Send the proposal as something they can keep
A proposal should arrive as a document the client can save, forward and reread without you present. Cover what they get, what you need from them, when it starts, and what it costs. One clear offer beats three options that delay the decision.
Then track where it stands, so a proposal nobody answers does not sit unattended for a fortnight. Follow up at a set point after it goes out, because a proposal with no follow-up is a guess, and keep the versions in one place so you always know which offer is live.
Turn the yes into tasks
The moment a client agrees, capture what was actually promised: the scope, the start date, the inputs you need from them. Attach those as tasks so commitments from a good call do not evaporate by Monday. Do it while the conversation is fresh, and your next session starts with delivery.
Verbal promises fade fastest, so write them at the moment they are made and let the tasks carry them. Contracts can sit alongside with linked tasks for the pieces that need tracking. Two minutes now saves a week later.
Raise the invoice the moment work starts
Most solo practices invoice when they finally sit down to admin, which is a week after the work began. Raise it as part of starting: an invoice ready to send, so the client can pay the day it arrives. Send it with a clear description of what the payment covers.
Payment by card removes the friction of bank details and reminders, and if the invoice is easy to pay, most people simply pay it. Chase nothing you have already made easy for them.
Keep the path in your CRM
Proposal, contract, invoice and payment belong next to the lead record, so a colleague picking up the file can see where things stand without asking you. Ask what slips between each step today, and you will usually find the delay in one of the gaps.
In QwikSol, you send a proposal as a PDF and track acceptance, send contracts with linked tasks, and raise an invoice with a public pay page so clients can pay by card through Stripe. Stripe accounts and transactions are billed by Stripe, which is worth saying plainly when you explain how clients pay.
- Send every proposal as a document they can save and forward.
- Capture promises as tasks the moment the client agrees.
- Raise the invoice when work starts, not when admin catches up.