Add and set up quote builder

Availability: Business* and Enterprise plan

*This feature is a part of our Advanced Pricing Tables add-on 

Our new quote builder block makes it easy to tailor quotes to your prospects' needs. Make inconsistencies and inaccuracies a thing of the past by empowering your sales team to create top-quality quotes and close more deals.

Join our live course to learn more about the entire quote-building process. 

Add and set up a quote builder block 

To start, add a quote builder block to your template, then click on it to set it up. To add the block, select the blue quick-add line between content blocks, then select Quote builder from the dropdown; alternately, you can drag and drop the block from the content blocks panel on the right.

In templates and documents, quote builder’s currency depends on the document value currency. When you add content library items, the quote builder block will inherit the default workspace currency.

Learn more about currency formatting here. 

You can use one of our predefined templates that contain a quote builder block with customized design settings.

To use this template go to the "Sales" category in our Template gallery.  

Add, reorder, and delete products

Adding products from your catalog

Start by selecting the quote builder block. Next, select +From catalog on the left, then select items from your catalog. Click here to learn more about product bundles in quote builder.

Once you add all products, select Save to get back to the template/document.

Adding custom products

Go here to learn how to edit or add custom products in quote builder. You and your teammates can easily add custom products, or simply edit products you’ve added from your catalog.

Searching for catalog items

You can search your catalog items by product name, SKU, description, custom field names, and their values. The search result will be shown in the following priority: 

1. Product name
2. Product SKU
3. Product description, custom field name the field's value

Additionally, you can search by using the Category name and the results will show all the items within the category.

Custom product fields

Custom product fields will be added to your quote; by default, they’ll be hidden from your recipients. To unhide a column from recipients, select Add column at the top right of a section, then select your custom column in the Show hidden dropdown.

Previewing product images

You and the recipients of your document can preview product images by selecting them. Preview mode includes all images added to the catalog.

Reordering products

You can reorder line items in a section or between different sections in your quote. To change the order of items in your quote, drag them by clicking and holding onto the area on the left of their name, then drop them to the desired location.

To reorder multiple items at once, press Cmd (on Mac) or Ctrl (on Windows) and select the items you'd like to move, then drag them to the desired place and drop them once you see a green line. 

Deleting products

To delete a product from the quote builder block, start by selecting Edit quote on the floating panel. Next, select the item you want to remove by clicking on the left to its name, then press 'Backspace' on your keyboard or click Delete at the top right of the section. You can also select the vertical ellipsis (three dots) menu on the far right of the item, then select Remove item.

To delete several items at once press Cmd (on Mac) or Ctrl (on Windows) and select the items you'd like to remove, then press Backspace on your keyboard or click Delete at the top right of the section.

Undo/Redo functionality

You can use Undo/Redo buttons to revoke any changes applied in the quote builder.

Manage quote builder columns

By default, the Price, Quantity, and Total columns are displayed in the quote builder editor mode. You can add additional columns by selecting Add column at the top right of a section. These additional columns include:

• Discount
• Tax
• Fee
• Multiplier
• Text
• Contract Term (for recurring pricing products)
• Savings (This is the total discount percentage for volume-based products, including catalog discounts and line item level discounts. It represents the overall percentage off the base price of the product.)
• Price per Item (line item subtotal/quantity - the price per unit, including discounts, taxes, and fees)
• Overall Total
• SKU
• Cost
• Custom Columns

To reorder a quote’s columns, drag and drop a column header once a green line appears. You’ll be unable to reorder Name and Total columns.

You can remove columns you’ve added or custom field columns by selecting the column header, then selecting Remove column.

Additionally, you can hide any column except the Title column by switching off "Show for recipient" toggle in the column header dropdown.  

Quantity

In Quote Builder, both negative (e.g., -2) and fractional (e.g., 2.5) quantities are supported. You can manually enter these values or import them from a CRM.

Negative and fractional quantities will be calculated into the line item total, which will then contribute to the overall Quote total and Document value.

Please note: Payments cannot be processed for Documents with a negative Document value.

Locking columns

If you want to prevent certain team members from editing specific columns, such as the Price column, in your quote, you can lock those columns. To do this, select the column header and turn on the Lock column option. This will restrict the editing of cell values in that column.

