Onboarding

From the shop you have today to a live Specify store

Seven steps, in order. Each one says who does the work and what you have after it.

We are preparing our first stores with real shops. So the times below are our best guess, not a measure.

The seven steps

  1. Tell us about your business

    In the product

    Sign up with your work email and your company name. Then the guided setup asks what you make and who buys it.

    Who does it
    You. The assistant in your store's admin asks the questions and writes down what you say.
    How long
    Sign-up takes a few minutes. The first questions take one sitting.
    What you have after
    A store at its own web address, with starter pages ready to edit.
    • No card and no password. You sign in with a code we send to your email.
    • Each setup screen has the assistant beside it. Answer in your own words.
    • Want to see it first? Ask us for a demo store built from your own shop.

    Good to know

    • Billing is not switched on yet. Nothing is charged today.

  2. Bring in your products

    With our team

    If you sell online already, we bring your products across once. If you are new, you add them in the admin.

    Who does it
    You tell us where your shop is. Our team sets up the import. You check it and say yes.
    How long
    It depends on the size of your shop. Your check takes one sitting.
    What you have after
    Your products in your store, with their variants and pictures. Anything held back comes with a reason.
    • We read a Shopify or WooCommerce product export, or the pages of your own shop.
    • Your About and FAQ pages can come too. So can your colours and logo.
    • Nothing is written to your store until you approve it, in one step.

    Not built yet

    • There is no upload screen. Our team runs each import for you.
    • It is a one-time import, not a sync. Your old shop is left as it is.
    • Groups of products, customers and past orders do not come across.
    • Stock comes across as in stock or not, without counts.

    What a move involves

    Moving from ShopifyMoving from WooCommerce

  3. Write down what you can make

    In the product

    Your Capability Map holds what you can make, not just what you list. Constraint Records say what you will not offer, and why.

    Who does it
    You, with the assistant. It drafts each change. Nothing reaches a customer until you approve it.
    How long
    Start with one real request from a customer. The map grows from there.
    What you have after
    A Capability Map and Constraint Records. Your store checks every request against them.
    • Specify reads your products and drafts a first list of what you can do.
    • You confirm each line, fix it, or tell it to stop asking.
    • You need it before you open only if your product choices come from it.

    Consulting work

    • If your trade is hard to model, we can do it with you. It is billed by the hour.

  4. Connect what you use

    In the product

    Payments, your own domain and company sign-in are things you switch on yourself. Links to the systems that run your firm are not built in yet.

    Who does it
    You switch on what is built. Anything else is a project with our team.
    How long
    Your own domain is ready within one working day. A custom link is scoped first.
    What you have after
    A store that takes card payments, on your own domain if you have one.
    • Card payments through your own Stripe account. Connect it on the Payments screen.
    • Your own domain, once you have chosen a plan. You add one DNS record.
    • Email to your customers works from the first day.
    • Keys so your own team can use our API. Your staff can log in with your work account.

    Consulting work, not built in

    • We have no ready link to your ERP, PIM, OMS or CRM. Nor to a carrier or your books.
    • We can build one as consulting work. It is scoped and priced before it starts.
    • Sending email from your own domain is set up by our team.

    See what Specify connects to

  5. Check it before your customers do

    In the product

    Your setup list shows what is still needed before you open. It reads your store as it is, so nothing is ticked off by hand.

    Who does it
    You. If your shop is moving to Specify, our team also checks every old web address.
    How long
    As long as you need. Your store has its own address from day one, so try it as a customer.
    What you have after
    A store where every step you need reads Ready.
    • What you need depends on what you sell. A simple shop has fewer steps.
    • A step that is not ready says what is missing, and links to it.
    • The assistant can open any step and help you finish it.

    With our team, for a shop that is moving

    • We list every old web address and the new page it should lead to.
    • Then we test each one, so old links keep working.

  6. Go live

    With our team

    When the steps you need are done, the Billing screen offers Put my store live. You pick your plan there.

    Who does it
    You put the store live. If you are moving from another shop, we run the switch with you.
    How long
    For a new store, one click. A move from another shop is planned as one day, with a way back.
    What you have after
    A live store on your plan, on your own domain if you have one.
    • You can pick a plan early. Going live waits for the steps you need.
    • Billing is not switched on yet. Nothing is charged today.

    With our team, for a shop that is moving

    • Old web addresses send visitors on to the new pages.
    • Your domain moves to Specify on the day.
    • If something goes wrong, your old shop can be back within minutes.
    • Our team does this by hand. It has not yet been done for a real shop.

  7. Keep getting better

    In the product

    Requests your store could not meet are kept, not lost. They show you what people want that you do not offer yet.

    Who does it
    You, with the assistant. Consulting is there if you want a second view.
    How long
    Ongoing. This step has no end date.
    What you have after
    A record of what people asked for, and what you said.
    • Each request you could not meet is kept as a Structured Opportunity.
    • Each answer is kept as a Decision Record, with its reason.
    • One report shows your Capability Gaps and Catalogue Blind Spots side by side.

    Consulting work

    • We can help you read what people asked for and choose what to offer next.

What is not built yet

Better to hear it now than after you start.

  • A screen to upload your own product export. Our team runs each import.
  • A live sync with another shop. An import happens once.
  • Ready links to an ERP, PIM, OMS or CRM. Or to a carrier, or your books.
  • Billing. Nothing is charged today.

When you want help

Our team can work beside you at any step.

Consulting is billed by the hour. The scope and the hours are agreed before work starts.

It covers mapping what you can make. It also covers building what is missing.

See how consulting works

Start with step one

Create your store now. Bring in your products when you are ready.

Create your store Compare the plans

To sign up, we ask for your work email and your company name.