The accounting world can be pretty competitive. To win new clients and stand out from the crowd, you need to refine the way you communicate your offer. This is where proposal software can help.
In this article, we’ll explain:
Before a new customer decides to work with you, they probably have a lot of questions they need answering. For example, they might need to know:
The information you provide in this context is critical, but so is how you provide it. If you want to impress prospects, you’ll need to do more than send them a Word doc. You need a business proposal that’s carefully crafted, custom-branded, and professional.
You also need a way of systematising and standardising the proposal process, allowing you to communicate effectively with clients at scale. This is where proposal software comes in.
Proposal software streamlines and automates the processes involved in creating, managing, and signing client proposals. It allows you to do more with less, improving the chances of you impressing prospective clients while saving you valuable time.
Accountants are too busy to spend hours crafting individual sales proposals. As your firm grows, you need a dedicated system for managing the proposal process. With the right proposal software, you can:
While proposal software manages the client pitch and pricing stage, firms also need tools for gathering documents and onboarding info securely before sending a proposal. That’s where Content Snare fits in: it helps accountants collect tax info, ID documents, and engagement form responses using a secure, branded client portal.
According to a user survey, businesses using Content Snare see a 52% reduction in onboarding errors and a 67% drop in stalled client projects.
Sign up for a 14-day Content Snare trial to see it in action.
With so many proposal software options to choose from, it can be hard to know where to start. So to help you, we’ve narrowed down the field to our favourite ten. In no particular order, here are our top picks.
G2 rating: 4.7 (out of 5)
Pricing: Free option available, with paid plans starting at $19 per month per user
Free trial: Yes, PandaDoc offers a 14-day free trial
PandaDoc is a cloud-based document management platform. It’s designed to help businesses create, manage, and sign online documents with ease, including proposals and contracts. Here’s what it offers:
One of the best things about PandaDoc is its simplicity and ease of use, as evidenced by its excellent customer reviews. There’s also a free version that offers unlimited e-signatures and document uploads, making it a great choice for businesses of all sizes.
G2 rating: 4.5
Pricing: Starting at $35 per month per user
Free trial: Yes
Another cloud-based proposal software, Qwilr helps businesses create beautiful proposals and quotes. It’s primarily aimed at salespeople, but accountants will find its powerful features and automation useful in winning new clients. Its key features include:
We love the way Qwilr proposals work. You can share them via a URL rather than as an attachment, and they look more like an interactive webpage than a traditional document. That said, it’s not the cheapest option on the market.
G2 rating: 4.6
Pricing: Three levels: Starter ($79 per month), Professional ($169 pm), and Scale ($399 pm)
Free trial: Yes, Ignition offers a free 14-day trial
Ignition is a proposal software platform that allows businesses to sell, bill, and get paid for their services in one place. Unlike most of the options on this list, Ignition is designed specifically for accountants, bookkeepers, and other professional services firms. Here’s what it offers:
Ignition also offers seamless integrations with your existing tech stack, including popular accounting software such as QuickBooks and Xero.
G2 rating: 4.3
Pricing: Starting at $15 per month per user
Free trial: Yes
QuoteWerks is a proposal and quoting software that leverages your existing tech stack to drive automated workflows and quote creation. It’s designed to bridge the gap between your CRM and accounting software. Here are some of its key features:
QuoteWerks excels when it comes to integrations. It seamlessly connects to all your current systems and tools, bringing together all your sales and financial data in one place.
G2 rating: 4.4
Pricing: $19 per month for one user, $39 pm for two users, $79 pm for unlimited users
Free trial: Yes, HoneyBook offers a free 7-day trial
Described as “mission control for your business,” HoneyBook is a complete system for managing new customers, from first contact to first payment. Its features span invoicing, contracts, process automation, and client onboarding. In terms of proposals, here’s what it offers:
By packaging proposals up as a bundle containing an invoice, contract, and payment option, HoneyBook aims to reduce back-and-forth and get customers signed up faster. It’s an interesting and fairly unique approach.
G2 rating: 4.5
Pricing: Starting at $6.80 per month for up to five clients, with three higher pricing tiers
Free trial: Yes, FreshBooks offers a free 30-day trial
FreshBooks will be a familiar name to most accounting professionals. It’s a popular accounting and invoicing platform that covers expenses, payments, time tracking, and reporting. It also offers proposal functionality, including:
FreshBooks is a solid choice for accountants looking for an all-in-one tool spanning everything from bookkeeping and invoicing to proposals and payments. But if you are already happy using an alternative accounting platform, you’ll want to look elsewhere.
G2 rating: 4.7
Pricing: Starting at $49 per month per user
Free trial: No, but you can book a free demo
Proposify is a popular cloud-based proposal software that helps businesses streamline the creation and management of proposal documents. Ultimately, it’s designed to help you close more deals faster.
Although Proposify is focused more on traditional sales teams, with the majority of their customers being in the marketing and advertising space, there are tons of features that top accounting firms will find useful, including:
In terms of customer ratings, Proposify has one of the highest rankings on this list. On the flip side, however, it’s also one of the most expensive, which might put some smaller businesses off.
G2 rating: 4.8
Pricing: Starting at $10 per month per user or $8 per month if you pay annually
Free trial: Yes
Prospero is a great option if you want unlimited proposals for a decent price. It also includes an AI writing assistant to help with proposal writing and a proposal analytics tool to help users better understand if their proposals are meeting the targets that they are aiming for.
You can connect the software with Stripe, Quickbooks, and other software tools your business might use.
Other features include a content library, templates, and live chat support.
Monthly pricing starts at $10 for one team member and $8 if you pay annually. After that, it has a sliding scale.
Proposal software is a great way to win new clients. But once those deals are closed, how do you ensure a smooth onboarding experience? The answer is with Content Snare.
From custom-branded forms to automated reminders, Content Snare is packed full of features to help you gather client information and streamline the onboarding process. Ready to give it a try?
Tools like Ignition are purpose-built for accounting and bookkeeping firms. Others, like PandaDoc and Proposify, offer general business proposal features with high customizability.
Yes, most tools on this list support integrations with Xero, QuickBooks, and secure client portals like Content Snare, which allows for seamless workflows between proposal creation and onboarding.
Use an ISO 27001-certified platform like Content Snare to request and track sensitive documents (ID verification, tax returns, onboarding forms) securely. Then follow up with a proposal built in Ignition or another tool.
Nicholas Edwards is a content writer from the UK.
