Scenarios & Offer Documents

Scenarios & Offer Documents

Your client asks: "What if we shoot in Mexico instead of Spain?" In a spreadsheet, that means duplicating the whole file, changing cells and checking that every formula still holds. In Splinde, you add a Scenario next to your budget. This guide shows you how, and how to turn the result into a PDF offer.

Scenario Management

What is a Scenario?

A Scenario is an alternative version of your budget that lives beside it in the same budget editor. The original is called Main. You can change any number in a Scenario (fees, days, currencies, crew positions) while Main stays as it is.

Think of it as a "what if" path. What if we shoot in a different location? What if we add a shoot day? What if the client needs a 15% cut? Each question becomes a Scenario that you can model, compare and present.

How to Create a Scenario

1. Open your budget.

2. Scroll to the right of the budget columns and click the Add Scenario card.

3. The Scenario starts as a copy of Main, with the same structure and numbers. To copy a different Scenario instead, pick it from the card's menu.

4. Give it a name by renaming it in the column header (for example, "Service in Mexico" or "Reduced Budget").

5. Make your changes. Adjust fees, change days, add or remove Cost Items.

Main stays untouched. You can create as many Scenarios as you need.

The Visual Delta

The difference to Main makes comparisons instant. When you change a number in a Scenario, Splinde shows you:

• The difference to Main in the Scenario's column header, next to its total. A Scenario that costs more shows in red, one that costs less in green. Switch between an amount and a percentage.

• A difference for every Section in the sidebar Sections tab. For example, if the Production Unit Section costs 19,425 EUR in Main and 16,852 EUR in the Scenario, you see –2,573 EUR next to it.

• A blue marker on any Variable whose value differs from Main.

Splinde shows the differences for you, so the comparison is already done.

Sidebar Comparison

Click into any Scenario's column to make it the active one. The sidebar total and the Section differences switch to that Scenario and give you the big picture: which option is cheaper overall, which Sections change most, and where the savings or overruns are. Use it for a quick overview before you go into the details.

Scenario-Specific Variables

Each Scenario keeps its own values for the Variables you have defined. For example, if Main has a Variable called "Shooting Days" with a value of 3, you can change it to 2 in your "Reduced Budget" Scenario. Every Cost Item that references @Shooting Days recalculates in that Scenario only. Main keeps its original values.

This is the fastest way to model budget changes. Change one Variable and the whole Scenario recalculates across every Section.

Common Use Cases for Scenarios

Offer Documents

What is the Offer Document Editor?

Splinde has a built-in document editor in a panel right next to your budget numbers. You write your proposal text (introduction, production approach, descriptions, disclaimers), and the budget numbers come straight from the live data.

It replaces copying numbers from Excel into a Word document, formatting them, and updating both files by hand every time something changes.

How It Works

1. Open your budget. The document panel sits on the right.

2. Write your proposal text in the editor. You can add headings, paragraphs, bullet lists and quotes.

3. In the sidebar, open Insert → Document.

4. Under Budget Blocks, add Cost Overview to insert a block that shows your Section totals from the budget.

5. The numbers update automatically whenever the budget changes.

Scenario-Linked Documents

Every Scenario has its own copy of the documents that existed when it was created, and its Budget Blocks show that Scenario's numbers. If your client asks for "the Mexico version," select that Scenario's chip in the document toolbar to open its document, with its cost overview and totals.

One click shows the other Scenario's numbers in its own document.

Export to PDF

When your Offer Document is ready, click Download PDF (the cloud icon at the top right of the document panel). Splinde creates a PDF with your proposal text, your cost overview and all the formatting, ready to send to the client.

Ready to plan every path?

Ready to try Scenarios? Open your budget, click Add Scenario and change one fee. Then continue with Day 5: The full workflow.