SALES GUIDE Constructor Software...SALES GUIDE Constructor Software 3. Sales Overview 3.1 THE SALES PROCESS A Sales Process is a set of repeatable steps that a Sales team takes to

SALES GUIDE Constructor Software


SALES GUIDE

Revision 1 – November 2019


1. Table of Contents

1. TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................................................ 3

2. TERMS USED IN THIS GUIDE ..................................................................................................................... 5

3. SALES OVERVIEW ..................................................................................................................................... 8

3.1 THE SALES PROCESS ..................................................................................................................................... 8

3.1.1 Prospecting ..................................................................................................................................... 8

3.1.2 Qualifying ........................................................................................................................................ 8

3.1.3 Presenting ....................................................................................................................................... 9

3.1.4 Handling Objections ........................................................................................................................ 9

3.1.5 Closing ............................................................................................................................................. 9

3.1.6 Nurturing ........................................................................................................................................ 9

4. SALES ADMINISTRATION ........................................................................................................................ 11

4.1 CONTACT TYPES ........................................................................................................................................ 11

4.1.1 Address Types ............................................................................................................................... 11

4.1.2 Phone Types .................................................................................................................................. 13

4.1.3 Email Types ................................................................................................................................... 14

4.2 DOCUMENT TYPES ..................................................................................................................................... 15

4.2.1 Customer Documents .................................................................................................................... 15

4.2.2 Sales Documents ........................................................................................................................... 18

4.3 STATUSES ................................................................................................................................................. 22

4.3.1 Sales Statuses................................................................................................................................ 22 4.3.1.1 Workflow .................................................................................................................................................. 24 4.3.1.2 Maximum Days ......................................................................................................................................... 25 4.3.1.3 Notifications .............................................................................................................................................. 26 4.3.1.4 Diary Notes................................................................................................................................................ 27 4.3.1.5 Category Changes ..................................................................................................................................... 27

4.3.2 Sales Sources ................................................................................................................................. 28

5. SALES SETUP .......................................................................................................................................... 29

5.1 CREATING CUSTOMERS / CLIENTS ................................................................................................................. 29

5.2 PEOPLE .................................................................................................................................................... 31

5.3 STANDARD PLANS ...................................................................................................................................... 32

5.3.1 Slideshow Viewer .......................................................................................................................... 36

5.4 STANDARD OPTIONS .................................................................................................................................. 38

6. SALES ..................................................................................................................................................... 40

6.1 CREATE THE SALE (ENQUIRY) ....................................................................................................................... 40

6.2 PRODUCE A BROCHURE (SALE DOCUMENT) .................................................................................................... 43

6.3 PRODUCE A PRELIMINARY ESTIMATE ............................................................................................................. 47

6.4 PROGRESSING THE SALE .............................................................................................................................. 50

6.4.1 Site Details .................................................................................................................................... 51

6.4.2 Requirements ................................................................................................................................ 51

6.4.3 Diary Notes ................................................................................................................................... 52

6.4.4 Emails ............................................................................................................................................ 54


6.4.5 Files ............................................................................................................................................... 55

6.4.6 Changing Statuses......................................................................................................................... 57

6.5 WINNING THE SALE .................................................................................................................................... 58

6.6 THE SALES FUNNEL .................................................................................................................................... 60


2. Terms Used in this Guide In ensuring Constructor is as streamlined as possible, certain terms have been defined and are uniformly used

throughout the program. Each term will be explored in detail in this getting started guide, and other more

advanced guides. Below is a quick Summary to help get familiar with them.

TIP: The terms listed here are written with a capital letter and in Bold throughout this guide, so you can refer

back to this glossary if you are unsure of what the term means.

Accommodation The rooms within a building. The choices are customizable and used for Standard

Plans and gathering requirements during the Qualifying Stage.

Address Types Ways of categorizing addresses. Examples include home address, business address.

Bill Of Quantities

(BOQ)

A Bill of Quantities (BOQ) is a list of costs associated with a Standard Plan;

comprised of materials, labour and other services.

