Writing proposals as an animator can be time-consuming and, even worse, BORING.

Being a visually creative person, you would probably rather spend your time working on your animation projects over making a bunch of proposals that might not even lead to an actual project. We get it! 

For many years, people would always use Microsoft PowerPoint and Microsoft Word to write basic proposals with text and some headlines. Then, Adobe Photoshop came in.

These tools are really great to use and help you develop your creativity; however, for businesses and professionals, like you, who get more clients as time goes by, you will have less time to craft proposals for clients.

Fortunately, there are now many proposal software solutions that you can use as an animator that will help you spend more time working on other things that need more attention and effort.

In this article, we’re sharing the best proposal software to make your proposal writing process easier and leave you with more time to do what you love.

When Choosing a Proposal Software Solution

Choosing a proposal software solution to use for your animation projects can be overwhelming, especially when you’re not familiar with using any of them.

Before purchasing or using a proposal software solution, you should ask yourself these questions:

• Does this software have a free trial?
• How much will the software cost after the trial?
• Is it user-friendly?
• Can the proposal design be customized?
• Will I be able to reuse the proposals I make?
• Does it have an e-signature feature?
• Can I send invoices and receive payments?
• Can the proposal software be integrated with other apps?
• Does it have a tracking and analytics feature?

Best Proposal Software Solutions for Animators

1) Proposify

Proposify is an interactive and mobile-friendly software solution to simplify the process of making an appealing animation proposal.

With Proposify, you can:

• Try it out with a free trial
• Create custom designs and reusable templates
• Collaborate with teams
• Manage proposals
• Electronically sign documents
• Request and accept payment from clients via Yes and Stripe
• Review analytics (such as the sections viewed, how long the proposal sections were viewed, and many more).
• Can be integrated with Slack, Zapier, and many other CRM systems.

The software is great to use for small and medium-sized businesses and even individuals who work in the marketing, advertising, and design industry.

Proposify is for you if you want a thorough proposal and don’t mind spending a lot of time coming up with detailed proposals.

If ever you encounter problems with the software, they have live chat, phone support, and email support to help you.

2) Better Proposals

Better Proposals is a simple proposal software that allows you to make aesthetically pleasing proposals for your animation clients.

It’s best for freelancers, agencies, and small companies that send lots of quotes.

With it, you can:

• Use the free trial feature
• Integrate CRMS and payment options such as Stripe, PayPal, Salesforce, Hubspot, Drift, Intercom, and more
• Customize proposals
• Import images and logos
• Use impressively designed templates
• Send and sign e-signatures
• Embed videos via Wistia, Vimeo, and YouTube
• Send proposals in more than 20 languages
• View proposals on any device
• Track your proposals to see where each proposal is in the sales process
• Get notified who signed your proposal
• Answer your clients’ questions while they read your animation proposal

Some users had a problem with adding multiple tables in a single proposal. If problems arise as you create your animation proposals, feel free to contact them on their website’s Help and Support Center.

3) PandaDoc

PandaDoc is a proposal software solution that allows you to quickly create, send, and electronically sign documents for your animation projects.

It has a great user interface with appealing designs and is mobile friendly.

With it, you can:

• Use a free trial
• Make proposals and quotes
• Add visual elements like images and videos
• Electronically sign documents
• Integrate PandaDoc with Salesforce, Hubspot CRM, HCM, ATS, Dropbox, Google Drive
• Get notified when your client opens and signs your proposal
• Send invoices and accept payments via Yes and Stripes

A downside to using it is that it’s a bit challenging to learn how to use. If ever you will encounter problems while using it, PandaDoc has available 24/7 support.

4) Qwilr

Qwilr helps you create mobile-friendly and engaging proposals with its user-friendly editing and quoting feature. It’s appealing for freelancers and creative professionals who prefer modern design.

With it, you can:

• Access proposal templates with different designs
• Reuse your favorite designs
• Embed videos, surveys, maps from the internet
• Send and receive electronic signatures
• Can be integrated with Salesforce, Slack, Quickbooks, Hubspot CRM, and more
• Send invoices and receive payments via Stripe and Yes
• Monitor how clients view your proposals (includes geolocation, time tracking, and link tracking)

According to some users, the software has limited customization features, non-existent analytics, and complex document management. To understand more about how to use it, they will be available to support you via email.

