Roadmap for Creating a New Proposal Template

Proposal templates are pre-formatted to include particular styles, layouts, and information that can be saved and re-used on proposals. You might find it helpful to use this roadmap as a guide for creating a new proposal template.

Step	Procedure	Related Information
Create a Template
1	There are three methods for creating a proposal template: From scratch: Create and save templates that specifically reflect your company's styles including page layouts, font settings, graphics locations, and other details. Click Proposals > Templates > + Add Proposal Template to create brand new templates in the Templates application. Continue to Step 2 of this roadmap. From an existing template: If a new template is similar to an existing template, open Proposals > Templates and click Options > Copy at the end of the template's grid row. You can then edit and save the copied template to create a new template. Continue to Step 2 of this roadmap. From an existing proposal: After you build a proposal in Proposals > Custom Proposals, click Other Actions > Save Proposal as Template to save the proposal as a template. This is useful to quickly create a template that reflects the requirements that are included in a proposal that you have previously generated and saved.	Create a New Proposal Template
2	On the New Proposal Template dialog, enter the general proposal properties: Name (required), Category, and Description.	New Proposal Dialog Box
Define Template Properties
3	Define properties for the template. These apply as the template's default settings, including the title of the template.	Define the Proposal Properties
4	Define document properties for the template. These are the default properties for page orientation and margins.	Define Document Properties
Add Hub Records to the Template
5	Add hub records to the template. Drag the Record Vantagepoint element onto the template to display the Add Record dialog box: Select the hub from which you want to add the records. Choose a record from the selected hub to add to the template. You can do this by typing part of the name and selecting from the drop-down. Some common fields are available to add to the record. Select these field options. Specify the number of images you want to add to each record within the template. You can add more images later if desired. Click Add to add the records to the template. Vantagepoint inserts each record into the template.	Insert a Hub Record
6	Select the specific field information that you want to include for the record: Select the Text Box and drag it to the desired location on the record. Double-click on the text box to open the Edit Text dialog box. Click Insert Fields to open the Insert Fields dialog box. Use the search in the Select Fields to Add column to enter the name, or part of the name, of the field that you want to add. Vantagepoint displays fields that match the search criteria. Click the checkbox by each field that you want to add. Click the right arrow to add them to the Selected fields for this proposal. Vantagepoint inserts placeholders for each field in the template. These fields are populated with data when you merge and finalize the template.	Insert Field Information into a Proposal Insert Fields Dialog Box Edit Text Dialog Box
7	When you specify field information for the template, there are some hub fields that allow you to further specify the data that is selected for the template. For example, the Team grid in a project record displays a drop-down that allows you to specify All, Owner, Clients, or Vendor Firms. If you select a column that is a number, currency, or date, you can specify the format for that column. Click the link to open the Format Number, Format Date/Time, and Format Currency dialog boxes.	Format Currency Dialog Box Format Date/Time Dialog Box Format Number Dialog Box
8	Use the Manage Records dialog box to add or remove records on the template.	Add or Remove Records on a Proposal
Add Elements to the Template
9	Use the Proposal Builder to insert additional elements on the template. For example, text, images, and so on.	Work with Proposal Elements
10	Add section breaks to the template.	Insert Section Breaks Define Section Properties
11	Add pages to the template and format as needed.	Add Pages to a Proposal Define Page Properties
Save the Template
12	Save the record layout as a draft for editing later. This allows you to continue editing the template and make quick updates at one time instead of having to make changes to each individual record. It is helpful to keep the template in draft mode until you need to edit each record individually or until you are ready to merge and publish.	Save Record Layout as Draft
13	Merge and finalize the layout of the records. This separates the records from being a group and disconnects the template information from the hub so that it is no longer updated with changes from the hub record. It allows you to edit each record individually for this template without affecting the record in the hub.	Merge and Finalize Records
14	Save the proposal template. After a template is saved, it is available for reuse from either the Proposal Templates grid or from the Templates drop-down on the New Proposal dialog box.	Save the Proposal Template