Brochure A document containing pictures and information about a Product.

Clients/Customers Clients are people or entities that have submitted an Enquiry. Clients are also

known as Prospects, Leads and Customers.

Closing Winning the Sale and converting the Sale to a Project.

Company Refers to your Company.

Component A Component in Constructor represents either materials or labour.

Context Editor A word processor for the production of Notes, Documents, headers, footers etc.

Customer

Documents

Documents set up as templates that can be automatically assigned to each Client.

Examples include letters and permits.

Datafields Fields pulled directly from the database to link directly to the Client, Brochure,

Preliminary Estimate etc.

Diary Notes Notes added to the Sale. Can also be set up as tasks with Notifications.

Email Types Ways of categorizing Email addresses. Examples include home email address,

business email address.

Entry An Entry refers to a row within the Grid. Each Entry represents a different item.

Estimate: The calculations to produce the BOQ, comprised of Formula and Components.

Field Fields are where you enter your data. An Entry is made up of different Fields.

Filter A Filter is a keyword or value used to refine lists of information. Filtering refers to

the process of applying a Filter.

Formula Formulas are collections of Components that together provide a per unit cost

estimate for materials and labour.

Grid The Grid refers to the table of Entries on a Screen made up of rows and columns.

Handling Objections Finding solutions for potential problems.

Image A file linked to a Standard Plan to produce a picture of a drawing to be included on

a Brochure or Preliminary Estimate.


Lost The Client decides not to buy.

Negotiations Discussions aimed at reaching agreement.

Notification A message to a Constructor User that can be sent when a task is completed or a

Sales Status requires attention.

Nurturing After Sales support.

People Contacts created in Constructor.

Phone Types Ways of categorizing phone numbers. Examples include home phone number,

business phone number.

Preliminary

Estimate

A document attached to a Sale which outlines the requirements for the Sale,

compiled from the Standard Plan and Standard Options.

Presenting Presenting information to the Client with the aim of convincing them to purchase.

Product Products are the houses (or buildings) that you sell. Also known as Standard Plans,

they can be used on multiple Sales that share the same plans.

Project A Project refers to the job that a Client has employed you to do.

Prospecting Lead generation; marketing.

Prospects Leads or potential buyers. Set up in Constructor as Clients, regardless of whether

they have made a purchase.

Qualifying Gathering information regarding the Client and their requirements.

Replacements Used for Standard Options where Formula can be interchanged.

Report A Report in Constructor is a Document generated from information stored in

Constructor.

Sales Documents Documents set up as templates that can be assigned to each Sale. Examples include

Brochure and Preliminary Estimate.

Sales Funnel The buying process that Clients go through when purchasing Products.

Sales Person A member of the Sales team.

Sales Process A set of repeatable steps that a Sales team takes to convert Prospects into Clients.

Sales Sources A list of sources from which enquiries are received.

Sales Stages The Stages through which a Sale can pass from Enquiry to being Won or Lost.

Screen A Screen is a sub-window within the Constructor window. They can be resized,

moved around and closed in the same manner that you would with any other

program.

Sequence Numbers Attached to Sales Stages, these are for ordering purposes.

Site The address of the construction site.

Slideshow A presentation tool whereby a series of Images set against a Standard Plan can be

displayed to a Client.

Standard Option A Formula that can be added to a Standard Plan to help produce a Preliminary

Estimate.

Template: A pre-formatted file that serves as a starting point for a new Document.


Tyre Kicker A Client who is not serious about purchasing; a time waster.

Won When a Sale is agreed to.

Workflow The progression through the Sales Process.


3. Sales Overview

3.1 THE SALES PROCESS

A Sales Process is a set of repeatable steps that a Sales team takes to convert Prospects into Customers.

