Get paid something before the first hour is worked. This prompt builds the deposit workflow: a rule that decides the deposit amount, an invoice that goes out the moment a project is confirmed, and a kickoff that stays scheduled but does not start until the money lands.
The Invoice Generator is a live Taskade Genesis app you can drive on this page. A deposit is the first invoice on a project and this app already produces it, so it is the starting point rather than a finished kickoff tracker. Raise one, then click "Use this app" to clone and own a copy in about ten seconds and add the project stages and the no-deposit-no-start rule described below.
The build gives you a gate rather than a hope. Each project record carries a deposit percentage, the amount, the invoice it produced, and its payment status, and the kickoff task cannot be marked started while the deposit is unpaid. The agent applies your rule with judgement: a long-standing client on a small project may not need one, a new client on a large project certainly does, and it can flag when you are about to make an exception you regret. It also drafts the kickoff message that explains the deposit without sounding defensive.
Workspace DNA is what makes the rule stick when the pressure is on. Memory holds every deposit decision and every exception with its reason, so patterns become visible rather than personal. Intelligence, running on 15+ frontier models from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and open-weight providers, weighs project size, client history, and your current cash position and tells you whether an exception is reasonable here. Execution issues the invoice, sends the link, and holds the schedule until payment lands.
The AI agents inside the app carry 34 built-in tools, including persistent memory and custom slash commands so an account manager can check deposit status mid-call without leaving the conversation. The agent also drafts the awkward message, the one that says work cannot begin until the deposit clears, in a tone that stays warm while being completely unambiguous.
The commercial effect is larger than the deposit itself. A client who pays a deposit has committed, and committed clients cancel less, respond faster, and argue less about the final invoice. The gate is a filter as much as it is a cash flow tool.
Watch it in the views that fit:
- Board view for confirmed, deposit invoiced, deposit paid, work started
- Table view for deposit amounts, percentages, and dates across projects
- Calendar view for kickoff dates and their dependencies
- List view for a simple queue of deposits awaiting payment
- Plus the rest of the 7 project views
Automations enforce the gate. A Taskade automation issues the deposit invoice when a project is confirmed, sends the payment link, alerts you if it is unpaid two days before kickoff, and releases the project into production the moment payment is recorded. Across 100+ bidirectional integrations, Stripe pulls payment events in while Google Calendar and Slack push kickoff scheduling out. Read automation triggers.
Clone it, invite the people who schedule work, and the rule holds itself. Nobody has to be the person who says no.
One boundary: this is a workflow gate, not a contract. The deposit terms you enforce should exist in the agreement the client signed, which is what Draft Payment Terms and a Late Fee Policy is for.
A practical note on wording: clients accept deposits far more readily when the reason is framed around scheduling rather than trust. Holding a slot in the calendar is a normal thing to pay for, and the message the agent drafts leans on that framing rather than on anything that sounds like suspicion.
See project kickoff systems in the Community Gallery, start yours at Taskade Genesis, or read invoice automation. Feed it from Turn an Accepted Estimate Into a Paid Invoice, and handle the remaining balance with Offer Installment Payment Plans.
Frequently Asked Questions
How large should the deposit be?
Common practice in service work is between 25 and 50 percent, sized to cover the costs you commit to before the first milestone. The agent reasons from your project size, cost profile, and client history rather than repeating a number it read somewhere.
What if a client refuses a deposit?
The app records the exception with a reason and a decision-maker, so refusals become visible as a pattern rather than a series of individual favours. Clients who resist deposits are disproportionately represented in late payment data you already hold.
Does the balance get invoiced automatically?
You can schedule it on completion or on milestones. Turn an Accepted Estimate Into a Paid Invoice handles the milestone split, and the automation issues each stage as it is reached.
Can the kickoff really be blocked?
The task is gated on the deposit status, so it stays blocked until the record changes. Anyone can override it deliberately, and the override is logged, which is exactly the right balance.
How quickly does the deposit invoice go out?
As soon as the project is confirmed, if you let the automation handle it. Same-day deposit invoicing is one of the highest-leverage changes a service business can make, because it moves the whole payment cycle earlier.
Does it work for retainers?
Retainers usually run on a recurring cycle instead. See Schedule Recurring Retainer Invoices and Track Retainer Balance and Drawdown.
Can I see how much of my pipeline is deposit-secured?
Yes. Ask the agent for confirmed work split by whether the deposit has cleared, and you get an honest view of what is actually funded rather than what is merely promised.
