In brief: Deliverable Types classify what a client receives and carry no rates or hours; the Primary Industry is one workspace label used only for context.

Applies to: Anyone planning a Job can create Deliverable Types inline. An Owner or Admin sets the Primary Industry.

See also: Service Types and Service Groups: What Each One Does covers the other half of the pair, Plan Stepper: How to Build a Job Plan Step by Step covers where types get created, and Creating Your Net Net Workspace: The Three Setup Steps covers where the industry is picked.

Deliverable Types classify what the client receives, like Website Build or SEO Sprint. They are not Service Types, which describe the kind of work your team does. You create one by typing a name while planning a Job, and it is reusable everywhere after that. The Primary Industry is a single label for the whole workspace, picked during onboarding and changeable later, used only for benchmarking and context.

You'll find them under Settings → Deliverable Types and Settings → Workspace.

Deliverable Types

A Deliverable Type answers one question: what kind of outcome is this?

Typical ones:

• Website Build
• SEO Sprint
• Monthly Content
• Brand Strategy
• App Development

How this differs from a Service Type

These two get mixed up constantly, so it is worth being blunt about it.

• A Service Type describes the kind of work being done. Design. Development. Project Management. The full picture is in Service Types and Service Groups: What Each One Does.
• A Deliverable Type describes what the client actually receives. A Website Build. An SEO Sprint.

One Website Build contains Design effort, Development effort, and Project Management effort. The deliverable is the outcome. The service types are the work that produced it.

If you can hand it to a client, it is a Deliverable Type. If it is a category of effort your team spends, it is a Service Type.

Creating one

You create Deliverable Types where you actually need them: inline, while you are working through Plan Stepper: How to Build a Job Plan Step by Step.

Type a name on the deliverable. Net Net saves it, and from then on it appears in the typeahead on every future deliverable in every Job. No trip to Settings, no setup step before you can plan your first Job. Everything else that sits on a deliverable is covered in Deliverables: Status, Due Dates, and Confidence Explained.

That lightness is deliberate. Classification you have to configure in advance is classification nobody uses.

Managing the list

Once your workspace has been running a while, Settings → Deliverable Types shows every type in use, when it was created, and how many deliverables carry it. That usage count is the useful column: it shows you at a glance which labels are doing real work and which ones were typed once and forgotten.

From there you can rename a type or remove it from the list. Removing a type takes it out of the picker going forward. Deliverables that already carry that label keep it, so nothing in your history changes.

Inline creation in a Job stays the main way types get made. The Settings screen is for tidying up, not for setting up.

What Deliverable Types do not do

They carry no rates and no hours.

They are a classification layer, not a planning layer. Naming a deliverable a Website Build does not set effort, does not set a price, and does not pre-fill anything. The plan is still yours to build.

What they give you is comparison. Once several Jobs have shipped a Website Build, that label is what lets you look across them in the Jobs Report and ask how they actually went.

The Primary Industry

When you create a workspace, the first onboarding step asks for the workspace name, the workspace URL, and one industry. The prompt reads: "Choose your primary industry that best describes your workspace." The rest of that flow is walked through in Creating Your Net Net Workspace: The Three Setup Steps.

You have to pick one to continue. The list opens on "Choose one" with nothing pre-selected, so nobody can slip through on a default.

The options

Eleven, in alphabetical order:

• Accounting & Financial Services
• Architecture & Engineering
• Consulting Services
• Creative, Design & Production
• Data, AI & Analytics
• IT & Managed Services
• Marketing & Advertising
• Other Professional Services
• Public Relations & Communications
• Software & App Development
• Web & Digital Development

Picking the right one

Most shops fit one of these cleanly. A few sit on a line, and the same two questions come up every time.

Websites or software? Building sites, stores, CMS work, and digital experiences is Web & Digital Development. Building applications, SaaS, and platforms is Software & App Development.

Do you deliver it or advise on it? If you execute the work, pick the category that matches the work. Consulting Services is for general management, strategy, and operations advisory. A marketing shop picks Marketing & Advertising, not Consulting.

Whichever describes the bulk of what you do is the right answer, and Other Professional Services is there for anyone the list does not cover.

What it actually affects

Almost nothing, and that is by design.

The Primary Industry does not touch your planning, your rates, your permissions, or your billing. It is a label that tells Net Net what kind of shop you are, and it feeds onboarding context and benchmarking against similar shops.

You can change it later in Settings → Workspace. It is a low-stakes edit with no confirmation step, because changing it does not change anything about how your workspace runs.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between a Deliverable Type and a Service Type?

A Deliverable Type is what the client receives. A Service Type is the kind of work your team does. One Website Build deliverable is produced by Design, Development, and Project Management effort. The first is the outcome, the second is the work.

How do I create a Deliverable Type?

Type a name on a deliverable while you are planning a Job. Net Net saves it immediately, and it appears in the typeahead on every future deliverable across every Job.

Do Deliverable Types affect hours or pricing?

No. They carry no rates and no hours. They are a classification layer only. Labeling something a Website Build does not pre-fill any part of your plan.

What happens if I remove a Deliverable Type from the list?

It disappears from the picker, and deliverables that already carry it keep it. Your history stays exactly as it was.

Do I have to give every deliverable a type?

No, it is optional. It only costs you the ability to compare that deliverable against similar ones in future reporting.

Can I change our Primary Industry after onboarding?

Yes, in Settings → Workspace. It is a low-stakes edit with no confirmation, because the industry does not touch planning, rates, permissions, or billing.

We do websites and apps. Which industry do we pick?

Whichever is the bulk of your work. Sites, stores, and CMS work point to Web & Digital Development. Applications, SaaS, and platforms point to Software & App Development.

Related articles

Service Types and Service Groups: What Each One Does is the companion to this article: kinds of work on one side, kinds of outcome on the other. Deliverables: Status, Due Dates, and Confidence Explained covers everything else that lives on a deliverable once it has a type, and Plan Stepper: How to Build a Job Plan Step by Step is where you create both. If you are still finding your footing, The Net Net Vocabulary: Every Term in the Product defines the terms and Creating Your Net Net Workspace: The Three Setup Steps walks through the onboarding step where the industry gets picked.

Updated on: 08/04/2026