Streamlining the proposal process is one of the fastest ways to expedite your sales workflow.
The ability to generate accurate proposals quickly allows reps to be more productive, connect with more customers, and win more business.
Fortunately, in the era of digital sales, multiple solutions exist to expedite proposal generation.
Some tools, like PandaDoc, even offer added functionality like digital signature capture, payment gateways, and document management.
But PandaDoc isn’t the only solution out there.
Today, we’re comparing Bidsketch and Proposify, two top-performing proposal generation solutions on the market, to see what they have to offer.
Let’s get started!
Key takeaways
- Bidsketch and Proposify offer two unique but very different solutions for proposal generation.
- Overall, Proposify offers a wider selection of features when compared to Bidsketch, particularly around integrations and e-signature solutions.
- Bidsketch is a more cost effective solution when compared to Proposify, especially for teams, with per-user rates as low as $15/month.
1. Bidsketch
Pricing: Starter ($15, 1 user); Solo ($23, 1 user); Team Yearly ($47, 3 users); Business Yearly ($119, 8 users). Listed pricing based on annual commitment. Monthly plans also available.
Ease of use: 4/5
Free trial: 14 days.
Support: Chat; knowledge base.
Originally founded in 2009, Bidsketch has enjoyed substantial growth over its lifespan.
Today, the company boasts that it has helped over 2,000 paying customers win billions of dollars in business while saving thousands of hours throughout the proposal process.
The secret to Bidsketch’s success is its simplicity.
Rather than offering complex proposal tools with a ton of customization options, Bidsketch focuses almost exclusively on the automation and rapid production of sales proposals.
With that in mind, the backend of the Bidsketch engine is best described as a proposal builder.
Users place all relevant information into the appropriate text boxes, and the platform produces a formatted proposal at the end of the process.
This is different from the flexible document editors offered by competitors like Proposify and PandaDoc, where proposals are built in a live environment.
With Bidsketch, formatting and design are handled separately from content generation, creating a streamlined workflow that emphasizes ease of use rather than a Google Docs- or Microsoft Word-esque editing experience.
2. Proposify
Pricing: Team ($49/user). No annual pricing available. Enterprise pricing available for teams of 10 or more users.
Ease of use: 4.3/5
Free trial: 14 days.
Support: Email; chat; phone; knowledge base.
If we had to use one word to describe Proposify, it’s slick.
Everything about the platform, from its website to its document designer is equipped to look good and feel great to use.
That’s been a company motif since its inception in 2012, and that clear attention to detail has made the brand highly unique in the proposal market.
On the backend, Proposify is no slouch.
The document builder is similar to PandaDoc and other competitors, offering a user-friendly workspace and near-total control over proposal design, format, and construction.
Especially if you’re just starting out with the platform, Proposify’s kitchen sink approach to bells and whistles can be overwhelming.
In some ways, it can feel like less of a proposal builder and signing solution and more like a professional design tool.
However, especially for users who want complete control over document generation, Proposify offers an experience that is matched by few other brands.
Bidsketch vs Proposify: At a glance
| Proposify | Bidsketch | |
|---|---|---|
| Plan Details | ||
| Basic Drag and Drop Fields | ✓ | X |
| Mobile App | ✓ | X |
| Reusable Templates | ✓ | ✓ |
| E-signing options | ✓ | ✓ |
| Signing Order | X | X |
| Multiple Recipients | ✓ | ✓ |
| Bulk Send | X | X |
| Audit Trail & Analytics | ✓ | ✓ |
| Integrations: Import & Storage | ✓ | X |
| Integrations: CRM | ✓ | ✓ |
| Integrations: Productivity & Other | ✓ | ✓ |
| Language Support | ✓ | X |
| Document Editor | ✓ | Limited |
| Pre-built Template Library | ✓ | ✓ |
| Notifications | ✓ | ✓ |
| Payment Gateway | ✓ | X |
| Custom Branding Options | ✓ | ✓ |
| In-person Signatures | X | X |
| Commenting & Collaborative Fields | ✓ | ✓ |
| Sender Attachments | ✓ | X |
| Signer Attachments | X | X |
| Support Options (At level) | ||
| Email / ticketing support | ✓ | X |
| Chat support | ✓ | ✓ |
| Knowledge base | ✓ | ✓ |
| Phone | ✓ | X |
One quick note: Both Proposify and Bidsketch offer an integration with Zapier, so it may be possible to connect other elements of your tech stack in order to fill in any outstanding gaps in your sales process.
Proposal generation and workflow
One of the major differences between Bidsketch and Proposify is how the proposal engine actually works.
The user experience varies greatly, as do the outputs that each platform will produce.
Here are the key details that you should know:
Proposify
- Utilizes a live document editor for proposal production.
- Provides robust design tools for document customization.
