Work with Boilerplates

Boilerplates are blocks of standardized text that do not change often and can be reused over and over in proposals. For example, you can create boilerplates that describe a project approach or plan, or an opportunity, or a campaign, or a specific firm's history, or a contact's expertise.

You can create boilerplates to describe opportunities, projects, firms, contacts, and campaigns. Keep in mind that boilerplates are written and formatted for use in published content, such as proposals, [are there others?]. Use the Text field's formatting toolbar to apply appropriate text formats that match those used in proposals.

Note: The Boilerplate application is available in CRM Plus only.

Click Boilerplate on the Applications list (far left pane of the workspace) to display the boilerplate on the Overview tab.

Add a New Boilerplate

To add a new boilerplate, click + Add Boilerplate. On the Add Boilerplate form, enter a name for the boilerplate, a brief description of its purpose, and the block of text that will be reused. Click to save the boilerplate and make it searchable from the search type drop-down list.

In the Text field, click to display the formatting toolbar and format the text block appropriately for use in proposals and other published content.

Edit a Boilerplate

You can edit boilerplates either on the Overview tab or from the Edit Boilerplate form. On the Overview tab, edit each field (name, description, and text) by clicking . You can also click on the Actions menu to display the Edit Boilerplate form where you can modify the fields as needed.

Copy a Boilerplate

When you copy an existing boilerplate, it's usually to repurpose some but not all the content of an existing text block. For example, if a firm has several business lines or practice areas, but you want to describe a specific one, copy an existing firm boilerplate and modify the name, description, and text fields to describe a different practice area or business line.

Select an existing boilerplate from the Find Boilerplate drop-down list. On the Actions menu, click to copy the selected boilerplate. The boilerplate form is displayed with all its fields prepopulated. Modify the field information to suit your needs.

Delete a Boilerplate

To delete an existing boilerplate, select it and click the option on the Actions menu on the Overview tab. To delete a boilerplate from the Add/Edit Boilerpate form, click .

Search a Boilerplate

The Find Boilerplate lookup is composed of a search type drop-down (left) and a text field (right). In the text field, enter a search name to locate all the search records with that name, then scroll through the list and select the search record you want to use. From the search type drop-down, click to select one of these search options:

• ALL — Use this predefined search option to search for all boilerplates available in the database. Scroll through the drop-down list and select the boilerplate you want to use or repurpose.
• Saved Search — If available, select a search that you previously created and saved.
• Custom... — Use this advanced search method to find boilerplates based on your search criteria. The Custom Search form displays a number of default fields that you can include or exclude from the form to achieve more or less granular search results.

Run a Custom Boilerplate Search

Custom searches allow you to target specific types of boilerplates that you want to view, copy, or modify. It's recommended that you create a name for each custom search, and enter search criteria to refine your search results. For example, if you want to search for all boilerplates related to Projects for the period January to March 2016, enter 1st Quarter Projects 2016 for your search name. Click Apply to run the search and return results based on your search criteria. Click Save to save the named search to the search drop-down list for reuse.

If you want to remove all search criteria fields, click x Clear All. When you remove all the default search criteria fields and run a search, Deltek automatically returns all boilerplate records.

If you want to add back one or more of the default fields, click + Add Field, and select a field option from the drop-down list. Complete the search criteria fields by entering text or selecting an option from drop-down list as appropriate. Click Apply to run the custom search. Click Save to save the custom search to the search type drop-down list.

Edit a Custom Boilerplate Search

To edit one of your saved custom searches, click on the search type drop-down list, and select a saved custom search. On the Edit Custom Boilerplate Search form, you can click Rename Search to change the custom search name. You can also remove or add search criteria fields to create a new search that suits your needs. Click Delete Search to delete the custom search from the search type drop-down list.