CreteGenie — Contractor Guide

Everything you need to run your concrete business — in plain language

Welcome! This guide covers every part of CreteGenie, written for the field, not for techies. Skim the table of contents, jump to what you need, or read it through once and keep it handy. Every section links back to the top.

📊 See the one-page visual workflow →

1. What CreteGenie does ↑ top

CreteGenie is your all-in-one tool for running concrete jobs. In one place you can:

• Show customers what their new concrete will look like — using a photo of their actual driveway or patio (the Visualizer)
• Measure & price jobs fast and professionally (Measure & Estimator)
• Send proposals customers approve and sign online (Proposals)
• Send invoices and get paid by cash, check, or card (Getting paid)
• Track every job from first call to final payment, with your crew in the field

Think of it as an office assistant, a designer, and a billing clerk in your pocket.

2. Getting started & the menu ↑ top

You have a web address, a username, and a password. Open the address in any browser (phone, tablet, or computer), sign in, and you're in.

Down the left side is your menu. What you see depends on your role:

  Dashboard   ← your home screen, a quick overview
  Visualizer  ← show customers their new concrete
  Render Lab  ← fine-tune the AI images
  Estimator   ← build a price estimate
  Estimates   ← your saved estimates
  Jobs        ← every job in one place
  Customers   ← your customer list
  Proposals   ← quotes you've sent
  Schedule    ← plan pours around the weather
  Invoices    ← bills and payments
  Team        ← your crew            (owners only)
  Settings    ← your business setup  (owners only)
  Tools       ← calculators + your free lead page

3. The Visualizer — your closer ↑ top

This is what makes CreteGenie special: show a customer exactly what their new concrete will look like before you pour a single bag.

1. Tap Visualizer
2. Upload a photo of the driveway, patio, or walkway (snap one with your phone — a real on-site photo always renders better than a screenshot)
3. Outline the area where the new concrete goes. Tap (the default) places points around the area — perfect for new slabs on open ground. For replacing an existing slab, try ✨ AI select: tap once in the middle and the AI traces it; tap any missed spot to grow the selection, and Undo steps back one tap.
4. Pick a finish — stamped patterns (including seamless textures like Roman Slate and Sandstone), stained, broom, exposed aggregate, sand finish (sandwash), and more
5. Pick a color — single tones or two-tone combos (a base color with a darker release in the texture, like Desert Tan + Charcoal)
6. Set the details: stone/pattern size, joint style, and finish sheen — matte or satin photographs the most realistic; high gloss looks wet
7. Choose a model (Nano Banana 2, the default, is the best value; Nano Banana Pro is the premium pick) and, for the customer-facing money shot, switch Render quality to Crisp 2K
8. Got a special request? Type it in Extra AI instructions — e.g. “add a 12-inch darker border band” or “keep the basketball hoop” — and the AI follows it
9. Tap Generate HD Render — the AI builds a realistic image of the finished result

One more switch worth knowing: Lock background to original photo. Leave it off (recommended) — the AI blends its own edges naturally. Turn it on only if a render redraws the background scenery: it forces everything outside your outline to stay pixel-identical to the photo.

Show it to your customer on the spot. Seeing the finished look makes people far more likely to say yes — and to choose the premium finishes.

Render Lab

Want to find your best AI engine? Render Lab runs the same photo, outline, finish, and color across several AI models side by side — so you can see which one nails your kind of work. Upload, outline once, pick a finish and color from the dropdowns (the same palette as the Visualizer, including two-tone combos), tick the models to compare, and Run. It works on your render credits (the cost shows before you run) or your own AI key. Tap any result to zoom against the original.

Render credits — how your renders are counted

Depending on your plan, your AI renders are counted in render credits — a set allowance that refills at the start of every billing cycle. Different AI models cost a different number of credits per render (1 to 3 credits each), and both the Visualizer and Render Lab show the cost before you run, so there are no surprises. When your monthly allowance runs low you have two options:

• Top-up credits — extra credits (purchased, or granted by whoever set up your account) that never expire. They're only used after your monthly allowance is gone, so they're there when you need them.
• Your own AI key — add your own fal.ai key in Settings and your renders run on your own account for unlimited use on your own dime — those don't touch your plan's credits at all.