- Offers team tools and approval flows for enterprise plans.
Bidsketch
- Document builder separates content and design processes.
- Custom templates possible with HTML/CSS modifications.
- Highly competitive pricing, especially for team plans.
At a glance, it might seem like Proposify offers a clear advantage in designs and layouts.
However, this is only true to a point.
After the design process is complete and the proposals are designed, these tools become less immediately relevant to the sales process.
While it’s true that the Proposify editor can (functionally) create more robust documents, Bidsketch templates are formidable and will be sufficient for many teams without the need for additional modifications.
For users, the input experience is entirely different.
Proposify users will use a drag-and-drop editor to create the document.
These tools will help to clarify when paragraphs are too long or short, or when images need to be changed so that they look good on the page.
Bidsketch users won’t have any of those visual cues.
Instead, users will need to trust the system to build the proposal properly and check over the final output before sending documents to clients.
It’s a no-frills approach that limits open-ended creativity in an effort to get users from start to finish as quickly as possible.
Our suggestion
To determine which software is best suited to your needs, answer this question: How important is the design aspect of your proposals?
If you have sales reps who need to customize documents on the fly, or if sending complex proposals that are a cut above the rest is something that defines your organization, Proposify may be a better fit.
On the other hand, if you need to send as many proposals as possible and want almost nothing to do with content design, Bidsketch can get the job done.
- Proposify is ideal for teams where content design and branding plays a key role in the company’s CPQ or proposal strategy.
- Bidsketch will be sufficient for companies who don’t need all the design-related bells and whistles but still want to create great-looking content.
Sending, signatures and integrations
In recent years, most proposal solutions have expanded their functionality to further streamline the sales process.
This might include offering an electronic signature solution alongside proposal creation tools or integrating with a CRM like Salesforce to further integration with an organizational tech stack.
From this perspective, the experience offered by Bidsketch and Proposify varies heavily.
Proposify
Of the two solutions we’re comparing today, Proposify offers more flexibility by way of integrations.
Within the Proposify integrations tab, you’ll find connections to CRMs like Salesforce and HubSpot, as well as payment gateways like Stripe and Quickbooks.
These integrations are relatively easy to set up and only require a quick authentication between software tools.
Additionally, Proposify can act as an e-signature platform for proposals sent through its service.
Document recipients will be able to follow a simplified signing process that complies to both UETA and eIDAS standards (but isn’t HIPAA compliant).
Keep in mind that, while document signing and many integrations are available on the Team plan, you may need to upgrade to the Business plan in order to unlock premium integration features.
Bidsketch
Unfortunately, many of the integration options offered by Proposify and other signing platforms feel like an afterthought within the Bidsketch platform.
Strictly speaking, the platform does offer integration options with a limited number of apps.
This includes Zapier and Freshbooks, as well as Signwell (formerly Docsketch).
You’ll also find a Salesforce integration, but it’s only available to users on the Team or Business plans.
While the limited selection of apps might feel spare, the platform does offer API access, which is something you won’t see with Proposify, and you won’t need to pay premium prices or subscribe to a premium plan in order to use it.
As an electronic signature software, Bidsketch falls remarkably short.
It’s possible for users to sign sent proposals, but the feature is hidden and lacks the integrated nuance that you’ll get when using platforms that focus heavily on the e-signing process.
Our suggestion
While Proposify offers a healthy selection of integrations by comparison to Bidsketch, this is a weak point for both platforms when compared to the rest of the market.
For example, PandaDoc offers 30+ native integrations with CRM, payment, and productivity tools. And that’s not including what connects through Zapier.
On top of that, e-signing is at the heart of the PandaDoc document process.
Our free plan is a direct DocuSign alternative, and the connectivity tools we provide are designed to create a fully paperless proposal experience.
We aren’t saying all that to brag, but it’s a major contrast to the limited options that are available in both of the software tools on offer.
- Proposify has a wider selection of integrations, which can be helpful for small businesses who want to consolidate proposals, CRM, and payments into a single flow.
- Bidsketch has a limited collection of integrations but also offers API access, which could be helpful in a variety of use cases.
- Neither company offers the robust signing solutions and integration support that you’ll see with PandaDoc. If the features in this section are essential to your workflow, PandaDoc is the best choice.
Snippets and workflow optimizations
Both Proposify and Bidsketch are purpose-built to expedite the proposal process, and both platforms offer features designed to accomplish this goal.
Here’s a closer look at what you should expect:
Proposify
- Delivers tracking and analytics in a unified dashboard.
- Provides mobile apps (iOS & Android) for teams on the go.
- Offers robust support options for troubleshooting.
- Sells professional services for custom proposal development.
Bidsketch
- Offers tracking and analytics on a per-document basis.
- Delivers turnkey proposals via segmented design processes.
- Limits menus and selection tools to minimize navigation.
