Proposal vs. Contract: Why Sending Both Together Prevents Client Confusion

When presenting your design fees to a potential interior design client, do you send the proposal first and the contract later? Or do you send everything at once so they have all the details before signing?

Some interior designers separate these steps. Some do them at the same time. Some send a contract out later, like mid project (🙀). Others don’t use a contract at all (🙈).

Obviously—the last two? NOT good strategies.

If you want a process that protects your business, builds trust, and keeps projects running smoothly, the proposal and contract go hand-in-hand.

PS: I’m not an attorney and this is not legal advice. This is based on my experience working 1:1 with over 100 interior design businesses.

Keep reading for my advice on when to send these two documents.