If you’ve ever wished your client proposals could sell themselves (or at least make pricing easier, eliminate scope creep, and kick off work automatically), good news: that’s exactly what Canopy’s all-new Engagements + Packages are designed to do.
The accounting profession is still early in its adoption of engagement letters and proposal tools. And packaging? That’s even newer. But packaging is also where the industry is headed: away from hourly tracking and toward clearer value, better margins, and higher-trust relationships. (Good news: if you still want to bill hourly, you absolutely can.)
This guide walks you step-by-step through how to build thoughtful, high-value engagement packages inside Canopy. You’ll learn:
How to design standardized task templates that power your services
How to turn those tasks into Service Items with clear pricing & terms
How to build an engaging, three-tier proposal that clients will understand and accept more often
Along the way, we’ll cover best practices, gut-check questions, and how Canopy’s built-in automation gives you a head start before you even begin the work.
Let’s jump in.
STEP 1 — Build Your Task Templates: The Foundation of Every Package
Packages work beautifully when the underlying work is consistent. That’s why we start with Task Templates.
Task Templates are where you define:
The work your team performs
The roles involved
Budgeted hours
Recurrence logic
Due date logic
Subtasks, checklists, and client requests
Automations that move work forward
These templates directly power your workflows the moment a client signs an engagement, which means you only set this up once and Canopy handles the kickoff from there.
Below are two inline examples (from your template library), followed by a link to the full collection.
Example Task Template: AP/AR Cycle Review
Purpose: Monthly review of payables/receivables cycles: open items, accuracy, aging reports.
Role: Staff Accountant
Hours: 1.5 hours/month
Recurrence: Monthly → 1st business day
Due Date: 3 business days after creation
Subtasks include:
Review AP aging
Review AR aging
Verify vendor bills
Verify customer invoices
Client requests:
Upload outstanding bills
Provide payment updates
Automations:
Subtasks auto-progress
Client request reminders
Ask yourself:
Is this level of detail representative of how my firm operates?
What tasks should be standardized versus customizable?
Do we want the same roles assigned every month, or do these rotate?
Example Task Template: Monthly Financial Package Assembly
Purpose: Assemble your monthly reporting deliverables—including KPIs and a video walkthrough.
Role: Senior Accountant
Hours: 1 hour/month
Recurrence: Monthly → 12th
Due Date: 15th
Subtasks:
Export/verify financials
Prepare KPIs
Record video walkthrough
Deliver final package
Ask yourself:
What promises do we make in our proposals about reporting delivery dates?
Do our internal workflows support those turnaround times?
Why this step matters
Your task templates determine:
Your capacity planning
Your pricing
Your workload consistency
Your client experience
And later, when you offer Standard, Plus, and Premium tiers, they make it abundantly clear what each tier includes.
Full Template Library (download-style appendix)
Your full library of task templates—including AP/AR, Bookkeeping, Payroll, Dashboards, Year-End Tax Prep, and more—is available here:
STEP 2 — Turn Your Tasks Into Service Items With Pricing & Terms
Once your Task Templates are established, the next step is to define Service Items. Think of a Service Item as the “productized version” of the work:
What’s included
How it’s priced
The tasks you’ll perform
The terms clients agree to
Any usage limits or variable billing
Service Items become the building blocks of your proposal packages.
Example Service Item: AP/AR Management
Proposal Description: Manage accounts payable and receivable cycles: bill processing, vendor payments, invoicing, and collections.
Rate: $2,000/month
Includes Task Templates:
AP/AR Cycle Review
AP/AR Aging Reconciliation
Terms:
Includes up to 30 AP bills + 30 AR invoices (excess billed at $3/item)
Requires timely submission of bills/invoices within 3 business days
Ask yourself:
Does this price align with the hours in my task templates?
Should limits be included to prevent scope creep?
If we upsell, which items belong only in the higher package tiers?
Example Service Item: Weekly Bookkeeping
Rate: $2,000/month
Includes Task Templates:
Weekly Bookkeeping
Weekly Review & Adjustments
Terms:
Requires timely uploads
Weekly cadence may shift if documents are missing
Ask yourself:
Is weekly bookkeeping reserved for Premium clients only?
