Building Proposals

A proposal is your chance to make a great first impression. Gilded's document builder gives you a rich editor, reusable sections, automatic auto-fill fields, and a live preview so you can see exactly what your client will receive.

Starting a New Proposal

From your event detail page, click Proposal in the action panel. This opens the document builder.

To start from a template, use Load template in the builder's toolbar once it opens. Templates pre-fill your sections so you can customise from there rather than starting from scratch — note that loading one replaces whatever is already in the document, and Gilded warns you before it does.

The Builder Layout

The builder has two main areas:

• Left panel — where you add and edit sections
• Right panel — a live preview that updates as you type

Everything you change on the left is instantly reflected on the right, so you always know what the finished document looks like.

Adding Sections

The Section Library sits to the left of the document as you build. Click any section in it to add that section to your document. On a narrow screen it collapses behind a Browse Section Library button instead. For proposals, you will see options like:

• Welcome / Introduction
• About Us
• Services Offered
• Pricing / Investment
• Timeline
• What's Not Included

Click any section to add it to your document. You can add as many sections as you need.

Editing Content

Each section has a rich text editor where you can:

• Format text with bold, italic, and underline
• Create bulleted and numbered lists
• Add headings within the section
• Adjust alignment

Write naturally — this is your pitch to the couple. Be specific about what you are offering, what makes your approach unique, and what they can expect.

Using Auto-Fill Fields

Auto-fill fields are placeholders that Gilded replaces with real data when the document is previewed or sent. Type them using double curly braces:

• {{client_name}} — the client's name
• {{event_date}} — the wedding date
• {{venue_name}} — the venue name
• {{total_price}} — the package price
• {{deposit_amount}} — the required deposit
• {{remaining_balance}} — the remaining balance (calculated automatically)
• {{business_name}} — your business name
• {{planner_name}} — your name

These fields pull from the event details and your business settings, so you never have to manually type client names or dates into your documents.

Setting Pricing — the Package Panel

Each proposal carries its own pricing. Open the Pricing & Payment Schedule panel in the builder to set:

• Package name — the offering this proposal represents (e.g., "Day-of Coordination", "Full Planning")
• Total — the full price for this offering
• Deposit and balance — or a multi-installment payment schedule with custom labels and due dates
• Use saved package — pull pricing from a saved package template you set up in Settings > Packages, then adjust per client

The package name appears as a subtitle under the document title on the client-facing view, so it's clear which option they're looking at.

Offering Multiple Payment Options

If you want to let the client choose how they pay, the Pricing & Payment Schedule panel lets you add more than one payment schedule — for example a "Pay in full" option alongside a "3-installment plan." Add each option with its own label and installments, and mark one as Recommended.

Here's how it behaves:

• One schedule (the default). Nothing changes — the document shows that single schedule, exactly as before. No chooser appears.
• Two or three schedules. The options render right inside your Your Investment section (wherever the {{payment_schedule}} field sits). On the client's link, they appear as a selectable list — the client picks the one that fits their cash flow before they can approve or sign. The recommended option is badged but not pre-selected, so the client makes a deliberate choice.

Once the client chooses, their selection locks in: only the chosen plan shows from then on (on the signed PDF and the event), and its deposit and due dates become the schedule you bill against. The event detail records which option they picked ("client chose 2 of 3 options").

If you download the PDF and email it yourself instead of sending the link, the PDF lists all the options read-only so the client can still see their choices — they just confirm their pick with you directly.

The choice carries over from a proposal to its contract automatically, so the client doesn't pick twice.

Section Options

When editing a section, you'll see toggles at the bottom of the editor:

• Planner photo — displays your profile headshot next to that section's content. Great for "About Me" or "Meet Your Planner" sections to make the proposal feel personal. Upload your photo in Settings > Profile first.

Rearranging Sections

Drag and drop sections to reorder them. Grab the handle on the left side of any section and move it to the position you want.

Applying a Brand Preset

In the builder toolbar, you can select a brand preset to style your document. This applies your logo, color palette, fonts, and footer settings. If you set a default preset in Settings, it will already be applied.

Previewing and Saving

The live preview on the right shows you exactly what your client will see. You can also download a PDF preview to review offline.

Your document saves automatically as you work. When you are satisfied, head back to the event page — your draft will be waiting in the documents section, ready to send.

Next Steps

Learn about Building Contracts if you need a signed agreement, or skip ahead to Sending Documents when your proposal is ready to go.