Getting a customer's written approval of a proof or draft: what to send, the deadline and silence rules

A designer sends a proof. The customer calls and says it looks fine. Production starts. Three weeks later the customer notices a wrong phone number and says they never approved it. Nobody can show what exactly was agreed.

Approval of a proof, a draft text, a mock-up or a layout is the point where responsibility passes from you to the customer. It deserves a short, fixed routine.

What to send

Send one version at a time, never a folder of variants and never "the latest" without a name. Each approval request should contain:

• A version label: for example "Brochure, proof 2, 24 October".
• The file in a form the customer can open: a PDF or a link, not a source file that needs special software.
• A precise question: "Please check names, prices, phone numbers and the address, and confirm the proof is approved for production."
• What you want checked and what is out of scope: the customer should check facts and wording, not argue about the typeface chosen two rounds ago.
• The deadline: a date and, where it matters, an hour.
• What happens next: printing, publishing or the start of the next stage.

What counts as written approval

Choose the form once and use it every time:

1. An email reply with the words "approved" or "approved with the following changes", sent from the contact person's own address.
2. A short form or a button in a project tool that records who approved which version and when.
3. A signed or initialled copy for printed materials or contracts where the customer's rules require it.

A phone call, a chat message that says "ok" and a thumbs-up on a message are not enough on their own. If the customer approves by phone, send a confirmation the same day: "As agreed by phone, proof 2 is approved with one change: the phone number on page 3." Ask for a one-word reply.

Who may approve

Agree at the start of the project who can approve and whether one person is enough. In a small company it is often the owner, but the day-to-day contact sometimes sends the "yes". If a second person, such as an accountant or a legal adviser, has to check the text, name them and set a deadline for them too. An approval from someone without authority is a risk that falls on you.

Set a deadline and say what silence means

Proofs stall because nobody states a date. Put it in the first message: "Please reply by Friday 31 October, 12:00. So that we keep the delivery date of 7 November, we need the approval by then."

Silence is the main problem. Decide the rule in advance and write it into the quote or the project start message. There are two honest options:

• Silence is not approval. The work waits and the delivery date moves by the number of days the customer needed. This is the safe default.
• Silence is approval after a set time. This is only fair when the customer agreed to it in writing at the start, and when you have sent at least one reminder.

Never decide after the fact that silence meant yes. If the customer did not agree to such a rule, treat the missing answer as missing.

Reminders

A simple reminder rhythm is enough:

• Day 0: the request with the deadline.
• Half of the time: a short reminder with the same file attached.
• One day before the deadline: a reminder that says what moves if no answer arrives.
• After the deadline: a phone call and a message that records the new date.

Keep the tone neutral. The aim is to protect the customer's own date, not to blame them.

Changes after approval

Approved does not mean frozen forever, but a change after approval is a new request. Say so politely and price it if it costs time or money. The same rule applies to the customer's own staff who see the proof only after it has been approved. The routine in a scope change in the middle of a project covers how to price a change and keep the schedule.

If the error is yours, for example your own typing mistake that the customer did not catch, fix it and tell the customer plainly. Approval does not remove your duty to deliver what was asked.

Keep the record

For every approval keep three things together: the approved file with its version label, the customer's reply, and the date. A shared folder or a ticket per project is enough. When a dispute comes, you can open the file, show the reply and agree on the next step in minutes.

It also helps to note which comments were accepted and which were declined and why, so the next round does not repeat the same discussion.

When approval keeps dragging on

• Many rounds: after the second round, ask the customer to collect all comments from everyone in one message.
• Contradicting comments: send the contradiction back and ask who decides.
• A customer who cannot decide: offer two options with a recommendation and a date.
• A late stage: remind the customer that the next stage starts only after approval, and what a delay costs in time.

For the follow-up that comes after a proposal rather than after a proof, see quoting and follow-up for a small sales team.

If approvals, versions and reminders are spread across email threads and chat, a simple marketing and sales system can hold one history per project and send the reminders for you.

What to avoid

• Sending several versions at once.
• Accepting "looks fine" by phone as the only record.
• Starting production before the reply arrives.
• Treating silence as consent without an earlier agreement.
• Letting the deadline pass without a reminder or a new date.
• Overwriting the approved file with later edits.

A simple start

1. Write one standard approval request with a version label, a question and a deadline.
2. Decide what silence means and put it into your quote.
3. Name who may approve for each customer.
4. Confirm every phone approval by email the same day.
5. Store the approved file and the reply together.

Sources

• This article describes a working routine and makes no statistical claims. The related WVI articles linked above cover scope changes and sales follow-up.