Whilst the Sales Process you build may be unique to your Company, it is generally accepted that most Sales

Processes go through a number of Stages. This can be anywhere from 3 to 7, depending upon your business

and the complexity of the Sale. Each Stage consists of tasks which are the key activities your team must

perform in order to advance from Stage to Stage. These are the 6 Stages that are frequently used in Sales

Processes:

• Prospecting

• Qualifying

• Presenting

• Handling Objections

• Closing

• Nurturing

3.1.1 Prospecting

Also known as Lead Generation. Prospecting involves identifying potential buyers. You will likely already have

a Marketing Strategy in place for generating leads which may include a website, advertising, customer

referrals etc.

3.1.2 Qualifying

This may be the first time your Sales team make direct contact with a Prospect. Through whatever contact

method is used, the goal is to gather enough information to determine if the Prospect is a good fit for you to

do business with. This may include:

• Budget – do they have funding?

• Authority – do they have the decision-making power to buy from you?

• Timeline – are timeline expectations acceptable?

• Geography – do you build in the area they are after?


3.1.3 Presenting

Presenting is your Sales Team’s opportunity to lay out a compelling, personalized plan for fulfilling the

customer’s needs and expectations. The research done in the Qualifying Stage will help to formulate the

presentation and anticipate questions.

3.1.4 Handling Objections

There are plenty of reasons why a Customer may hesitate to commit when building a home is so important to

them. Even if they’re interested in your plans; price, timing and fear of change are some of the reasons why

they may have Objections. This Stage is all about identifying any Objections and demonstrating the value of

your Company as the best solution.

3.1.5 Closing

Closing involves everything you need to do in the late stages of a Sale to get your Prospect to sign a Contract.

3.1.6 Nurturing

This involves providing the Customer with post-sales support. There will be a cut-off point which may differ

from Customer to Customer. There are also legalities involved, which your team will be aware of. No-one

wants to get involved in disputes. They are costly and have a negative impact on reputations.


The Constructor Sales Module allows you to record the information needed to create your own Sales Process.

The determination of your Company Sales Process will be entirely up to you. This guide explains the Sales

tasks available within Constructor and where they fit into a basic Sales Process.

So how does this theory translate into practice within Constructor Sales module? The below chart is a

generalization of what tasks can be undertaken for each Stage of a Process. This is a guide only but may help

your Sales team to make decisions regarding setting up your own Sales Process.


4. Sales Administration

There are a number of Administration tasks that need to be configured (to suit your own Company needs)

before you can start to use the Sales module. These can be categorized into the following sections:

• Contact Types

• Document Templates

• Statuses

Contact Types include Address, Phone and Email.

4.1 CONTACT TYPES

4.1.1 Address Types

Address Types will appear throughout Constructor wherever an Address can be entered. For example, Clients,

Suppliers, People and Employees.

To access Address Types, use the shortcut or go to Sales, Administration, Address Types:


This will bring up a Summary list of any Address Types that are already set up. A new Address Type can be

created by clicking New (1). The Service Address tick box was once used by Constructor to determine if an

address was the primary address. This is no longer used for programming purposes, but is available for you to

use if you want to differentiate between Address Types.


4.1.2 Phone Types

Phone Types will appear throughout Constructor wherever a Phone number can be entered. For example,

Clients, Suppliers, People and Employees.

To access Phone Types, use the shortcut or go to Sales, Administration, Phone Types:

This will bring up a Summary list of any Phone Types that are already set up. A new Phone Type can be

created by clicking New (1) and entering a description for the Phone Type.


4.1.3 Email Types

Email Types will appear throughout Constructor wherever an Email address can be entered. For example,

Clients, Suppliers, People and Employees.

To access Email Types, use the shortcut or go to Sales, Administration, Email Types:

This will bring up a Summary list of any Email Types that are already set up. A new Email Type can be created

by clicking New (1) and entering a description for the Email Type.


.

4.2 DOCUMENT TYPES

There are two different sections for Document Types within the Sales Module. Customer Documents are

attached to the Client Record and Sales Documents are attached to the Sales Record.

