To ensure getting started with Relay is as quick and easy as possible, we've created a helpful onboarding checklist to help you move your money and payments to Relay. The access this checklist, simply sign in to your Relay account and navigate to the Setup tab along the left-hand side panel.
This article will walk through what you can expect to find in the setup checklist.
Sections in this article
- Overview
- Section 1: Set up your account
- Section 2: Get Paid
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Section 3: Finish setup
- Can my Accountant or Bookkeeper complete the setup checklist for me?
- Can I choose not to go through the checklist?
- Can I go through the checklist out of order?
- How will I know when I have completed a step? Or the setup overall?
Overview
The setup checklist will live as a tab in your account for 30 days and you'll be able to track your progress as you go. This checklist has three main sections: Set up your account, Get paid, and Finish setup. Each section has 2-3 steps to complete, and we suggest following the steps in the order they appear so that you can get the most out of the setup process. Here is the breakdown:
Set up your account
- Create Relay accounts
- Link an external account to Relay
- Add money to Relay
Get Paid
- Connect your business tools
- Share ACH and wire information
Finish setup
- Send your first payment
- Issue and activate debit cards
Section 1: Set up your account
This section is all about setting up the basics of a Relay account: creating and funding your accounts. These are the steps we find our customers naturally go through first before setting up anything else.
Step 1: Create Relay checking accounts
This step will prompt you to create your Relay checking accounts. With Relay, you can create up to 20 checking accounts and up to 2 savings accounts. This is a great way to follow the Profit First method or organize income and expenses by categories important to you.
Step 2: Link an external account to Relay
This step will prompt you to link Relay to your external bank via Finicity. Finicity is a third-party provider that we use to enable safe and secure transfers between your various U.S. bank accounts. Finicity allows you to connect via your login credentials or via micro-deposits. Connecting to an external bank account is the fastest way to start funding your Relay account.
Step 3: Add money to Relay
This step will prompt you to add money from the external account you have just linked, but will also provide you the option to wire in funds or deposit a check. If you are connecting to your external account via micro-deposits, please keep in mind that you will not be able to add money to your Relay account until you have verified your micro-deposits. Micro-deposits take around 1-3 business days to land in your external bank account.
Section 2: Get Paid
This section is all about setting up Relay as a deposit account. In this section, you'll learn how to connect Relay to your frequent depositors - think vendors like Stripe, Shopify, Square, Airbnb, etc. It will also give you the option to share account info with any clients or businesses you might need to reach out to directly.
Step 1: Connect your payment processor
This step will ask you to confirm which checking account you would like to receive deposits to. If you haven't already set up a checking account for incoming deposits, you can revisit Section 1, Step 1 to do so. We will then provide you with the necessary account information and guidance on how to edit your payment information with the vendors our customers use the most. This will be a real help if you use platforms like Airbnb, Square, PayPal, etc.
Step 2: Share ACH and wire information
Many of our customers who work in business services, trades, or long-term rentals need to provide their payment information directly to the payor when receiving payments. In this step, we will provide you with exactly what you need to send to a payor to ensure incoming payments are properly processed. We will provide you with the information needed for each payment type we support: ACH, domestic wire and international wire.
Section 3: Finish setup
In this section, you will be able to set up outgoing business-related payments. You will be prompted to create your first payees, send payments from Relay, and start using your debit card.
Step 1: Send your first payment
This step will teach you all about how to send payments directly from Relay. You can send ACH transfers, domestic wires, international wires, and check payments all from your Relay dashboard! You can send a payment to new payees or existing ones. When you create a new payee, you'll be able to enter their information manually or send them a secure request to enter their details themselves.
Step 2: Issue and activate debit cards
This step will direct you to the Cards tab, where you can see the first card that has been sent (and all the relevant shipment information) and create any additional cards you may need.
Step 3: Seamlessly switch card transactions to Relay
Using Relay's Card Switching Tool, you can replace your existing cards and make your new Relay card the primary method with hundreds of popular merchants. This step will directed to the Cards tab, where you can select Start switching to move those card transactions over to Relay. More information on how to use the Card Switching Tool can be found here.
Can my Accountant or Bookkeeper complete the setup checklist for me?
Yes, if they have the required permission level! Advisors with Super Administrator permissions can complete the setup checklist on a business owner's behalf.
Can I choose not to go through the checklist?
Yes, you may! After 5 days you may dismiss the checklist by navigating to the bottom of the page and clicking Dismiss. If you choose not to manually dismiss the setup checklist, it will automatically disappear after 30 days.
Can I go through the checklist out of order?
Yes, you may complete the checklist out of order if you choose. However, we have designed this checklist based on the natural flow our customers usually go through when switching over to Relay. This flow makes for the smoothest possible experience. For example, if you connect your payroll before adding money to your account, your payroll may run before your account is adequately funded, resulting in a cancelled payment.
How will I know when I have completed a step? Or the setup overall?
When customers complete a step, the Get started button will disappear and the step will be marked with a green check mark. The setup page will have an overall progress tracker, and each section will also have a progress tracker. Once you have completed everything, you will be taken to a confirmation page.