Write a proposal

A draft proposal opens in the editor, which has the same menus and formatting toolbar as Documents. Its sections are listed in order, and each is edited where it is shown. Changes save on their own a moment after you stop typing; the page bar shows Saving…, then Saved.

Sections

A proposal is made of sections. Add section at the end of the proposal adds one of these, and Insert in the menu bar adds one after the section you are working in:

Add section and Insert also list the team's saved sections. Adding one copies it into the proposal.

A bar at the top of each section shows what kind of section it is. Drag the section by the grip at the start of that bar, or use its arrows, to move it. Its ⋯ menu duplicates it, hides it from the client, keeps it as a saved section or deletes it. A hidden section stays in the draft but is not on the client's page, in the PDF or in emails.

The acceptance step always comes last. It is not a section, so it cannot be moved or removed.

Text

Text sections, and the introduction above a pricing section or timeline, are written in place, as in Documents. The toolbar above the proposal is the one Documents has: undo and redo, the paragraph style (normal text, three heading sizes or quote), bold, italic and underline, bulleted and numbered lists, and a link. The Format menu has the same commands and Clear formatting. They act on the text that has the cursor, and are unavailable while the cursor is in a price or a name.

Pasted text keeps its formatting: headings, lists, bold, italic and links pasted from a word processor stay, and pasted Markdown becomes the same formatting.

Fields

Insert field, in the toolbar or the Insert menu, adds a field such as the client's first name or the proposal's number. The field shows as written, {{client.firstName}}, in the editor, and is filled in on the client's page, in the PDF and in emails. When you send, the send check lists any field that would be empty, such as a client with no company.

Placeholders from starters

Text a starter expects you to replace is marked, and an example price is labelled Example price. Click marked text to select it; typing replaces it. Changing an example price's name or amount makes it yours. The bar under the proposal shows how many are left, and Next placeholder, in the toolbar or the Edit menu, moves to the next one. A proposal cannot be sent while any remain.

Pictures, video and files

Pictures come from Your images, through the image picker, which also uploads from your computer into Your images. A video address must be a YouTube, Vimeo or Loom address; the client's page plays it, and the PDF shows its address. A Screen Recorder recording plays on the client's page only when it was made by a member of the proposal's team.

Two people editing

When two people edit the same draft, changes to different sections are both kept. When someone else changed a section after you opened it, your change to that section is not saved: their version replaces yours on your page and a message says so. Make your change again on their version.

Comments

Comment on a section opens its comments. Comments are for your team only: they are never on the client's page, in the PDF, in emails or in an export. Resolve a comment when it is dealt with.

Look

Edit details in the File menu sets the proposal's accent colour, heading font, body font and logo. Choosing a Brand Kit takes its first colour and the fonts Magpie has from its typography. The business name, address and tax number come from Invoicing settings. New proposals start with the look in Proposals settings.

Preview

Preview opens the client's page as a signer sees it, with working choices. Nothing you do in a preview is recorded or saved. Merge fields are filled in, and one with no value yet, such as the client's company before a client is chosen, shows its name.

Rename, duplicate and delete

Select the title in the page bar to rename the proposal. Duplicate in the File menu makes a new draft from it, without its recipients or activity. Delete draft, also in File, deletes a proposal that was never sent; a sent proposal can be archived instead.

For more help, Contact support.