Stop 4 of 8 · Weekly
The proposal
Scope, allowances, exclusions, a schedule window and a payment schedule, written as a Word file, plus the script for walking a client through it.
Six blocks, in this order
Lina's proposals have not changed shape in four years, and they should not. What changes is how long it takes to fill them.
| Block | The rule it follows |
|---|---|
| Scope by trade | Every room named, every trade listed, demo included |
| Allowances | From the selections sheet, with the settlement wording |
| Exclusions | Everything a client might assume is in |
| Schedule window | A window with a start condition, never a date |
| Payment schedule | Tied to milestones, not to weeks |
| What happens next | Deposit, selections deadlines, the site visit |
The schedule block is the one worth guarding. A proposal says the work runs about nine weeks from the day the cabinets are released, not that it starts on the fourteenth.
The proposal as a Word document
[upload the selections sheet and the consultation notes] Draft the proposal for the [Marlow] primary bath as a Word document, in this order: scope by trade with demo included, allowances taken from the selections sheet with the settlement wording, exclusions, schedule window expressed as a number of weeks from cabinet release, payment schedule tied to milestones, and next steps. Use only the allowance figures in the sheet. Anywhere you would need a number I have not given you, write it in square brackets and list every bracket at the end of the document. No start date, no finish date, no lead times.
The exclusions I keep forgetting
Read this scope and write the exclusions section. Cover what homeowners in a kitchen and bath remodel most often assume is included and is not: appliances, window treatments, moving furniture, unknown conditions behind walls and under floors, permit fees, structural work discovered at demo, and anything the client is supplying. One line each, plain language, no legal padding. Then list the three exclusions I should add that are specific to this scope. [paste the scope]
Presenting it
The proposal goes badly when it is emailed. It goes well when Lina reads it aloud in the showroom with the selections sheet on the table, and hands it over at the end.
The walkthrough script
Write me a walkthrough script for presenting this proposal in the showroom, about eight minutes. Start with what they told us they wanted and where the design answers it, then the scope, then the allowances with how the difference settles, then the exclusions, then the window and the payments. Give me the exact sentence I say for the two questions I always get: why is this more than they hoped, and can it be done faster. No apology in either answer.