Proposal Builder

The Problem

Proposals are a crucial aspect of the home exterior industry, as they can greatly impact prospective business. When operating as a small contractor, it's essential to maintain a professional image and provide customers with a comprehensive proposal. Traditional industry practice involved using a paper document filled out with a pen or pencil, which often got lost, damaged, or proved difficult to keep track of. Both users and homeowners expressed frustration with the hassle of losing important documents. Nowadays, in 2023, a web-based proposal offers significant advantages for businesses. It allows customers to view proposals with high-resolution photos and share them with whomever they choose

The Solution

To start this project, we conducted interviews with numerous users to gather information on their proposal process. We asked about any limitations they experienced, any feedback from their customers, and what features they would like in a proposal tool.

Out of the 20 users we spoke with, nearly all had some form of proposal process in place. However, over half still relied on pen and paper, which resulted in many complications for themselves and their clients. They expressed a desire to appear more professional when presenting a proposal for a $20,000 job, while their customers wanted a record of their proposals. As a result, we developed the Proposal Tool for JobNimbus.

To address these concerns, we developed a web-based PDF builder that allowed users to create a PDF document that could be hosted by us and shared with their customers. This solution provided a more familiar and user-friendly experience, while still allowing for interactions such as signing the proposal or selecting financing options.

The PDF builder also allowed users to create a document that could be printed or downloaded, giving their customers the flexibility to use it as they see fit. We intentionally simplified the experience by limiting it to basic text blocks, estimates, and photos, making it less daunting for users.

The Results

The product reception and testing were so positive and successful, that we were able to see an user retention of 80% over 3 months with the new proposal tool. We saw a large number of proposals sent in the first 3 months, and over 75% of those were signed.