4.2.1 Customer Documents

There may be a number of different Documents that you provide your Clients during the Sales Process. This

guide will explain how to do just one of those, a Building Response Letter. Other Documents can be created

and sent in exactly the same way. Set up as many as are applicable to your business. Some examples include:

• Congratulations / Introduction Letter

• Authority to act as Agent

• Proposal Letter

• Finance Options Letter

To access Customer Documents, use the shortcut or go to Sales, Administration, Customer Document

Templates:

This will open a Summary list of any Customer Documents currently set up on your system. From here you

can create a new template, open an existing template or copy an existing template. If you have a letter or

Document that is regularly sent to Clients, then set it up here so that it can be easily created, sent and

attached to the Client record.


To set up a new one, click New (1).

This will bring up the Context Editor (1).

The Context Editor is an inbuilt Word Processor. You can add in a logo, copy and manipulate text and add in

Datafields so that each document contains links to the database fields, such as Client Name, Address etc.

Below is an example of a Building Response Letter created using Context Editor.

Datafields (2) are inserted by clicking Insert Datafield (3). This will bring up the list of available Datafields that

can be inserted into the Document. Find the Datafield you are after, highlight it and click Insert.


Text is added by typing directly onto the page or copying from another source, such as Microsoft Word.

If amending an existing Document, it is always worth taking a copy of it first, in case you need to revert to it.

To copy a template, from the template summary, click Copy (1). An exact replica will be created with the word

Copy at the end of the description.


4.2.2 Sales Documents

There may be a number of different Documents that you provide your Clients/Prospects during the Sales

Process. This guide will explain how to do just one of those, a Preliminary Brochure. Other Documents can be

created and sent in the same way. Set up as many as are applicable to your business. This is also where the

Preliminary Estimate template is created.

To access Sales Documents, use the shortcut or go to Sales, Administration, Sales Document Templates:

This will open a Summary list of any Sales Documents currently set up on your system. From here you can

create a new template, open an existing template or copy an existing template. If you have a Document that

is regularly attached to Sales, then set it up here so that it can be easily created, sent and attached to the Sales

record.

To set up a new one, click New (1).


This will bring up the Context Editor (1).

The Context Editor is an inbuilt Word Processor. You can add in a logo and images, copy and manipulate text

and add in Datafields so that each document contains links to the database fields, such as Client Name,

Address etc. Below is an example of a Preliminary Brochure created using Context Editor. It is designed to

contain a plan and a façade image for one of the Blue Building Company’s designs called The Maitland.

Datafields (2) are inserted by clicking Insert Datafield (3).


This will bring up the list of available Datafields that can be inserted into the Document. Find the Datafield

you are after (1), highlight it and click Insert (2).

For an Image to appear on a brochure, it must first be attached to a Standard Plan. This is not done in the

Sales module, but rather in Projects, BOQ’s.

From the BOQ Summary, go to the Images tab (1) and click Images (2). This will bring up the Image Viewer.

Highlight the Image (3) and tick the appropriate box in the Preliminary Brochure section:


To Insert the brochure Image onto a Document template, open the template in the Context Editor (1) and

click Insert Datafield (2). The Datafield selection box will pop up. Open Product, Details and insert Brochure

Image, Plan Image:


4.3 STATUSES

4.3.1 Sales Statuses

Sales Statuses are where you set up the flow through your Sales Process. To access Sales Statuses, either use

the shortcut or go to Sales, Administration, Sales Statuses:

This will bring up a list of any existing Statuses. These are customizable to your Company requirements.


Following is an example of a workflow through the Sales Process. Each business may have a different flow

from Status to Status. It is worth mapping out before you begin.

The Process begins with an Enquiry. The Sales Person gathers information during Qualifying. This leads to

Presenting, followed by Negotiations after which point the Sale is Won or Lost. At any point in the Process,

the Sale may be Lost or turn into a Tyre Kicker.

NB: Tyre Kicker is another term for a time waster.