When a column is locked for editing, users with a Member role will be unable to:
- edit the values in this column
- hide or unhide it
- remove or rename the column

When the Quantity column is locked, a users with a Member role will be unable to set up QTY editing for the products in the section in question.

Other users on the account with an Admin or a Manager role will be able to perform these actions.

To easily preview how the quote will look for your recipients once you apply all the changes, select the "Design" tab. 

Rename quote builder sections and columns

You can rename sections and columns within quote builder.

To rename a section, select its title at the top left of a section, type the new name, then select Enter, or simply click outside the editing area.

To rename a column, select its header, type its new name, then simply click outside the editing area to save the new name.

Customize footer 

A quote’s footer allows you to manage the subtotal, total quantity of items, discount, fee, tax, and other values you’d like to display for your customers within the quote block and its sections.

When you add a quote builder block to your template, you’ll see the Section total line in the quote footer by default. To add rows to the quote section footer, select the “+” button, then add total quantity one-time or recurring subtotals and as many discount, tax, and fee lines to the section footer as you like. 

To remove a line, hover over it and select the vertical ellipsis (three dots) menu on the right, then select Remove line.

The quote footer allows you to display the total quantity of items, total discounts, fees, and taxes to be applied to all quote sections. To add lines to the quote footer, select the lines you need with the “+” button. You can add as many lines to the quote footer as you like.

Additionally, you can show before/after subtotals for discounts, fees, and taxes. To do this, select the vertical ellipsis (three dots) menu on the right, then turn on the toggle for the display option you need.

To remove a quote footer line, select the vertical ellipsis (three dots) menu to the right of its name, then select Remove line.

Moreover, you can rename any line in the footer and show the amount your clients will save. The “You’ll save” line calculates both the global discount you apply manually and also the internal discount calculated from volume-based products and products with volume discounts.

You can also add custom text fields to the Grand total footer section to specify any additional information for your customers. To do this, select More/+ and select Custom field from the dropdown.

Enable recipient options

You can give your customers more choices by making products in your quote optional and product quantity customizable. You can also allow recipients to select one or many items from your quote. 

Learn more about recipient options here. 

Discounts, taxes, and fees

You can add discounts, taxes, and fees in flat-amount values or percentages. To change the way discounts, taxes, and fees are calculated, select a column header, then make your choice from the Number format dropdown.

The total discount for the entire quote will be calculated next to “You’ll save” in the quote footer.

Collect recurring payments   

Quote builder allows you to collect recurring payments from your customers via Stripe. Here’s how to do it:

1. Add a product with a recurring price to the product catalog and then select it in your quote. Available billing period options are weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annually. Click here to learn how to add products to the catalog. 
2. Set up the contract term for your recurring products so the recipient is charged for a specific billing period. Click on the Unlimited button and set up a subscription term. 
   The term will appear in the quote builder and your customers will see both the Initial payment and Total contract value under the Total.
   
3. Add a payment app to your document and select a payer. 
4. Make sure the correct quote is selected for the payment.
5. Send your document.

 

Once your customer pays, a new subscription record will be created in your Stripe account and the next recurring charge will be collected automatically from the subscription. 

If you have Optional items and Quantity editing turned on for your recipients, the total will automatically change once your client interacts with the quote builder block.

Additionally, you can customize the name for Custom term, Initial payment, and Total contract value lines. Select the title, then type the new name and press Enter, or simply click outside the editing area. 

If you would like to hide the Total contract value for your recipient, go to the quote builder, then click on Total contract value and switch off Show for recipient toggle.

Import product data from a CRM

If you’re using one of our integrations to create documents directly from your CRM, and you have the integration enabled in Settings > Integrations, products will be automatically pulled into the quote builder block in your template.

Quote builder design 

Learn more about quote builder design options here.

Quote builder permissions

FAQ

How do I mass-update products I added to the quote builder blocks in all my templates and content library items?

Products added to the quote builder blocks in your templates and content library items will be automatically updated once you import the edited catalog using a .csv file.

To update your catalog using a .csv file, you’ll need to export your existing products first. To do this, select the Export option on the top right corner. Next, edit the products within the .csv file, then import it back to PandaDoc by selecting Import option from the dropdrown.

Want to learn more about creating quotes? Come check out our Building Quotes with PandaDoc course on the PandaDoc Learning Academy!