Advertising and marketing · Branding and Design Studio Management Software

Quotes, proof rounds, approvals and stage invoices for one studio, kept on the project.

Manage briefs, stage-wise quotes, moodboards, proof rounds, approver sign-off, change requests, brand files and invoices in one system built for a branding or design studio. Every project carries its revision allowance, its named approver and its list of deliverables from first brief to final artwork handover. Designers see their own queue. The founder sees which jobs are running past the quote.

Share your requirements

Stage templates, revision allowances and deliverable lists entered the way your studio quotes
Client list, open projects and unpaid invoices brought across
Brand folders and artwork archives mapped into the asset library

A studio keeps briefs, quotes, proofs and invoices in Branding and Design Studio Management Software, which GullySystem configures for your studio. Each project holds its deliverables, a revision allowance, the proof rounds used and the one approver who signs off. Work outside the quote is priced before it starts. Print-ready artwork and brand guidelines stay filed per client.

Where it breaks today

What goes wrong before the software.

Rounds are counted from memory

The quote allowed three rounds of revisions. When the client asks for a fourth, no list shows which changes arrived in which round. The studio absorbs the hours. The margin thins.

Several people at the client send comments

A founder, a marketing head and an agency contact all mark up the same PDF. Nobody is named as the approver, so the designer revises against whichever comment came last. Rounds multiply.

Small favours become unpriced deliverables

A banner size, a social avatar or a business card variant is agreed in a call. By handover there are a dozen of them, and none appears on the invoice. Free work piles up.

Working files sit on individual laptops

Layered source files, fonts and colour codes live with the designer who built them. A printer asks for the vector logo two years later, and the search starts in old email threads.

Deposits and stage invoices drift apart

The advance is taken at the start. The balance is invoiced when somebody remembers, not when the concept stage or the final artwork was approved, so cash arrives late. The studio funds the gap.

Designer load is invisible until a deadline slips

The founder cannot tell whether a rush identity job fits next week. The first sign of overload is a late proof and a client who has started to ask questions. Trust slips.

How it runs

How the work flows through it, step by step.

1
Brief
An enquiry arrives by email, a website form or a referral. The brief is logged against the client company with the kind of work, the deliverables asked for and the person who owns the relationship.
2
Quote and revision allowance
A quote is built by stage: discovery, concepts, refinement and artwork. Each stage lists its deliverables and the number of rounds included. The client accepts, and the deposit invoice is raised.
3
Concepts and proofs
Moodboards and concept boards are sent as proof links. The named approver replies on the proof, and the round number is recorded with each version.
4
Approval and change requests
A round closes only when the approver signs off. Anything outside the quote is logged as a change request with a price the client accepts before a designer starts.
5
Artwork and handover
Final files are exported for print and screen, the brand guidelines are compiled, and the pack is filed under the client with fonts, colour codes and usage notes.
6
Invoicing and follow-up
Each stage invoice follows its approval. A later request from a printer or a new agency is answered from the filed pack, and returning clients are reminded of the guideline review.

Modules

What is inside.

Every module can be switched on, left out or changed to match how your team already works.

Briefs and client records

Log each brief with its source, deliverables and decision makers. Keep every past project, contact and brand pack under the client company, so a returning founder is recognised at once.

Stage quotes with revision allowance

Build a quote by stage and deliverable, with the rounds included at each stage. Revisions of the quote are kept, and the accepted version is the one the project is measured against.

Project board and deliverable list

Run each project as a board of stages and deliverables, from moodboard to final artwork. The board shows what is awaiting the client and what is awaiting a designer.

Proof rounds and named approver

Send each proof as a link that opens on a phone. Comments from anyone are kept, but only the named approver closes a round, and the round number is stored with the version approved.

Change request log

Record a request that falls outside the quote, such as an extra format or a stationery set, with a price and the client’s acceptance. Unaccepted requests do not start.

Brand asset library

File print-ready artwork, layered sources, fonts, colour codes and guideline PDFs under each client. A printer’s request years on is answered with a shared link.

Studio workload board

Show each designer’s projects and due dates in one view. Hours estimated at quote stage sit beside them. A rush job can be assessed before it is promised.

Time against the quote

Designers log hours against the stage they worked on. The founder reads hours spent beside hours quoted, and sees which kind of project overruns.

Stage invoices and deposits

Raise the deposit invoice at acceptance. Raise each stage invoice at approval. Receipts post against the invoice, and the balance for every client shows with the oldest first.

Print vendor orders

Record the printer, the paper stock, the quantity and the proof date for packaging or collateral jobs, so the print order matches the artwork that was approved.

Solutions inside

The business modules it is built from.

Each one is also available on its own, or inside a system built for you.

