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A proposal is the customer-facing version of an estimate. It takes the work you priced in the Calculator and presents it as a clean, branded document the customer can read, review, and sign online. You start it from the estimate’s breakdown and then personalize it before sending.
Proposals are available when they’re turned on for your branch. If you don’t see the Generate Proposal button, your branch isn’t set up for proposals yet — check with your manager.

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Before you start

You generate a proposal from a finished estimate. Build and save the estimate in the Calculator first, all the way to the Overall Job Breakdown step. The proposal pulls its services, prices, photos, and branding directly from that breakdown, so the more complete the estimate, the better the proposal looks.
You don’t have to mark the estimate Sold to create a proposal. In fact, the proposal is usually what gets the customer to say yes — you send it, they sign, and then you mark the estimate Sold.
An estimate created with the From Scratch option skips this step. It opens directly on its proposal, where you add the line items yourself — see Create an estimate from scratch.

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Generate the proposal

1

Open the estimate's breakdown

Open the estimate in the Calculator and go to the final Overall Job Breakdown step. This is the complete, itemized summary with the calculated total.
2

Click Generate Proposal

On the breakdown, press Generate Proposal. Menaia builds the proposal from the estimate and opens it for you.
3

Land on the Proposal Preview

You’re taken to the Proposal Preview — the editable, customer-facing layout of the proposal. This is where you personalize it before sending.
The Generate Proposal button only appears the first time. Once a proposal exists for that estimate, the button becomes View Proposal, so you can reopen the proposal any time instead of creating a duplicate.

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What’s on the Proposal Preview

The preview is the proposal as the customer will see it, with a few editable areas just for you. From top to bottom you’ll find:
Your company logo and details, plus a Sent Date once the proposal has been sent. At the top of the page, a status badge reflects the underlying estimate’s state.
The To block shows the customer and the job address. The From block shows the salesperson whose name and contact details appear on the proposal — you can change who that is from a dropdown here.
A personal message to the customer. It starts empty — add one to make the proposal feel tailored. (See Edit the note and price display.)
Your company’s “about” section, customer reviews for your branch, and any photos or videos you attach to the proposal or to individual line items.
An optional section for custom terms, allowances, or notes about the work. It starts empty — add one when you want to spell out something specific for the customer. (See Edit the note and price display.)
The itemized list of work, grouped by work area. You control whether unit and total prices are shown to the customer here.
Subtotal, any discount, taxes, total, required deposit, an optional Payment Schedule (when it’s turned on for your branch), and the payment options the customer can choose from (including financing, when offered).

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Set who the proposal is from

In the From block, use the salesperson dropdown to choose whose name, phone, and contact details appear on the proposal. It defaults to the person who created the estimate, which is usually exactly right — change it only if someone else should be the customer’s point of contact.

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Attach photos and videos

To make the proposal more convincing, you can add media:
  • Proposal-level media — photos or videos for the job as a whole.
  • Line-item media — attach photos or videos to a specific service so the customer can see exactly what that work involves. Look for Attach photos or videos for this line item under each item, then Upload Media.
Media you add here only shows on the proposal — it doesn’t change the estimate’s pricing.

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Set up a payment schedule

Video: How to Set Up a Payment Schedule (1:50)

When payment schedules are turned on for your branch, the Price Summary includes a Payment Schedule section, just below Required Deposit. A payment schedule breaks the total into named payments — for example a deposit, a progress payment, and a final payment — so the customer can see exactly what they’ll pay and when.
If you don’t see a Payment Schedule section, it isn’t turned on for your branch yet — check with your manager.
1

Open the editor

In the Payment Schedule section, click Add Payment Schedule (or the pencil icon if a schedule already exists). The Payment schedule editor opens, showing the proposal’s total price at the top. If your branch requires a deposit, the schedule may already include a Project Deposit payment based on your branch’s deposit settings.
2

Add a payment

Click Add Payment and give it a name (for example, Deposit or Final Payment). Enter its amount, then use the $ / % toggle to choose whether that amount is a fixed dollar figure or a percentage of the total. A percentage can’t be more than 100.
3

Attach line items (optional)

Use + Add Items on a payment to tie specific services from the Service Breakdown to it, so the customer can see what each payment covers.
4

Balance the schedule

As you edit, a running total shows how much of the proposal is scheduled, with a progress bar. When the payments match the total, you’ll see a Fully Scheduled badge; if they add up to more than the total, you’ll see how much you’re over and won’t be able to save until you bring it back down.
5

Save

Click Save schedule. The schedule appears in the Price Summary and travels with the proposal to the customer. If you remove every payment, the button becomes Remove schedule. Click Cancel to discard your changes.
If you change the proposal’s pricing or line items after building a schedule, the Payment Schedule section shows a reminder to review and update it, so the payments stay in sync with the latest total.
When it’s time to bill a payment, create its invoice from the project’s Invoices tab — see Invoice a scheduled payment.

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Save your work

Your personalization is saved as you go, and you can press Save as Draft at any time to keep the proposal as a draft without sending it. A draft is fully editable and the customer can’t see it yet.

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What’s next

Personalize the note and prices

Add a message to the customer and choose how prices are displayed.

Send the proposal

Email the proposal to your customer with a secure link to review and sign.