It’s also worth mentioning that both platforms offer some tools that are very similar.
Like PandaDoc, both Proposify and Bidsketch offer some version of a content library.
This allows you to break down complex content into snippets and boilerplate language that can be inserted into your proposals.
With Proposify, the content library is broken into Sections, Fees, Snippets, and Images.
Each of these blocks can be imported into the document editor during the proposal construction process.
For example, if you had multiple FAQ snippets sorted by client type, you could select the one you wanted and import it seamlessly into your proposal.
Inside Bidsketch, document creation is broken into three main parts: Opening, Fees, and Closing.
The software prompts users to add content in each section and then compiles all of the content at the end to create a visual representation of the proposal.
So, rather than having a dedicated content library, you would simply select the appropriate content snippet and set that to compile with the rest of the proposal.
However, while both platforms approach these features very differently, the end result is largely the same.
Our suggestion
It’s hard to make a determination on which brand has the better selection of optimization tools.
On one hand, we love that the Proposify content library is built as a standalone tool that is separate from the document editor. (It’s the same way inside of PandaDoc.)
On the other hand, many of Bidsketch’s optimizations are built into the standard workflow, which results in a simplified interface and less menu navigation.
- Bidsketch makes the most sense if you like your optimizations built into the process. From snippet insertion to proposal construction, everything within the software is designed as a unified flow.
- Proposify offers greater control and support. If you want features like phone support, apps for your mobile device, or greater control over your content library, this platform is definitely the better option.
Alternatives to Bidsketch and Proposify
No platform is perfect, and that’s definitely true when it comes to proposal software.
Sometimes the feature set just isn’t what you need or the pricing plan doesn’t make sense.
If neither Bidsketch or Proposify resonate with you, here are a few alternatives to consider.
- PandaDoc. (E-signing, document builder, storage support.)
- Qwilr. (Proposals built to resemble website landing pages.)
- GetAccept. (Deal rooms with integrated proposal tools.)
- Better Proposals. (Popular with freelancers.)
- dotloop. (Proposals and CRM for real estate.)
There are also business premium / business pro solutions out there targeted specifically as enterprise solutions.
Most of the time, these platforms integrate with cloud-based ERP solutions or offer API tools that you can use to expedite your workflow using their automations.
Signing solutions you might need
While it’s frustrating to consider, if you end up going with either platform, you may need more effective e-signing solutions than what Bidsketch and Proposify offer.
The onboard signing process is good enough for simple things, but if e-signing is a big sticking point, you may need to work with a dedicated tool like DocuSign or other alternatives like SignNow, Adobe Sign, or Dropbox Sign (formerly HelloSign).
Of course, PandaDoc also offers top-notch e-signing support if you want to keep your proposal and e-signing tools fully integrated.
If you need those solutions, we’d suggest checking out our popular articles on DocuSign pricing and DocuSign alternatives to get a better understanding of the e-signing landscape.
How we find our data
We conduct our comparison review process in multiple phases:
- Personal testing and analysis of platforms being compared.
- Analysis and comparison of feature sets, pricing, and support packages.
- A thorough overview of existing customer reviews.
- Ongoing updates to comparison articles (after publication).
When we collect our data, we differentiate between relevant websites and those that may be less than credible.
Websites that are considered to be original sources — such as a company website — are given more weight than secondary sources like user review aggregators.
When accessing third-party websites, we double-checked the information provided, often through the use of trial subscriptions and firsthand experience with the app or product to determine informational accuracy.
To keep the review objective, we verified our content using the official website and trial subscriptions (where possible) to confirm data such as features, pricing, and customer support options.
When reviewing our own products, we do our best to be as unbiased as possible.
We don’t want you to choose us just because we say so; we want you to pick PandaDoc because we’re the best solution for your needs.
Build better documents with PandaDoc
While Bidsketch and Proposify are viable options for proposal generations, both platforms are missing key features that can further expedite your sales workflow.
This is especially true if you want a unified e-signing and proposal solution, or if you want to integrate your proposal platform with tools like Google Drive or Microsoft OneDrive.
In our view, the best proposal management software is easy to navigate, useful for all users, and connects seamlessly with your tech stack.
It should reduce your overall workload, not add to it.
PandaDoc has the tools and support you need to build a better document workflow.
From a robust document builder to top-notch e-signing and security certifications, you’ll find everything you need to scale your business.
See how our software can work for you. Start your 14-day free trial today or request a demo to see a live demonstration.
Disclaimer
PandDoc is not a law firm, or a substitute for an attorney or law firm. This page is not intended to and does not provide legal advice. Should you have legal questions on the validity of e-signatures or digital signatures and the enforceability thereof, please consult with an attorney or law firm. Use of PandaDocs services are governed by our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Originally published May 8, 2020, updated December 15, 2023
