A good proposal takes time – but not 3-4 hours. With the right templates and automations, the effort reduces to 30-60 minutes. The time gained flows into client work instead of copy-paste.
Why Proposals Take So Long
Typical process without a system:
- Search for old proposal that works as template (20 min)
- Adapt texts, replace old client names (30 min)
- Calculate services and prices (45 min)
- Fix formatting (20 min)
- Create PDF, check, correct (15 min)
Total time: 2-3 hours for a standard proposal.
What Can Be Automated
1. Template System
Instead of starting from zero each time: Modular building blocks that can be combined.
- Intro texts by industry
- Service blocks with standard calculations
- About-us and references as ready blocks
2. CRM Integration
Automatically transfer client data:
- Company name, contact person, address
- Industry (for appropriate intro texts)
- Previous projects (for reference selection)
3. Calculation Logic
Automate standard calculations:
- Day rates × effort = price
- Automatically apply discount tiers
- Optional services as add-ons
4. Document Generation
From structured data to finished PDF:
- Uniform layout
- Automatic numbering
- Digital signature option
Practical Setup: CRM + Notion + n8n
A typical workflow:
- CRM (Pipedrive, HubSpot): Set deal to "Create proposal"
- n8n workflow: Retrieve client data, duplicate Notion template
- Notion: Fill template with client data, insert service blocks
- Manual: Customize proposal (30 min)
- PDF export: Notion or external tool (e.g., Documint)
Time savings: From 3 hours to 45 minutes.
Building Service Blocks Right
Each block contains:
- Brief description (1-2 sentences)
- Scope of services (bullet points)
- Not included (delimitation)
- Calculation (hours × rate or flat rate)
Example block "Workshop Facilitation":
- 1 day preparation, 1 day execution, 0.5 day documentation
- 2.5 days × day rate = price
- Not included: Travel costs, follow-up sessions
Enabling Individual Customization
Automation doesn't mean every proposal looks the same:
- Required fields: What must be adapted? (Scope, timeline)
- Optional fields: What can be taken over? (Introduction, references)
- Creative zone: Where does customization make sense? (Problem analysis, solution approach)
Automation handles the busywork, creative work stays with humans.
Measuring Proposal Quality
Two metrics:
- Time to Proposal: Hours from inquiry to finished proposal
- Win Rate: Percentage of won proposals
Target: Time to Proposal under 2 days (including internal alignment), win rate over 30%.
How to Start
- Analysis: What proposal types exist? (3-5 categories are enough)
- Create template: One template per category, modularly structured
- CRM integration: Automatically transfer client data
- Iterate: Evaluate after 10 proposals, improve template
ROI comes quickly: 10 proposals × 2h savings = 20 hours in the first quarter.
If you want to accelerate your proposal process, we can check together which automations make sense for your setup. Schedule conversation