In Constructor, this is set up as:

Notice the gaps between the Sequence numbers. These are deliberate so that any future Statuses can be

easily slotted into place.

To set up a new Status, click New. To amend an existing Status, double click the Status or highlight it and click

Open.

The top section of the screen is for the Description and Sequence Number (1). You can also set a display

colour for the description.


4.3.1.1 Workflow

You may want to set up the Statuses to flow automatically from one to the other. You may want some

Statuses to have dependencies upon other Statuses being complete first. This is where that Workflow is set

up.

The Workflow tab (2) contains two sections. The first section is called Restrict Next Status (3) and can be used

if you want to stop a Status from being able to transition to another Status. For example, you may want

Qualifying to always go through the Presenting Stage. You could prevent it advancing straight to Negotiations

by ticking all the boxes EXCEPT Negotiations.

The second section is called Automatic Workflow (4). This will allow you to set up an automatic Status change

after a certain number of days. For example, you may want to set up the Qualifying Status so that it changes

automatically to Tyre Kicker after 90 days.

Note, that it is not essential to set up Automatic Workflow. The User can manually change the Status from one

to the next.

The final box, Automatically create a Project based on enquiry information when enquiry enters this status,

does exactly what it says. A Project will be created so that the Project Manager can take over from the Sales

team:


4.3.1.2 Maximum Days

This tab gives you the ability to set up a Notification to another Constructor User if a Status remains in the

same state for a defined number of days.

Set the number of days (1) and choose the User to whom the Notification should be sent (2). Type in the

message that you want to appear on the Notification (3):


4.3.1.3 Notifications

The Notifications tab can be used to send Constructor Notifications to the Sales person assigned to the Sale as

a Sale enters (1) and leaves (2) a Status:

Here is the ENTERS Notification:

And here is the LEAVES:


4.3.1.4 Diary Notes

Diary Notes can be set up to automatically appear (on the Diary Notes tab of the Sale) as a Status enters the

Status (1) and leaves the Status (2) (i.e. the Status changes):

4.3.1.5 Category Changes

Not currently in Use.


4.3.2 Sales Sources

This section of Sales Administration is for setting up the various Sources of the Sales Enquiries that may exist.

Use the shortcut or go to Sales, Administration, Sales Sources:

These are very easy to set up and comprise only a Description. They are currently not used in Reporting but

are entered on the Sales Record.


5. Sales Setup

After the all the Administration tasks have been completed, the next items on the Sales menu are Clients and

People. Clients are also known as Prospects, Customers or Debtors. For the purposes of the Sales Process,

they are Prospects until such time as the Sale is Won and the deposit received. Constructor however uses the

terminology of either Client or Customer from the moment the Enquiry is logged in the system, regardless of

outcome.

All Enquiries can be logged into the system, even if they end up fizzling out. They may go from Status Enquiry

to Lost all in the space of a day. Whether you want to record such Enquiries in the Sales module is up to you.

5.1 CREATING CUSTOMERS / CLIENTS

In whatever manner an Enquiry is received or a Prospect is found, the first step is to create the Client record.

This can be done from the shortcut or Sales, Clients. The Client can also be created at the same time as the

Sale, which will be outlined later in this guide.

If the Sale is Won, the Client record created by the Sales team will be used by the Project and Accounting

teams as well. If there is a Naming Convention in place for the creation of Clients, then please make sure it is

followed from the very beginning of the process.

A Client record in Constructor contains quite a lot of information, much of which is redundant for the Sales

Process, but important for Projects and Accounting. Therefore, when creating a Client in Sales, only basic

information need be recorded. After all, if the Sale is Lost, the Client record will not be used again. If the job

is Won, then the Project / Accounting team will be in charge of assuring the remainder of the necessary

information is recorded against the Client.


Click New (1) to create a Client record. Expand the Name fields (2) and enter the Client name. For Address,

Phone and Email, click the Add button for each (3) to enable the fields.

You may notice that as information is entered on the left-hand side, it is also populated on the right (4).

