on or off under Settings → What you use.

The launch plan

After setup, Launch plan in the menu, with how many steps are done, opens the short list of things a new business needs before it can take a customer, e.g. a domain, a website and a way to be paid. Otto ticks each step itself when it is really done. Set your packages and prices is ticked from the start for a business that opens with a price list, so check those prices first.

An AI marketing agency has three more steps after Add your first customers, so it markets itself the way it will market its clients: Plan a campaign with Otto (ticked once you start one under Marketing → Campaigns), Reach out to your first prospects (ticked once you make a cold campaign or an Outreach campaign) and Send your first proposal.

If it doesn't work

Continue to setup is grayed out with "Pick a kind of business" or "Name the business": do what it says.
"One account can have 10 businesses." Remove a business you no longer use first.
A kind of business shown grayed out under Not yet cannot be started here yet; the card says why.