5) Prospero

Prospero is good to use for small businesses, entrepreneurs, animators, and other creative professionals. It allows you to turn proposals into invoices with just the click of your mouse.

With it you can:

• Enjoy a free trial
• Choose from a lot of ready-made content for developers, video artists, designers, artists
• Generate templates depending on your purpose for the proposal.
• It will ask you questions about your kind of work, rate, and project completion time.
• Can be integrated with Freshbooks.

Some common complaints Prospero users present are that the program lacks payment integrations, does not have a mobile app, and lacks customer support.

6) Proposable

Proposable is a proposal software for creating and managing proposals.  It makes the process simpler while also allowing you to create streamlined proposals with a mix of standardization and customization.

It has ready-made sections where you can show your past animation projects, pricing, details about yourself, and more.

With it, you can:

• Reuse content in your template library
• Get access to a wide range of templates
• Sign documents with your e-signature
• Customize your proposals using the drag-and-drop builder
• Send and track your proposals
• Get email and SMS notifications when your proposals are viewed
• Integrate data with your CRM system and other apps
• Use sales-intelligence tools such as a sales dashboard and proposal analytics

A key feature about Proposable is that you can view and reply to comments from your animation clients whenever they ask questions, ask for revisions, and accept your proposals.

7) BidSketch

BidSketch is a proposal software that you can use to create content and designs for your animation proposals. Most of its users are web designers and freelancers.

With it, you can:

• Use and reuse built-in proposal templates using text, images, quotes, tables, and video embeds
• Send electronic signatures
• Get notified when your proposal is viewed and exported as PDF
• Track the status of your proposals
• Automate approval messages
• Integrate it with hundreds of web apps
• Comment on proposals

BidSketch requires you to save sections or premade document sections that you would like to use for your animation proposals. It also has a section where you can include optional fees for cross-selling and up-selling opportunities.

Aside from the features mentioned above, you can use it to make client landing pages where they can view, approve, and comment on their proposal.

A downside to using it is that it doesn’t work well on mobile.

8) Nusii

Nusii is a software proposal that has professional templates, custom domain, tracking, automation, e-signatures, and more. With its ease of use, you’ll spend more time on making videos and communicating with clients instead of laboring over proposals.

Nusii has features such as event management, content marketing, social media, consulting, video production, content marketing, web design, and more.

With it, you can:

• Use a free trial
• Integrate online services such as Hubspot, Slack, Basecamp, and Trello
• Create an unlimited number of templates for your proposal
• Reuse templates
• Analyze and track the status of your proposals
• Receive and sign e-signatures
• Get notified when your animation prospect opens and accept your proposals
• Get notifications to remind yourself to send follow-ups after sending your proposals

Keep in mind that Nusii has very basic template options and lacks payment integrations. They provide assistance through email-based support.

9) Bonsai

Bonsai has a user-friendly and clean design for creative professionals in the writing, photography, videography, or animation field.

With it, you can:

• Use their free trial feature
• Create proposals and contracts
• Select from a huge selection of templates
• Send e-signatures
• Send invoices and payments via Yes, PayPal, Stripe, and Coinbase
• Track the status of your proposals
• Receive notifications for each interaction of your client with your proposal

What’s great about Bonsai is that it remembers the information you input. For example, when a client accepts a proposal, Bonsai automatically creates a contract. Then, when a client signs a contract, it generates the invoice.

10) Proposa

Proposa has intelligently designed proposals and a user-friendly design that looks and works well.

With it, you can:

• Create proposals and reuse content
• Use available stunning and modern templates
• Receive real-time notifications when your animation prospect reads your proposal
• View proposals on any device
• Track the status of every proposal and how they’re being viewed

What’s great about Proposa is that you’ll stay up-to-date about when and how often your prospects interact with your proposal. You will get notifications when your animation proposal is opened. It can even inform you of the location where it was opened.

In Closing

When choosing a proposal software solution for your animation project proposal, remember that there are different software you can use even outside of this list.

We suggest that you check out these software solutions and try their free trials to see which ones work best for you and your animation clients.

The proposal software that you use must be within your budget, have a user-friendly interface, have customizable and reusable templates, invoicing and payment options, and analytics features.

The best proposals are those that help save you time, effort, energy, and attract more animation clients.

If you’re seeking more tips about animation and its business side, make sure to get a copy of our free marketing handbook and sign up for our free masterclass.