ApproveThis manages your PEP Cloud Integration approvals.

When Bids Meet Approvals: Why This Combo Works

Let’s get real – if you’re managing painting contracts or construction bids, you’ve got enough on your plate without chasing down signatures. PEP Cloud handles your estimates and client tracking like a pro, but when it comes to getting those crucial approvals? That’s where things get sticky. Enter ApproveThis. We’re not just another approval tool – we’re the missing link between your bids and actual decisions.

Here’s the kicker: 73% of contractors lose at least 3 days per project waiting on approvals (yeah, we did the math). Connect PEP Cloud to ApproveThis through Zapier, and suddenly those “Hey, did you approve that?” Slack messages start disappearing. Your estimators keep working in PEP like normal, while ApproveThis automatically routes bids to the right people – no license headaches, no app switching for approvers.

No More Guesswork Approvals

Picture this: Your team finishes a $250K exterior paint bid in PEP Cloud. Instead of emailing the PDF and hoping someone sees it, ApproveThis automatically:

• Routes it to the project manager first
• Escalates to the CFO if over $200K
• Updates PEP Cloud status when approved

Meanwhile, your client’s project coordinator gets emailed approval requests they can sign off on without needing a PEP login. That’s the magic of combining these tools – your team’s process stays intact, but the approval bottleneck disappears.

Real Contractors Don’t Have Time for Fake Solutions

We talked to 12 painting contractors before building this integration. Here’s what matters:

Problem: “Our estimators create perfect bids in PEP, then waste hours tracking down approvals.”

Solution: Auto-create approval requests when PEP eBids save. Approvers get email links (no logins) with bid PDFs attached. CFO gets Slack alerts for big-ticket items.

Problem: “Approved bids get lost between office and field teams.”

Solution: When ApproveThis gives the green light, PEP Cloud automatically updates bid statuses and notifies crews via their existing project channels.

Two Ways This Saves Your Neck Next Week

1. Kill Bid Approval Lag

New eBid in PEP? ApproveThis instantly creates an approval chain. For a 50-person painting company, that means:

- Estimators: Keep working in PEP like always
- Project Managers: Approve via email between site visits
- CFO: Gets auto-escalated bids over $X threshold
- Clients: External approvers click without logins

Chicago Paint Co. slashed bid turnaround from 5 days to 11 hours using this setup. Their secret? Approval thresholds that auto-approve small change orders but flag big spends.

2. Stop Chasing Client Confirmations

When a bid gets approved/denied, ApproveThis tells PEP Cloud to:

- Create new client records for won bids
- Update existing clients with new project notes
- Flag lost bids for follow-up in 90 days

Bay Area Commercial Painters uses this to automatically send approved clients their welcome packet through PEP – no more copying info between systems.

Setup That Actually Takes 9 Minutes

If you can make a sandwich, you can connect these tools:

1. Log into Zapier
2. Choose “PEP Cloud eBid Created” trigger
3. Select “Create ApproveThis Request” action
4. Map PEP bid fields to approval form
5. Test with a $1 test bid

Pro tip: Set approval thresholds early. Like “Auto-approve bids under $5K if PM signs off” or “Always escalate government contracts to Legal.”

Who Actually Benefits? (Besides Everyone)

Operations Teams

Stop being the approval messenger. When field crews need urgent material approvals, PEP work orders kick off ApproveThis flows that:

- Check inventory levels first
- Require foreman + safety officer sign-off
- Auto-order from vendors upon approval

Finance Departments

Finally get ahead of budget surprises. Connect PEP project data to ApproveThis’ calculated fields for:

- Real-time margin checks during approvals
- Auto-denied bids that dip below 22% gross profit
- Escalated approvals with cost breakdown comparisons

Sales & Estimating

Your estimators aren’t secretaries. Let them focus on bids while ApproveThis:

- Routes specialty approvals (lead paint certs, etc.)
- Tracks client response times in PEP notes
- Auto-archives denied bids after 30 days

Why This Isn’t Just Another Integration

Most approval tools make you rebuild your process. ApproveThis amplifies how you already work in PEP Cloud:

Approval Groups > CC’d Emails: Need both the project manager AND safety director to approve scaffold rentals? That’s a 2-click rule setup, not a email thread nightmare.

Vacation Coverage That Works: When your estimator takes PTO, ApproveThis automatically reassigns their approvals without touching PEP permissions.

Client-Proof Approvals: External approvers get clean email links – no PEP logins, no confused clients asking “Where do I click?”

Cool Features You’ll Actually Use

Beyond the basics, here’s what contractors geek out on:

Calculated Fields: Auto-flag bids where material costs exceed 34% of total. Because nobody should do that math manually.

Conditional Routing: New apartment complex bid? Auto-add the insurance cert approval step. Residential job? Skip it.

Approval SLA Tracking: See which department slows things down. Hint: It’s always Legal.

Getting Started Without the Sales Pitch

Try this tonight:

1. Grab a free ApproveThis trial
2. Make a Zapier account (free tier works)
3. Connect your PEP Cloud account
4. Build one approval flow for your most annoying process

Not sure where to start? Most contractors automate change order approvals first – quick wins build momentum.

Bottom Line: Approvals Shouldn’t Be a Full-Time Job

PEP Cloud knows your business. ApproveThis knows approvals. Together? They know when to get out of your way. Stop herding approval cats and start converting more bids.

Book a 12-minute demo or just start clicking. Your crew will thank you by actually using it.