Siebel Correspondence, Proposals, and Presentations Guide > Proposals >

Creating the Proposal Library

Administrators can create and maintain a Proposal Library that consists of text blocks that sales representatives can add to the proposals. In the Siebel File System, these text blocks are components with the File section type.

Documents in the Proposal Library are different from the other component documents you create. Component documents are part of the proposal template, and are automatically included in proposals generated from that template. Documents in the Proposal Library are available to sales representatives as needed. Administrators can also recommend Proposal Library documents to include in the templates.

After sales representatives create a default proposal automatically, they can add more documents from the Proposal Library or use the Edit Layout button to customize the proposal. The Proposal Library enables multiple proposals created from the same template to have different content, and it can help sales representatives find answers to specific Request for Proposal (RFP) questions.

Administrators add the various components to the Proposal Library and maintain the information. When the sales representatives need additional text to add to a proposal, they review the component in the Proposal Library, select the component they want to insert, and automatically insert it into the proposal.

The sales force cannot update the information in the Proposal Library. The only sections and components available to sales representatives are those you provide for them.

This task is a step in Process of Creating Proposal Templates.

Creating Document Files for the Proposal Library

You create document files for the Proposal Library in the same way that you create the proposal templates. Use Microsoft Word to enter text and bookmarks, and then map these bookmarks to fields in your Siebel database.

NOTE:  You can include only the File section type in the Proposal Library. Include other section types only in the initial template. For more information, see Defining Proposal Template Sections.

Adding Sections to the Proposal Library

Sections organize documents in the Proposal Library. For example, if some of the documents in the Proposal Library are white papers and others are specifications, you can create a section for each of these document types. Users can browse through the white papers and the specifications separately. You must add at least one section to the Proposal Library. For more information about adding sections, see Defining Proposal Template Sections.

To add sections to the Proposal Library

1. Navigate to the Administration - Document screen, then the Proposal Library view.
2. Navigate to the Sections list of the Proposal Library by completing the following steps:
   1. In the Library explorer, click the plus sign (+) next to the Library folder if that folder is not already open.
   2. Click the plus sign (+) next to the Proposal Library folder under the Library folder.
   3. Click the plus sign (+) next to the Sections folder under the Proposal Library folder.
3. In the Sections list, add sections in the same way that you add sections to a proposal.

Adding Components to the Proposal Library

After adding sections to the Proposal Library, you add components to the sections. For more information about adding components, see Adding Components to Proposal Template Sections.

To add components to the Proposal Library

1. Navigate to the Administration - Document screen, then the Proposal Library view.
2. Navigate to the Components list of the Proposal Library by completing the following steps:
   1. In the Library explorer, click the plus sign (+) next to the Library folder if that folder is not already open.
   2. Click the plus sign (+) next to the Proposal Library folder under the Library folder.
   3. Click the plus sign (+) next to the Sections folder under the Proposal Library folder.
   4. Click the plus sign (+) next to the section name folder under the Sections folder.
   5. Click the plus sign (+) next to the Components folder under the section name folder.
3. In the Components list, add the components in the same way that you add components to a proposal.

Recommending Content for Proposals

An administrator can simplify the process of creating a proposal by associating recommended content with the proposal template.

To recommend content for a proposal

1. Navigate to the Administration - Document screen, then the Proposal Library view.
2. Navigate to the Components list of the Proposal Library by completing the following steps:
   1. In the Library explorer, click the plus sign (+) next to the Library folder if that folder is not already open.
   2. Click the plus sign (+) next to the Proposal Library folder under the Library folder.
   3. Click the plus sign (+) next to the Sections folder under the Proposal Library folder.
   4. Click the plus sign (+) next to the section name folder under the Sections folder.
   5. Click the plus sign (+) next to the Components folder under the section name folder.
3. In the Components list, select the component, click the select button in the Recommended Templates field.
4. In the Proposal Templates dialog box, select the template for which to recommend the component.

   You can recommend a component for multiple templates. For example, you might recommend a legal clause for all templates. Recommended content appears when a user edits a proposal using the Edit Layout button, and the Show Recommended Only check box is selected.