Add a Service Autopilot client and set up recurring mowing

1. Search CRM > Clients and the Leads list first, because the customer may already be on file as a lead from an earlier estimate or a lead capture form.
2. If the person is a lead, open the Lead Account, choose More > Convert Lead, since Service Autopilot cannot schedule a job for a lead.
3. Otherwise click the Quick Add icon and select Client, fill in the bold required fields and the Billing tab, which sets when the client is invoiced, then click Save.
4. Open the Job Wizard, select the account, choose Repeats as the Job Type, add the line items with quantity and rate, then pick a Master Schedule and the start date under Schedule/Assign.
5. Assign the crew or enter a team size, check the invoice descriptions in the Billing section and click Finish.
6. Each sign-up takes two screens and a dozen fields, and a duplicate created next to an existing lead splits the account history in two.

Add the Hendersons from this email as a client at 12 Oak Lane, gate code 1234, and set up weekly mowing on Tuesdays with Crew 2 at $45 a visit, starting next week. Check first that they are not already in Service Autopilot as a lead.

1. 01

   Look for the person before creating anything

   Your agent runs search_clients on the email address, the phone number and the street address from the message, not only the name. A match as a client means the new service goes on that account. A match as a lead is reported, because a lead has to be converted in the app before a job can be scheduled on it.

2. 02

   Create the client with the field notes

   When nothing matches, the agent calls add_client with type client and copies the gate code, dogs in the yard and parking notes from the email into notes, so the crew sees them on the visit. Anything the email does not state, such as a second phone number, is left empty rather than guessed.

3. 03

   Match the service to your price list

   The service name has to exist in your account. If the customer wrote "lawn cutting" and your account calls it Mowing, the agent uses Mowing and says so; if no service fits, it stops and asks instead of inventing one.

4. 04

   Put the first visit on the requested weekday

   create_job gets the first date that falls on the asked weekday on or after the start the customer wanted, the weekly or every other week repeat, the crew and the per visit price. A price the email does not mention is not filled in from memory; the agent asks.

5. 05

   Hand back what needs a person

   The run ends with the new client ID, the first three visit dates and anything left open, such as a lead that needs converting or a crew that was not named.

New client: Dana Henderson, 12 Oak Lane (ID 4410382)
Notes saved: side gate code 1234, dog in back yard
Job created: Mowing, weekly on Tuesdays, Crew 2, $45.00 a visit
First visits: Oct 13, Oct 20, Oct 27
Not added: Mark Ruiz, 8 Pine Ct is already a lead from your estimate form; convert him in Service Autopilot, then ask me again

• Service Autopilot cannot schedule a job for a lead: the lead must be converted to a client first, from More > Convert Lead on the Lead Account.
• Service Autopilot Master Schedules do not renew on their own, and the generic schedules that come with a new account end one year after the sign-up date, so a repeating job can stop producing visits until the schedule is renewed.
• A Custom Schedule made in the Service Autopilot Job Wizard applies to that one job only and cannot be reused on another job.
• In Service Autopilot, jobs on a Master Schedule go to the Dispatch Board, while jobs in a Master Package, such as a 5-round fertilization program, go to the Waiting List.
• The Billing tab on the Service Autopilot Add Client overlay is required and sets when the client is invoiced; a company default fills it in when one exists.

add_client and create_job change only your own Service Autopilot data and reach no one else, so they run without asking first.

Sources: Service Autopilot Help: Add a Client · Service Autopilot Help: V3 Add a job, Repeating, Recurring Schedules · Service Autopilot Help: Add a Master Schedule · Service Autopilot Help: Convert a Lead to a Client

curl https://cotlet.dev/api/v1/service-autopilot/create_job \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $COTLET_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"client_id":"4410382","service":"Mowing","start_date":"2026-10-13","recurrence":"weekly","crew":"Crew 2","price":"45.00","instructions":"Side gate code 1234, dog in back yard."}'

{
  "job_id": "9827514",
  "client_id": "4410382",
  "service": "Mowing",
  "recurrence": "weekly",
  "next_visit": "2026-10-13",
  "crew": "Crew 2",
  "price": "45.00",
  "status": "scheduled"
}

MCP: add https://cotlet.dev/mcp/v1 with the same key; the tool is service-autopilot_create_job. Example data.

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