Lead Management
Each brief is logged with its source, the work asked for and the decision makers, and returning founders are matched to their earlier projects.
Estimate/Quotation Management
Quotes are priced by stage and deliverable with rounds included, and the accepted version becomes the yardstick for every later change.
Workflow and Approvals
A proof round closes only on sign-off by the one approver named for the project, and the version approved is stored beside the round number.
Client Portal
The client opens proofs from a link, sees the rounds left in the allowance and downloads final files once the stage invoice is settled.
Document Management
Print-ready artwork, layered sources, fonts and guideline PDFs are filed under the client, so a printer’s request years later has a ready answer.
Resource Allocation
Designers’ projects and due dates are laid side by side with estimated hours, so a rush identity job is tested against real capacity first.
Project Time Tracking
Hours logged by stage sit beside the hours priced into the quote, which shows which kinds of projects regularly overrun.
Invoice Management
A deposit invoice follows acceptance and each stage invoice follows its approval, with receipts posted and balances shown oldest first per client.

Services

How we would put it in.

Setup, data migration, integrations and anything built on top.

Who uses it

One system, each person sees their part.

For the founder or creative director

See projects against quote, rounds used, designer load and unpaid stage invoices. Price a change request before the studio agrees to it.

For account managers

Log briefs, build quotes, send proofs to the named approver and keep the change request log. Chase the stage invoice when approval lands.

For designers

Open a queue of the proofs and deliverables assigned this week. Upload a version, read the approver’s comments and log hours without a separate sheet.

For clients

Open a proof from a link, reply on it and approve it. See the rounds left in the allowance and download final files once the stage is paid.

For the studio accountant

Read invoices by stage, deposits held and balances by client. Export the figures to the accounting package that holds the books.

Reports

The numbers the owner asks for.

Projects by stage, with hours spent against hours quoted
Rounds used against rounds allowed, by project and by client
Change requests raised, accepted and unbilled
Deliverables awaiting client approval, oldest first
Stage invoices raised, deposits held and balances by client
Designer workload by week with due dates
Brand packs filed per client and files requested again

Good fit

Who this is built for.

Branding studios that build logos, identity systems and guidelines for new companies
Graphic design studios that handle packaging, print and collateral for repeat clients
Small agencies where account managers carry briefs and designers carry proofs
Packaging design houses that pass final artwork to printers
Digital design studios that quote websites, app screens and social kits by stage

Honest answer

When it is not the right choice.

A freelance designer with a handful of clients can run on a shared folder and a clear revision clause.
Agencies whose main work is paid media and campaign reporting will find Digital Marketing Agency Management Software closer.

Made to fit

Adapted to your business before it goes live.

You are not handed a login and left to it. The product is set up around your records, your people and the tools you already use.

Your stages and deliverables

Discovery, concept, refinement and artwork stages are set up with the deliverables and rounds you normally quote, so a new project starts from your own template.

Revision and change rules

The allowance per stage, the rate for extra rounds and the wording a client accepts for a change request follow your studio’s terms.

Approver naming

Each project records one approver and the others who may comment, so a round has a clear owner from the first proof.

Archive brought across

Client lists, open projects, unpaid invoices and the folder of past brand packs are mapped into the library and checked by your team before use.

Messages and links

Proof links and invoice reminders go by email or a messaging app, and currency and tax settings are set per client during implementation.

Hosted for the whole studio

GullySystem hosts the system, so account managers, designers and the founder read the same project record. If a stage template needs a new step, ask us and our staff will edit it.

Works alongside

Email
WhatsApp or other messaging
Cloud file storage
Payment gateway
Accounting export

Common questions

Questions owners ask before a demo.

Does it count revision rounds against the quote?

Yes. Each stage carries the rounds included, and each proof sent uses one. When the allowance is reached, the next request is logged as a change request with a price.

Who closes a proof round when several people comment?

Only the approver named on the project. Others can comment and their notes stay on the version, but the round ends when that one person signs off.

Can clients mark up a proof from a phone?

Yes. They can open the proof link, write comments and approve in a phone browser. The designer receives the notes against that version, not in a separate email thread.

How are print-ready files and fonts stored?

Under the client, in a library with folders for artwork, layered sources, fonts and guideline PDFs. A shared link goes to a printer without opening the whole archive.

Does it replace our design tools?

No. Designers keep their drawing and layout tools. This system holds the project, the quote, the proof history, the approvals and the files those tools produce.

Can it send stage invoices to our accounting package?

Yes, through an export. Invoices, receipts and balances live here, and the export format is agreed with your own bookkeeper during implementation.

Can we move current projects and brand packs across?

Yes. Client lists, running projects, unpaid invoices and existing brand folders are loaded and checked by your account managers before the studio switches over.

What does the studio own at the end of a project?

The records are yours. You can take away every proof round, approval stamp and artwork file list, and the file format for that handover is agreed in writing before the first brief is opened.

How is the cost set?

Cost follows the size of the studio: designers, account managers and client logins, plus the number of stages a quote moves through. Before any quote, we run a sample project through the studio flow, and the figures arrive in writing afterwards.

Wondering what it would cost? Share your requirements and an engineer will come back with a scope.

Industries

Businesses that use this.

Branding and design studios

Related products.

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