Saving & finding your work

When you like an image, tap Save. Attach it to a job, or save it with no job (choose “none”) — either way it's kept. To see everything, open the Visualizer and tap 🖼 View saved visualizations. They're grouped by job, with an Unassigned group for the rest. From there, open any image full-screen, attach an unassigned one to a job, or delete what you don't need.

4. Measuring a site ↑ top

Don't know the square footage? Open the Measure tool (in the Estimator). Two ways to measure:

• From the map: search the address and trace the driveway or patio right on the satellite view for an exact size.
• Walk the site: tap Walk the site and drop pins as you walk the area, using your phone's GPS.

The number flows straight into your estimate — no second trip, no guessing.

5. Building an estimate ↑ top

1. Tap Estimator
2. Enter the details: square footage (or pull it from Measure), thickness, finish, prep, and extras like gravel, rebar, mesh, a thickened edge, or sealer
3. Set your markup — CreteGenie does the math and shows a clean price
4. Save it — it now lives under Estimates, attached to the job

You can always go back, edit, and turn it into a proposal.

6. Customers & replying ↑ top

Tap Customers to see everyone you've worked with. Add a customer with name, phone, email, and address. Every job, estimate, proposal, and invoice connects back to the right customer automatically.

Reply to a customer in one tap

Open any customer and tap 💬 Reply / Contact on their contact card. Type your message once, then send it as an email from your business (it goes out through your own email setup, looking professional) or as a text message. It's the fast way to answer a question or follow up without leaving CreteGenie or hunting for their number.

7. Jobs & job photos ↑ top

Jobs is your command center. Every job moves through stages — new lead, quoted, in progress, done. Tap any job to see everything about it in one place: the customer, the visualizations, the estimate, the proposal, the invoice, the schedule, and the photos.

Job photos

On any job, tap 📷 Take Photo (uses your phone camera) or 📁 Add Photo (pick from your library) to document the work — before, during, and after. Great for your records, for disputes, and for marketing. Your crew can add photos too (see roles).

8. Scheduling pours ↑ top

Tap Schedule to plan your pours by day. Each scheduled job shows the customer, the size, your notes, the address, and a weather line for that day — so you can pour around the rain.

9. Proposals & e-sign ↑ top

1. From a job or estimate, create a Proposal
2. CreteGenie builds a clean, branded document — your logo, the visualization, line items, and price
3. Send it by email, or share the portal link
4. The customer can review, approve, and sign it online
5. You're notified the moment they sign

Proposals expire — on purpose

Every proposal is valid for the number of days you set in the builder (30 by default), and the customer sees the “valid until” date on their page. After that date the pricing genuinely locks: the sign button is replaced by a polite “this proposal has expired — contact us for updated pricing” notice, so nobody can accept January prices in July. If the job's still live, just hit the ⌛ Extend 30 days link on that proposal in your Proposals list — one tap makes it signable again for another 30 days.

10. Change orders ↑ top

Job grew after the customer signed? Create a Change Order from the job. It works just like a proposal — a clean, branded document with the added scope and price that the customer reviews and signs online. It keeps the extra work documented and approved, so there's no “I never agreed to that” later.

11. The customer portal ↑ top

Each job has its own private portal link — one web page where that customer sees their whole project: their visualization, their proposal (to review and sign), their invoice (to view and pay), a progress tracker, and more. One link, everything in it. It's one link per job, so a customer with two projects has two links.

To share it: open the job, tap 🔗 Customer Portal (next to Edit Job), then use Copy, Open (preview what they see), or Send Link (emails/texts it for you).

To change what's in it: the portal is a live mirror of the job — update the job's visualization, proposal, or invoice and the portal updates to match. Pick which sections appear in Settings → Customer Portal, and override them per job right next to the portal link.