Keep going until the top half of the screen is fully populated and Save.

There are a number of tabs at the bottom (5). They will be filled in by the Project / Accounting teams if the

Sale is Won.


5.2 PEOPLE

Whenever a Contact record is created in Constructor, a Person record is created in this section. The People

records held here can come from Suppliers, Clients, Employees etc. If you want to view or amend these

records, use the shortcut or go to Sales, People:

The record is set out over three tabs (1):

• Contact Details

• Personal Information

• Company Information

All of which can be amended if required:


5.3 STANDARD PLANS

In Constructor, Standard Plans (or Products) are linked to BOQ’s (Bill of Quantities), Standard Options,

Brochures, Preliminary Estimates and Slideshows.

Standard Plans are set up in Projects, BOQ’s. They can be viewed in the Sales module, but not modified here.

The Estimating/Project team will have set up a number of Standard Plans for the Sales team to show

Prospects. Once the Prospect has shown an interest in one, it can be attached to the Sale.

The Prospect may not be interested in any Standard Plans, but have a completely custom build in mind.

During the Qualifying Stage, the requirements can be gathered and passed to the Estimating team to provide

a Custom Plan, if there is nothing similar already set up on the system.


It is useful for the Sales team to understand what the Standard Plans contain. To view them, use the shortcut

or go to Sales, Standard Plans.

This will open the Standard Plans Summary. Highlight a Standard Plan and start with the Details tab (1),

which shows (2):

• Construction Type

• Design Group

• Elevation Style

• Product Group

• Size

• Levels

• Dimensions

• Price


The Images tab (1) shows the technical drawings:

Accommodation Tab (1) shows the room summary, customizable for your Company.


The Standard Options tab (1) contains any of the Formula that have been flagged as standard for this Plan:

The Specifications tab (1) will show any Specification assigned to the Plan:


5.3.1 Slideshow Viewer

The Slideshow Viewer can be a useful tool for the Presenting Stage. It is a Slideshow of Images, such as

plans, elevations, etc.

For Images to be available for the Slideshow, they must be flagged as such in the BOQ.

From the BOQ Summary, go to the Images tab (1) and click Images (2). This will bring up the Image Viewer.

Highlight the Image (3) and tick Product Slideshow:

The Standard Plan must also be flagged as Included in a Slideshow. Back in Sales, Standard Plans, highlight

the Standard Plan and go to Viewer, Slideshow Administration, Include selected products in Slideshow. If a

Standard Plan is included in a Slideshow, it will have the green symbol (1):


To present a Slideshow, there are two options. Either a Slideshow for a selected Standard Plan or a

Slideshow for all Standard Plans with flagged Images.

Choose either of the Start Slideshow options and the Slideshow will commence. Use the arrows (1) to move

from Image to Image OR simply leave it and the Images will scroll through automatically. Click the picture of a

computer (2) to minimize the Slideshow enough to close it.


5.4 STANDARD OPTIONS

Standard Options are Formula that are associated with a Standard Plan. A Formula must be flagged as a

Standard Option for it to be available in this section.

To mark a Formula as a Standard Option, use the Formula shortcut or go to Projects, Formula.

Tick the box This Formula is a Standard Option for use in Standard Products (1):

Once it is marked as available for Standard Plans, it needs to be associated with each Standard Plan to which it

applies. Either use the shortcut or go to Sales, Standard Options:


Highlight the Standard Option and go to the Standard Options Products tab (1). Click New (2). This will bring

up a list of all Standard Plans. Choose as many as are applicable for this Option:

The Replacements tab (1) will show a list of any Replacements for this Standard Option. These are for display

only in this section. If they need to be changed, that is done on the Formula in the Project menu:


6. Sales

Once all the Administration and setup has been completed, the Sales Process can begin.

6.1 CREATE THE SALE (ENQUIRY)

Setting up a Sale is a very quick process, assuming everything has been properly set up beforehand. It can be

done whilst the Sales Person is on the phone to the Prospect.

