After you've built a new estimate or specs/selection sheet in CoConstruct, you can now put that information straight onto a proposal document along with other contractual language.
WHERE
Navigate to Proposals within the Financials section.
HOW
- Select + New Proposal
- Choose a Proposal to start with - Pick an existing proposal template or select Blank Proposal to build from scratch
- Click New Proposal to get started
PARTS & PIECES
Title - Name the document! Perhaps this is your initial proposal to your client or maybe it's a fuller construction contract or even just a preliminary design agreement.
Select to include what parts make sense from the options presented:
Introduction - Provide your client with an introduction to the proposal. Include such details as your company logo, general project information, and other opening remarks. Customize this information to fit your style and business using the formatting toolbar.
You can even insert important project data fields using the {{Info}} option (shown above). Insert the project's name, address, starting price, clients, and more. See these data points pull in from information you've put into the project once you preview the proposal.
Financials- Include the estimate and specs/selections you've crafted on the proposal document. Name this section to reflect what scope of work and price mean for you and this project. Then choose what to include and show.
What to Include?
- Specifications and Selections - Allows you to include all items from the Estimate and Specs & Selections pages on the proposal. Any specification and selection items on the project appear on the proposal.
- Specifications and Only Selections with Allowances - For FIXED PRICE projects, this allows you to show specification items as well as any selection items where you've indicated an allowance is given.
- Specifications - If only Specification items should be displayed on the proposal document.
- Selections - If only Selection items should be displayed on the proposal document.
What Options Should Show?
- Show Category Subtotals - Allows you to display a breakdown of price at the CATEGORY level of detail while still showing the cost of allowances and choices.
- Show Spec/Selection Subtotals - Provides an additional layer of pricing detail at the ITEM level.
- Hide $0.00 Subtotals - Option to hide pricing for any Category, Item, or Cost Line that might not have any costs associated with them. These will appear without any numbers.
- Show Cost Lines - Select to show the description, quantity, and unit type of the cost lines associated with each item.
- Show Cost Line Subtotals - Decide to further show the price allotted to each cost line. NOTE: For Fixed Price projects, this will show the TOTAL cost including any markups on all choices.
- Show Client Information - Decide if you'll show the Client Information scope of work text from the Item Details view of an item. This field often contains instructions or directions specific to clients about the various areas of work and choice making process.
- Show Choices Made by Clients - If your clients have already started making decisions, this option allows you to indicate those chosen pieces. The Proposal will mark the selected choices in bold and provide you a total of decided selections at the bottom of the proposal.
- Show Tax Separately - For project's where you've set up a tax, choose to line item the total amount of tax calculated on the project separately at the bottom of the estimate section.
Financing* - On projects ranging between $5,000 - $100,000, elect to include the option to apply for financing directly on the proposal. Clients receive an option to apply with Lightstream Financing for financing the project.
*Financing available for accounts located in the US
Selection Schedule - Include a section detailing the deadlines for selections to your clients. Name this section whatever makes sense to your business and process knowing it will auto populate with a list of the selections on the project and the corresponding deadlines you've indicated.
Allowance Summary* - Provide your clients with a concise list of all the allowances you've set up on this project plus their dollar amounts. Give this section a title that suits your business and process.
*appears on Fixed Price projects only
Closing - Finish out your proposal with any final contractual or agreement language you might need the client to agree to. Just like with the introduction text at the beginning, you can format this to suit your needs. Have an official contract document already? Simply copy and paste any of this text into CoConstruct to pull information all in one place.
Files - Select if you'd like to include files or photos on the proposal. Use the Section Heading field to give the section a title, then click +Add to add a file from the project files, or from your computer.
Signature Lines - Select if you'd like signature lines to appear on the proposal then decide which clients and builders should appear on the document, and how you want them to be labeled. Want to send the proposal electronically to these parties for approval? Check the box for requesting signature electronically.
Send by Email - Any clients selected to electronically sign the proposal automatically appear here for email notifications. Decide if there are any additional clients or builders to notify about the proposal.
FINALIZING THE PROPOSAL
Once you've gotten the desired text and details, Save & Preview the proposal to get a good look at the end result. Use this to check your work before Releasing the Proposal.
UPDATING THE BASE PRICE: Note for Fixed Price Projects
If you're running a Fixed Price project in CoConstruct, remember an important step in putting together scope and price is setting the client's price for the project. This number, called the Base Price, defaults to $0.00. These can be updated and changed as needed.
When generating a proposal for your estimate with a breakdown of price (putting in Category, Spec/Selection, or Cost Line subtotals), the system will double check all the math before you're able to release the Proposal. If the Base Price number entered does not mathematically add up to the total of Category/Item prices displayed, the system will ask you to update the Base Price number to match. Simply click "Update to $..." to correct the math.
Note: This enhanced proposal function is only available on CoConstruct Core, Standard, and Plus plans.