Overview
An outline template is a set section structure your team can reuse, instead of having GovDash build the outline from the solicitation. Use one when your team always answers a certain type of solicitation the same way. Outline templates only set structure. They don't change fonts, cover pages, headers or footers in your download. For that, see Using Proposal Templates.
Want GovDash to build your outline from the solicitation? Select No.
An outline template does not build your outline from the solicitation requirements. Instead, your proposal gets the exact same outline as the template. Most proposals should not use one. When you start a proposal, select No under Outline template so GovDash builds your outline from the solicitation.
Creating and Managing Outline Templates
Creating a New Template
To create a new outline template, navigate to the Proposal Settings page and select Add Template under Outline Templates. Provide your template with a name, and you may optionally set this template as your default template.
Default Templates
The template that is set as your default template will be automatically used in instances where the solicitation lacks specific instructions on how the response should be formatted, and you have not already selected a template when creating the draft. GovDash has a pre-built capabilities focused template available for use under GovDash Template. You can change which template is your default template by clicking the star icon next to your template in Settings. You can also ask Dash to change it for you, see Managing Your Templates with Dash below.
Managing Your Templates with Dash
You can also check on your outline templates without leaving the chat! Dash can tell you which outline templates your team has, which one is your default, who last edited each template and when, and whether a template is ready to generate an outline from. Dash can also change your team's default template for you.
Click the blue-starry Dash icon in the bottom right of GovDash to open Dash.
In the Sources menu (the + menu), make sure Proposal is enabled.
Ask Dash about your templates, for example: "What outline templates do we have?" or "Which outline template is our default?" You'll see Listing outline templates while Dash looks them up, followed by a summary of each template.
To change your default, ask Dash something like "Make our Technical Volume template the default." Because the default applies to everyone on your team, Dash will check with you before making the change. Once it's done, you'll see Set default outline template, and the star icon in Proposal Settings will move to your new default.
Editing Your Template
To edit a template, select its edit icon. The template editor works like the proposal outline editor, with the same section types, language types, page limits, drag and drop, numbering preview and undo/redo. For how each of these works, see Editing Your Outline. The sections below cover what's different in templates.
Writing Plans
Use the Writing Plan to tell GovDash how to write a section, such as key points, strengths and tone. Writing plans in a template apply to every proposal that uses the template, so use them for guidance your team repeats on every bid.
Bullet points work best, but you can also write instructions as sentences. To learn more, see Writing Plans, Focus Documents and Citations.
Past Performance Sections
Within your outline, past performance sections are designated by the Past Performances section type. By clicking on the section title (under Header), you can select specific past performances to apply (1), or pull from the list within the Past Performances tab (2).
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Within these sections, you can access the Template Structure, which is how you can control the structure of your past performance sections!
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Working with Templated Sections
Templated sections are the building blocks for your past performance sections within your outline. By creating a structure here, all past performances that are assigned to the section will mirror this structure, making it quick and easy to adjust the structure or past performances within the entire section.
From this view, you can add new sections using the New Templated Section button, move or remove sections, and change section types as needed. Each section type also includes a tooltip that explains how content will be generated using that type.
For example, are you looking to include a contract table? Create a new template section with the Past Performance - Contract Information Table section type. Need to include a section detailing your contract’s alignment to the task areas of the solicitation? Use the Past Performance - Relevance to Task Areas section type. We give you the full flexibility to structure the section how you’d like!
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From the example in the screenshot below, you can see that we have selected two past performances (1), have defined our past performance section structure (2), and it has mirrored that structure in our outline based on the number of selected past performances (3).
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You can freely swap out your pinned past performances in this section without needing to restructure your outline manually!
Corporate Experience
If your solicitation requires you to detail corporate experience, utilize the Corporate Experience section type, located under Narrative Types.
With this option selected, you can pin specific past performances to the section to be included when content is generated. This ensures we are speaking about your selected past performances/capabilities!
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If you’d like to apply all of your selected past performances to the entire section, select the parent level Corporate Experience section and make your selection there (as shown above). This will apply your selection to any section under that header (1).
You can also select subsections and apply specific past performances to just that section (2).
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Page Limits
Each section has one Page Limit. It controls how much content GovDash writes for the section. On a parent section, it is also the page budget for the sections under it. To set, lock or redistribute page limits, see Editing Your Outline.
Applying Your Template
To use your template in a new solicitation response, create a new solicitation response either through your Capture opportunity, or via Proposal.
From the draft page, choose Yes under the Outline template section and choose your template.
Your predefined outline structure will now be used for this solicitation rather than GovDash creating an outline for you from the requirements.
Saving an Existing Outline as a Template
If you have an existing outline that you would like to save as a template to use for future responses, click the More menu within your outline and select Save as Template. This will also save your writing plans to the template.
