Proposal Pre-Send Checklist: 28 Things to Check Before You Hit Send

Most proposals do not fail because of one big mistake. They fail because of a handful of small ones: a name spelled wrong, a missing exclusion, a price that does not match the scope, a link that does not open on a phone.

A short checklist catches nearly all of them. Copy this one, run through it before every proposal, and adjust it to your own work.

The checklist

Content

• The client's name and company are spelled correctly everywhere
• The project name matches what the client calls it
• The opening describes their goal in your own words, not a copy of their brief
• Nothing is left over from a previous proposal, such as another client's name or old numbers
• There is no filler opening like "I am excited to submit this proposal"

Scope

• Every deliverable is specific, with quantities and formats
• The number of revision rounds is stated
• What is not included is written down
• Anything the client must provide, such as content or access, is listed with a date
• "Done" is defined, so there is a clear point where the work is accepted

Price and payment

• The total is easy to find
• The total matches the scope, with no extras left out or included by accident
• The deposit and balance are stated in plain numbers
• The payment schedule matches the timeline
• The currency is clear if the client is in another country
• The way the client pays is simple and works on a phone

Timeline

• Dates are real, not guesses you would struggle to meet
• The start date depends on the deposit being paid
• Holidays and your other commitments are accounted for
• There is an expiry date, so the offer does not stay open forever

Terms

• The terms are short and in plain language
• It says whether the deposit is refundable
• It says what happens if either side cancels
• It says when the final files are handed over
• It explains how changes outside the scope are handled

Presentation and delivery

• It reads well on a phone
• Spelling and numbers have been proofread, ideally by reading it aloud
• Your branding is consistent: logo, colors, fonts
• The client can sign and pay without creating an account or downloading anything
• The link works in a private browser window, so you know the client's view

Before you press send

• You know what you will do if you have not heard back in three days
• The email or message that goes with it is short and friendly
• You have copied the link and checked it once more

That is 28 items, and most take a few seconds. The ones that matter most are the scope, the price, and whether the client can say yes easily.

How to use it

Keep it as a template. Paste it into your notes app and tick it off each time. The point is not to read it once. It is to run it every time, especially when you are in a hurry.

Customize it. Add anything that has caught you out before. If you once sent a proposal with the wrong rate, add "rate checked" to the list.

Do the checks in order. Content and scope problems are cheaper to fix early than price and terms problems found late.

Check on the device your client will use. Many clients read proposals on their phone first. If it is awkward to read there, fix that before sending.

What the checklist is really testing

Almost every item comes back to three questions:

1. Is it clear? Could the client explain to a colleague exactly what they are getting?
2. Is it complete? Are scope, price, timeline, and terms all there, and do they agree with each other?
3. Is it easy? Can they say yes in a few minutes, without any extra steps?

If the answer to all three is yes, your chances improve a lot. If a proposal still does not land, why freelance proposals get rejected covers the other common causes. For the writing itself, see how to write a freelance proposal that actually gets signed and our freelance proposal template. And to keep the project on track once it starts, read how to handle scope creep without losing the client.

After you send

Sending is not the end. If you have not heard back in a few days, follow up on a schedule. Our guide to how to follow up on a proposal has email templates for every situation.

If you use Draftedly, you can save this kind of structure as a reusable template and send each proposal as a link your client can read, sign, and pay a deposit on. The free plan includes 10 sent proposals.