12. Getting paid ↑ top

1. Turn an approved proposal into an Invoice (or make one from scratch)
2. Send it to the customer
3. Record payments as they come in

Two ways to get paid

Manual (always available): cash or check — open the invoice and record the payment. You can log a deposit and later payments; the balance and Paid status update automatically.

Online (if you set it up): your invoices can show a “Pay Now” button so customers pay by card or PayPal. The money goes to your account and the payment records itself — no double entry.

Setting up online payments

Go to Settings → Accept Online Payments. Paste in keys from your own Stripe or PayPal account (the step-by-step Stripe and PayPal guides are linked right there), or — if your provider set up a platform connection — use the one-click Connect button.

13. QuickBooks sync (Pro and above) ↑ top

If you keep your books in QuickBooks Online, connect it once in Settings → QuickBooks. After that, every invoice shows a → QuickBooks button — tap it and that invoice (and its customer) lands in QuickBooks, with no retyping at tax time. A green ✓ QuickBooks appears once it's synced. You can also open a read-only Check QuickBooks view to compare side by side. (Included on Pro and higher plans.)

14. Your crew & roles (owners only) ↑ top

Have a crew? Tap Team to add them. Each person gets their own login with a role that controls what they can see:

So your field guys can open a job from the Schedule, snap progress photos, and clock in — without ever seeing your pricing or the customer's contact details. For crew, you can also grant granular permissions (for example, let one lead see a customer's phone number) right on their Team profile.

15. Clocking in on a job ↑ top

If you turn on Crew Time Tracking (Settings → Crew Time Tracking), each job shows a ⏱ Clock In to this job button. Crew tap it when they start and again when they finish; CreteGenie logs the hours (and, if allowed, the GPS location) against that job — so you know who worked where and for how long. Open the job to see the time logged.

16. Website leads & auto-reply ↑ top

CreteGenie gives you a free “Request an Estimate” form for your website or social bio. In Settings → Lead Capture you get a link and copy-paste embed code. Everyone who fills it out becomes a new lead, and you're notified by email (and optional text).

Instant auto-reply

The moment a lead submits the form, CreteGenie can send them an automatic “thanks, we got your request” email from your business — so they hear back instantly instead of wondering. Turn it on and edit the wording in Settings → Leads (it's on by default). Use {customer} for their first name and {company} for your business name.

17. Settings — making it yours (owners only) ↑ top

Tap Settings to set up your business. Each section opens on tap:

• Your Brand — logo, brand color, and contact info. Appears on every proposal, invoice, and customer page.
• AI Key — powers the Visualizer (your provider can help).
• Email — so proposals and invoices send from your address. A built-in Gmail guide walks you through it.
• Accept Online Payments — connect Stripe or PayPal (see above).
• QuickBooks — push invoices to your books (Pro and above).
• Lead Capture & Leads — your free estimate form and the auto-reply.
• Customer Portal — choose which sections customers see in their portal.
• Crew Time Tracking — turn on clock-in for your crew.
• Message Templates — the wording sent with portal links, proposals, and invoices. Set once; every send uses it.

18. A typical day with CreteGenie ↑ top

That's the whole flow — first call to final payment, all in one tool.

19. Tips & troubleshooting ↑ top

Quick tips

• Use the Visualizer on every quote. Seeing the result sells the job.
• Send the portal link instead of juggling emails — customers love everything in one place.
• Set up online payments — getting paid faster is worth the few minutes.
• Add your logo and color so everything looks like your business.
• On your phone? Add the site to your home screen for one-tap access.

If something's not working

• Missing a menu item? You may be on a limited role, or just need to log out and back in.
• Visualizer not working? The AI key may need setup — ask whoever set up your account.
• Can't send email? Check your email settings, or use the built-in Gmail guide.
• A button did nothing? Refresh the page (on a computer, hold Shift and click reload) and try again.

20. Getting help ↑ top

Need a hand with anything — including connecting QuickBooks or online payments? Email our support team at cretegenie@gmail.com. We read every message and get back to you.

You've got everything you need to run a sharper, faster, more professional concrete business. Go win some jobs!