Proposal Pricing Builder
Construct transparent project quotes. Break down costs by line item to show clients exactly where their budget is going.
Budget Split
Budget Allocation
Total Quote: $13,900
Biggest Cost Driver
The largest phase is Development, consuming 43% of the budget.
Strategic Mix
Check if you are charging enough for high-value Strategy/Design work vs low-value execution.
Effective Rate
The average hourly rate across all 130 hours is $107/hr.
Execution Steps
Add line items for each phase of the project (e.g. Discovery, Design, Dev).
Set the 'Hourly Rate' and 'Estimated Hours' (Qty) for each item.
The tool calculates the Total Project Price and visualizes the budget distribution.
Use the category breakdown to justify costs.
Pro Strategy
- Group small items into phases (e.g. 'Development Phase') to avoid line-item vetoes by clients.
- Always include a 'Project Management' line item (usually 10-15% of hours) to cover communication time.
- If the total is too high, ask the client which phase they want to reduce scope on, rather than just lowering your rate.
Core Concepts
Price Transparency
Clients trust proposals that explain the 'Why' behind the price. Detailed breakdowns reduce sticker shock.
Value Anchoring
Showing high-value phases (Strategy) alongside commodity phases (QA) helps justify the blended rate.
Option Tiering
In a real proposal, offer 3 versions of this budget (Basic, Standard, Premium) to give the client choice.
What is Proposal Pricing Builder?
This tool uses a bottom-up estimation method. It aggregates individual tasks and costs to arrive at a total project fee. Visualizing the budget split helps clients understand the complexity of the work.
Best For
- • Creating Statements of Work (SOW).
- • Budgeting for internal projects.
- • Explaining costs to stakeholders.
Limitations
- • Estimates are only as good as the input assumptions.
- • Doesn't account for risk/contingency (add a buffer line item).
Alternative Methods
Project Rate Estimator
Top-down estimation based on total hours and risk.
Industry Applications
See how this methodology generates real revenue uplift in different sectors.
Web Dev Agency
Clients rejecting $50k quotes.
Broke quote down into 4 phases. Visualized that $20k was 'Custom Integrations'.