Formstack Documents provides a document generation platform that integrates with Clio to automatically save generated documents (contracts, forms, etc) back to Matters in Clio while simultaneously delivering them via email, e-signature, postal mail, and more.
This article details the basic steps for creating a template in Formstack Documents and how to send merged documents back to Clio. Formstack Documents has written a complimentary blog post that you can view HERE.
To view Formstack Documents subscription pricing, please visit https://www.formstack.com/pricing. Formstack Documents offers free (and unlimited) testing to make sure the platform is a good fit for your firm.
Contents
Using Formstack Documents with Clio
Creating a Template in Formstack Documents
Building the Template
Template Settings
Testing the Template
Template Delivery Options
Connecting Formstack Documents to Clio
Using Formstack Documents with Clio
Below are basic steps to creating a template in Formstack Documents and specifying delivery options.
For some more advanced examples of automating Formstack Documents with Zapier and Clio, see the article Tutorial - Using Zapier and Formstack Documents to Automate Document Creation and Communications.
Creating a Template in Formstack Documents
In Formstack Documents, start at the "Documents" tab to create or upload your template. Templates can be created that will generate PDFs, emails, JPEG images, and Microsoft Office files types that correspond to your uploaded templates (i.e. Word DOCX, Excel XLSX, or PowerPoint PPTX).
Click the "New Document" button to create or upload a new template.
When selecting your document type, you can choose to:
- Make a template from scratch using Formstack Documents's template builder,
- Upload a fillable PDF form to be converted into a template, or
- Upload a DOCX, XLSX, or PPT that already incorporates some Formstack Documents field tags.
In this example, I have chosen "Build Your Own".
Type or copy the content of the letter, agreement, or form into the template content editor. Then click into each area of the template where you want a merge field to appear and click the "Merge Field" button. In the "Insert Merge Field" box, enter a name for the field that you want to add. The merge field tag will then be inserted into the template with the proper formatting. Once you are familiar with the merge field tag format, you can also type tags directly into your template.
The format of merge field tags will look like this:
{$FirstName}
{$Company_Name}
Once you have completed the template, click the "Save & Next" button.
Next, you will be provided with a number of settings relevant to the file type of your template. These settings will allow you to determine the output format of generated documents, page orientation, and the file name of generated documents.
Again, when you are happy with your template settings, click the "Save & Next" button.
Next, you will be provided with the option of manually testing the fields that you have added to your template. Completing the provided fields then clicking the "Test Document" button will generate a sample document so that you can see how the document will look with merged data.
Click "Skip to Next Step" to proceed with the delivery options.
By default, your new template will have an Email delivery which will send the document to your email address. You can edit the details of the email including who the email will be sent to, the from email, subject line, and message body.
Tip: If your template includes a field for the client's email address, you can send the document to the email that is entered into that field.
To add additional deliveries, click the "New Delivery" button. In addition to sending documents to Clio, Formstack Documents supports sending documents via email; to a number of document storage applications; and to a number of e-signature applications.
Formstack Documents supports any number of separate deliveries so each template can be saved to Clio, emailed to multiple recipients, AND sent to the client via one of the supported e-signature apps (DocuSign, RightSignature, Infusionsoft, etc.).
For detailed steps on "delivering" merged documents to Clio, see below.
Connecting Formstack Documents to Clio
When creating a template in Formstack Documents, you will connect to Clio in the "Deliver" step. Click the "New Delivery" button.
In the Create New Delivery window, click on the "Clio" button.
In the Send to Clio window, click the "Login to Clio" button.
If you are not already logged in to Clio, you will be prompted to do so now.
In the Connect with Clio window, click on the green "Yes, let's connect" button to authorize the connection.
Once you connect your Clio account, you’ll be taken back to the Formstack Documents delivery settings where you can choose how you want the merged document to be saved into Clio.
Click on the "Matter ID" field and select the template field where the Matter name will be entered. Alternately, you can select "Other" to type the Matter name here directly. Note however, that entering the Matter name directly into this field means that documents generated from this template can only be saved to that one Matter.
The "Matter ID" field cannot be left blank.
The "Document Category" field is where you can specify the name of a standalone folder that the merged document should be added to in the Clio Matter. If you will be specifying the name of a folder when completing the template fields, click on "Document Category" and select one of the template fields. Alternately, the folder name can be specified here by selecting "Other" and typing the desired folder name directly into the field. If a matching folder name already exists in the Clio Matter, then the merged document will be added to that folder. If a matching folder does not exist in Clio, then a folder will be created at the time the merged document is generated.
If you do not want the merged document to be added to a folder in Clio, leave the "Document Category" field blank.
When you are finished specifying how the Matter ID and Document Category should be defined, click the "Save Delivery" button.
