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Part of How to weigh evidence in proposal software reviews before buying
A proposal software selection checklist with 15 criteria and a scoring example
A proposal software selection checklist with 15 scoring criteria, evidence sources, security duties, pricing tests and sign-off steps for England's buying teams.
What to take away
- If your team still runs quotes from a shared spreadsheet and email threads, a written checklist beats a demo-led shortlist every time.
- Treat the checklist as a document you can defendnamed criteria, named sources, named owner, dated sign-off.
- Score security and data handling before features, because poor answers there are hard to fix after signature.
- Test the pricing model on your own seat count and document volume, not a vendor's example.
Start with the England scenario most buying teams recognise.
Starter checklist: 15 named criteria
Use this list as your starter checklist. Score each criterion from 0 to 5, record the source, name an owner and date the sign-off.
- Seat definition and named-user limit.
- Price per seat at 10, 25 and 50 users.
- Extra-seat cost mid-term.
- E-signature credit cost per envelope.
- VAT treatment and reclaim position.
- Quote version history and audit trail.
- Discount approval workflow.
- CRM integration with your current sales system.
- Finance or ERP integration for invoicing.
- Content library version control.
- Clause and terms library with expiry dates.
- Role-based permissions for pricing and margins.
- UK data residency options.
- Sub-processor list and change notice.
- Support hours in UK time and response target.
Worked scoring example
Weight each criterion from 1 to 5 for importance. Score each vendor from 0 to 5. A criterion passes only if the score meets the pass mark. Shortlist any vendor with a weighted total of 70 per cent or more and no failed criterion.
Weight
- Security and sub-processors
- 20
- UK data residency
- 15
- Pricing fit at 25 seats
- 20
- CRM integration
- 15
- E-signature cost
- 20
- Support and onboarding
- 10
Pass mark
- Security and sub-processors
- 4
- UK data residency
- 3
- Pricing fit at 25 seats
- 3
- CRM integration
- 3
- E-signature cost
- 3
- Support and onboarding
- 3
Vendor A
- Security and sub-processors
- 5
- UK data residency
- 4
- Pricing fit at 25 seats
- 4
- CRM integration
- 4
- E-signature cost
- 5
- Support and onboarding
- 4
Vendor B
- Security and sub-processors
- 3
- UK data residency
- 2
- Pricing fit at 25 seats
- 5
- CRM integration
- 3
- E-signature cost
- 2
- Support and onboarding
- 3
Vendor C
- Security and sub-processors
- 4
- UK data residency
- 5
- Pricing fit at 25 seats
- 3
- CRM integration
- 4
- E-signature cost
- 4
- Support and onboarding
- 4
Vendor A scores 88 per cent and passes. Vendor B scores 61 per cent and fails data residency and e-signature. Vendor C scores 79 per cent and passes. Shortlist A and C.
Where the evidence comes from
Every criterion needs a source you can point to.
Evidence sources that count
- Vendor documentationcounts
- Your last fifty quotescounts
- Supplier written answerscounts
- Peer opiniononly if traceable
- Record source next to each line
A method for scoring and comparing suppliers sits in our guide to proposal software reviews and comparison methods, which sets out how to weight criteria before you see any pricing.
Use Capterra UK and G2 to shortlist.
Security and data duties first
Under UK GDPR, the Information Commissioner's Office expects a written record of processing and a lawful basis for holding customer data. A vendor that cannot describe its sub-processors is a risk you carry.
Security answers before shortlisting
Can the vendor name its sub-processors?
keep on the shortlist
risk you carry
Standards help here. The digital risk management guidance from BSI gives a structure for evaluating software security risks, which is more useful than a generic questionnaire.
Pricing tests that expose the real cost
Typical UK business software list prices sit around £20 to £60 per seat per month, so ten seats might mean £200 to £600 before VAT. E-signature credits often run from £1 to £3 per envelope unless bundled. VAT at 20 per cent applies to most UK software unless you can reclaim it.
Our comparison of proposal software products in England shows why headline licence figures rarely match the first invoice.
A short glossary tied to the checklist
- Seatcriterion 1, the named-user limit.
- Content librarycriterion 10, version control for reused text.
- E-signaturecriterion 4, the credit cost per envelope.
- Sub-processorcriterion 14, the list a vendor must disclose.
- Pass markthe score a criterion must reach before a vendor stays on the list.
Fit with the rest of the stack
A quoting tool that cannot read your CRM creates duplicate entry and stale pricing. Salesforce's guide to CRM for startups covers how a sales stack is assembled. It answers criterion 8.
Public sector and regulated buyers
If you sell into government in England, your buyers work to the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, publish notices on Find a Tender, and often buy through Crown Commercial Service frameworks. US federal buyers use the General Services Acquisition Manual as contrast.
Sign-off and review
Name one owner and set a review date. Keep the scored checklist with the contract.
Common questions
How long should the checklist be?
Long enough to cover security, pricing, integration and support, short enough that someone completes it. Most teams settle between fifteen and thirty criteria.
Should the checklist cover quoting software as well as proposal software?
Yes, if prices and documents share one flow, cover both.
