Welcome to the exciting journey of SmartForms and Jotform! This lesson is your first step into the world of efficient online form creation and management. Today, we'll primarily focus on setting up your Jotform account, looking at different plans, and give you a glimpse into cloning your first form. Keep in mind that this is a brief overview, mainly centered on account creation. For a more in-depth look at the cloning process, we have a detailed video that covers all the nuances and steps involved.

Creating an account with Jotform is straightforward and the gateway to numerous possibilities. First, visit the Jotform website and click on the 'Sign Up' button. You'll be prompted to enter basic information like your email, username, and password. It's important to choose a strong, unique password to ensure the security of your account, especially as a tax preparer handling sensitive client information. Once your account is set up, take a moment to explore the dashboard. Here, you'll find various options to create forms, access templates, and manage your submissions.

While today's lesson doesn't delve deeply into cloning forms, it's worth noting that cloning is a powerful feature you'll soon master. Cloning allows you to replicate existing forms, either your own or others', given that you have the necessary permissions. This can be a great time-saver and efficiency booster, allowing you to maintain consistency across various forms. Stay tuned for our detailed video on cloning, where we'll guide you step-by-step through the process, ensuring you're well-equipped to handle this aspect of Jotform. In the meantime, familiarize yourself with your new Jotform account and explore its many features. This foundational knowledge will be invaluable as you progress to more advanced tasks like form cloning.