Do we want different SLA expectations per tier?
Full Service Item Table (Appendix B)
Includes pricing, descriptions, linked task templates, and firm-friendly terms:
STEP 3 — Build the Engagement & Add Your Three Packages
Now that your tasks and service items are structured, it’s time to assemble the client-facing proposal.
This is where Canopy makes you look polished, consistent, and professional—every time.
Your Engagement includes:
✔ Welcome message
✔ Embedded video (optional but highly recommended)
✔ PDF attachments
✔ Services + pricing
✔ Terms
✔ Signatures
✔ Preview mode showing exactly what clients see
✔ New! Three-tiered packages (Standard, Plus, Premium)
Let’s walk through how to build the actual proposal experience.
1. Add Your Welcome Message
Set the tone. Tell your story. Explain your approach.
A warm introduction dramatically increases acceptance rates—and Canopy’s builder lets you save your message as a template for reuse.
What to include:
A “who we are” moment
What problems you solve
What clients can expect after signing
A short video introducing your firm or walking through the proposal
Any helpful brochures or onboarding material
Ask yourself:
What impression do I want this proposal to make?
How do new clients feel when they receive this? Reassured? Confident? Excited?
2. Add Service Items to Your Packages
Here’s where your earlier work pays off. Start with the service items you created in Step 2—then arrange them into tiers:
Standard Package
A foundational, compliance-forward package.
Typically includes:
Monthly Bookkeeping & Reconciliation
Bank Feed Monitoring
Monthly Reporting
Annual Tax Return
Positioning Tip:
This package supports businesses that need reliable books and predictable reporting but not rapid turnaround.
Ask yourself:
What is the minimum level of service my firm is willing to provide?
Does Standard reflect that, without undervaluing us?
Plus Package
Ideal for growing businesses needing faster turnaround and more proactive insights.
Adds:
Faster close timelines
Quarterly Advisory
Bank Rule Maintenance
Basic KPI Dashboard
Priority support
Ask yourself:
What upgrades meaningfully improve client outcomes—not just add work?
Where should we draw the line between Plus and Premium?
Premium Package
Your “Finance-as-a-Service” style offering: high-touch, real-time, strategic.
Adds:
Weekly Bookkeeping
AP/AR Management
Advanced Dashboards & Cashflow Monitoring
Monthly strategy meetings
Dedicated Slack/Teams channel
Ask yourself:
Do our internal systems support same-day/next-business-day turnaround?
Do Premium clients receive the highest access to your team?
STEP 4 — (The Magic Moment) Let Automation Take Over
Here’s where Canopy Engagements stand apart from tools that are “bolted on.”
The moment your client signs the engagement:
✔ All associated tasks are automatically created
✔ Assigned to the right team members
✔ Recurrence and due dates kick in
✔ Client requests are sent
✔ Notifications go out
✔ Work begins instantly
No copy-pasting. No double-checking. No starting from scratch.
This isn’t just convenient. It’s a workflow revolution.
Ask yourself:
How many hours do we save by eliminating manual kickoff?
How much consistency does this bring to our delivery?
What client experience improvements does this unlock?
STEP 5 — Send the Proposal & Start Winning Bigger, Better Work
Once your three-tiered packages are in place, sending the engagement is simple. Clients receive:
A guided, branded, secure experience
No login required (unless they want to use the portal)
A clear comparison of service levels
A straightforward selection and signature flow
A polished summary of the agreement they just accepted
And since packaging encourages choice, you naturally increase upsell opportunities.
Final Thoughts: Packages Are More Than Pricing — They’re a Productivity Strategy
You’re not just creating “three options.”
You’re redesigning how your firm:
Delivers work
Charges for value
Standardizes workflows
Builds predictable capacity
Minimizes scope creep
Improves margins
Onboards clients
Starts projects
Supports staff
Communicates expectations
Scales
Packaging is a small change that transforms everything downstream.
And with Canopy’s built-in Engagements—not an integration—you get one seamless system from proposal → acceptance → project kickoff → delivery.