From the Sales Summary, click New (1) and enter the Date of Enquiry, Enquiry Source and Branch (if

applicable). The Sales Person field will automatically populate with the current logged in User, but can be

changed if required.

Note: The First Contact field is not currently in use.

In the Client Information section (1), click the box marked (2) to expand the Name entry fields:


Main Contact (1) and Correspondence will be ticked and can be amended later on if it turns out that the

person is not the Main Contact or Correspondent. Choose the title and start typing the First Name (2). A list

of Possible Matches will pop up. This is reading names from the Person section and if you find that this

Person is already set up as a Client contact, you can highlight the name and click Use (3):

If the Person doesn’t already exist in Constructor, then you can carry on filling in the contact information. Add

in the Phone, Email and Address. Click Add (1) to enable the entry fields. The data will automatically

populate the fields on the right-hand side of the screen. Once you have entered that basic information, click

Save.


Move down to the Details of this Enquiry section (1). On the Site tab (2), enter any details you are provided

about the construction Site. The Prospect may already have purchased land, in which case, you could fill in the

address details, if they are provided. You may not know the information at this early stage of the Sale, so

there is no necessity to fill in this tab.

The same goes for the Requirements tab (1). Fill in only the information you can get. The Product Choice,

Elevation Style etc can be filled in as the Sale progresses:

Go to the Status tab (1) and make sure the correct Status is set on the Sale. The system will use the Status

with the first Sequence Number, but can be changed if necessary.

Save the Sale.


6.2 PRODUCE A BROCHURE (SALE DOCUMENT)

Whilst you may have professionally printed brochures to pass on to your Prospects, Constructor has the ability

to produce one if you want to take advantage of it. The setting up the brochure template is covered in 4.2.2 –

Sales Documents (above).

Before a brochure can be produced, a Standard Plan must be attached to the Sale record. Open the Sale and

go to the Requirements tab (1). Click the Suggest button (2) and choose the Standard Plan (Product) the

customer is are interested in:


The Standard Plan must also be set up to have Images available for the brochure. Open the BOQ for the Plan

by going to Projects, BOQ’s. Open the BOQ and go to the Images tab (1). Click the Images button (2).

Highlight the Image (3) and tick the Preliminary Brochure option/s that is relevant (4):


To insert a brochure Datafield onto the brochure template, open the template from Sales, Administration,

Sales Documents.

Position the mouse in the position you wish to enter the Image and click Insert Datafield (1). Go to Product,

Details, Brochure Image/Plan Image (2):

The Brochure Image / Plan Image will appear as a box on the template. Save the template:


On the Sale record, move to the Documents tab (1). Click New and then Use/Create/Alter a Document

Template (2):

The document will pop up and can be Printed or Saved and Emailed:


6.3 PRODUCE A PRELIMINARY ESTIMATE

The Preliminary Estimate is a Document that can be produced for the Client, which is derived from the

Standard Plan plus any Standard Options that are required:

During the Presenting Stage, a Preliminary Estimate may be required. The layout for the Preliminary Estimate

can be edited in Sales, Administration, Sales Documents.

From the Sale record, go to the Preliminary Estimate tab (1).

The screen is divided into four sections:

• Product Information

• Price

• Accommodation Types

• Options

The information on the first three sections is drawn directly from the Product (Standard Plan) that has been

attached to the Sale.


The fourth section displays all the Standard Options associated to the Standard Plan. If any of the Options

aren’t included in the Plans’ Estimate, they can be added in by ticking them (2). The total Price (in the Price

section), will increase as Options are added (3):

To produce a document to Email or Print, stay on the Preliminary Estimate tab and click New Preliminary

Estimate Document (1). Choose the Preliminary Estimate (2) to see the document.


To Email the Document, go to File, Save As (1) and save the file to your computer. Attach the file to an Email

and send. To Print the Document, click Print (2):

The Documents tab will display the Documents that have been created:


6.4 PROGRESSING THE SALE

As the Sale progresses, there are a number of tasks that should be undertaken to ensure that the Sale record

is kept up to date with all information.


