Portal.io has launched its AI Proposal Builder. This revolutionary tool allows integrators to create complete proposals in seconds, transforming the tedious proposal process for dealers in the AV and Security industries.
The first step in quoting a new project is to define the scope, which usually happens with a jobsite walkthrough or review of plans. Dealers take notes and document the scope, which they later have to reference as they work to build the complete proposal. This draws out the process and often leads to missing details. With the AI Proposal Builder, dealers can dictate the full scope of the project right from the jobsite or from record detailed audio or video content from a project walkthrough. The AI Proposal Builder then generates a Proposal Outline — including the scope of work, areas with full descriptions, and tasks with parts and labor budgets — in seconds.
The Proposal Outline can be reviewed with the customer in real time in order to help qualify them and start setting budget expectations. Once ready, the dealer can click a button to convert the detailed Proposal Outline in a full proposal in Portal. They can then refine and adjust each area as needed, giving dealers full control over the quoting process. The AI Proposal Builder cuts proposal time and speeds up the process, allowing dealers to get a complete proposal in the hands of customers much faster. When customers are used to waiting days, sometimes more than a week, for a proposal from other contractors, being able to deliver a proposal within hours sets dealers apart.
“Honestly, most AI news today is just fluff — it’s dressed-up automation with no real impact to dealers’ business,” says Kirk Chisholm, founder of Portal. “We saw an opportunity to leverage AI to build something we’ve envisioned since I started Portal over 12 years ago: build a proposal for dealers based on the information they gather during the project discovery and walkthrough process. This is not just another AI feature; it dramatically improves how dealers approach the proposal process.”
“I was a skeptic at first. In fact, when we got a teaser that Portal was working on AI, I actually emailed them and told them nobody needs this. That was before I saw it,” says Ricky Marks with Audio Video Specialties in Charlotte, N.C. “Then I saw it live and was completely floored. We’re an early adopter and we haven’t looked back. This is a game-changer.”
Portal’s AI Proposal Builder was first unveiled at CEDIA 2024, to rave reviews from dealers and industry leaders. The feature won a Best of Show award from Residential Systems.
“We showed the builder to many dealers leading up to CEDIA, and they were so amazed that we decided to set up cameras to record live reactions at our booth,” says Chisholm. The dealer reactions can be seen in Portal’s CEDIA 2024 recap video.
As part of the launch, Portal has made available a public demo version of the AI Proposal Builder that does not need a Portal account to experience it.
For more information, visit www.portal.io.