6.4.1 Site Details

As soon as the Site Details become available, they should be entered into the Sale record on the Site tab (1).

Information that can be recorded includes:

• Site Notes

• Whether the site is owned or still needs to be purchased

• Site Address

• Site Attributes

6.4.2 Requirements

Once the Requirements are known, they can be entered on the Requirements tab (1). They may be added to

piecemeal if they aren’t all decided upon at the same time. Information that can be recorded includes:

• Brief

• Design

• Pricing

• Accommodation Type


6.4.3 Diary Notes

The Diary Notes tab (1) can be used to record any Notes, such as the time and date of a call that went

unanswered or details of a conversation with the Prospect/Client. It is also possible to set up tasks and send

Notifications to Constructor Users.

To create a Note, click New (2):


The Diary Notes screen will open. Date and Recorded By will automatically populate, but can be changed if

necessary. Enter a Subject for the Note (1). Details of the Note can be entered in the ConText field (2). If the

Note is saved at this point, it will appear on the Diary Notes tab of the Sale, but if you want to create a To Do

Item with a Notification, then complete the bottom half of the screen (3). A Notification can be sent on the

Due by date and upon completion of the task (4). There is no restriction to the number of Notes that can be

entered.


6.4.4 Emails

All Emails that are sent to the Prospect/Client or are related to the Sale can be attached here. Highlight the

Email in your Email program (1):

Hold down the left mouse button and drag the Email onto the blank section of the Emails tab (1).


Let go the mouse button and the Email will appear on the tab:

To review the Email, either double click it or highlight it and click Open.

6.4.5 Files

This tab is for attaching relevant Files to the Sale record. For example, proof of finance, custom drawings or

permits.

There are two ways to attach Files. The first one is the drag and drop method, similar to the way Emails are

attached to the Email tab. You can drag a File from wherever it is saved on your computer or you can even

drag a file that is attached to an Email. Highlight the File and hold down the left mouse key.


Drag the File to the blank area on the Files tab (1). A category list will pop up. Hover the mouse on the

category you wish to put the File into (2) and drop the File:

The File will then be categorized (2) and available to view on this tab:


6.4.6 Changing Statuses

Throughout the life of the Sale, the Status will have to be kept up to date. Even if you are using automatic

workflow Status changes, they may still require manual intervention. This is done from the Sales Summary

Screen. Highlight Sale and click Change Status (1). The below example only has one option, but dependent

upon the Status workflow, there may be many more to chose from.

To view the Statuses that the Sale has been through during its life, highlight the Sale on the Sales Summary

screen (1) and go to the Status tab. This will show the Current Status (2) and the Status changes, along with

their dates (3):


6.5 WINNING THE SALE

At any point during the Sales process, a Sale can be Won and Project can be generated. For example, the

below Sale was considered to have fizzled out, but suddenly the customer came viable and was ready for a

Project to be created. Click Generate a Project based on this Enquiry (1):

A message will pop up to confirm the Project creation:


If Yes is clicked, a Project will be created based on the information in the Sale (1).

Another way to create a Project is to have a Status configured to automatically create a Project. Any Statuses

with this setting will have a symbol next to them, as in the example below for Deposit:

When a Sale is moved into such a Status, there will be no pop-up warning. The Project will immediately be

created.


6.6 THE SALES FUNNEL

A Sales Funnel represents the quantity and conversion rates of Prospects through the Sales Stages. It is called

a funnel because it is wide at the top as Prospects enter, then increasingly narrow as they are disqualified or

decide not to buy.

At its simplest, the Sales Funnel can have 4 Stages:

• Awareness

• Interest

• Decision

• Action

If the Constructor Sales module is used to its full capacity, a Sales Funnel report can be produced to help

pinpoint at what stage in the Sales Process most business is Lost or Won. This report is still under

development.