A storyboard is the plan for an answer. Instead of going straight from question to generated draft, you first set out what the response needs to contain and how it should be built.
The payoff comes at generation: BidScript uses the storyboard as its drafting context, so an approved plan produces a much closer first draft than a prompt alone.
Create a storyboard template
Templates are created and managed in Template Studio, and reused across questions and projects.
Go to Template Studio.
Open the Storyboard Templates area.
Create a new storyboard template.
Add the storyboard blocks or sections you want contributors to complete.
Configure what each block asks for.
Save or publish the template.
A block can ask for any of the following:
Section guidance
Key questions to answer
Required evidence prompts
Win Theme blocks
Instructions on how the answer should be structured
Published templates can then be assigned to questions or used inside workflows.
Assign a template to a question
Assign at question level when only certain questions need storyboard planning.
Open your project and go to the Questions area.
Select the question that needs a storyboard.
Open the Storyboard configuration panel from the actions button at the top.
Choose a storyboard template.
The template creates the storyboard structure for that question, ready to be filled out.
Take care when changing a template later: if a storyboard has already been started, changing its template may reset the existing blocks. Templates cannot be changed at all once a storyboard has been finalised, or while it is in review.
Fill out a storyboard
Open the question and switch to the Storyboard view.
Complete each block, following the guidance the template provides.
Within a block you can enter:
Answer structure notes
Key messages
Evidence summaries
Compliance points
Win Theme guidance
Contributor notes
Bid Library document references
Attach Bid Library documents
Focus the relevant storyboard block, then insert or reference the supporting Bid Library material so the evidence is attached to the correct part of the plan.
Placement matters. Referenced documents are carried forward into draft generation, so evidence attached to the right block directly improves the generated response.
Review and approve a storyboard
Once complete, a storyboard can be submitted for review as part of the workflow. Reviewers check that:
The proposed structure is suitable
The required evidence is included
Win Themes are applied correctly
Bid Library references are relevant
The planned answer addresses the question in full
On approval the storyboard becomes finalised. If changes are requested, it returns to an incomplete state so it can be revised and resubmitted.
Generate a draft from a storyboard
Once the storyboard is complete and approved, click Generate Draft.
BidScript uses the storyboard as its drafting context, including:
The content of the completed blocks
Your manual notes and instructions
Win Theme blocks
Referenced Bid Library documents
Inline evidence references
The storyboard's structure and section order
The draft follows the agreed structure and incorporates the evidence you selected while storyboarding.
Storyboards in workflows
Storyboard templates can be added to a workflow using a Storyboard block, which standardises storyboarding across a project rather than leaving it question by question.
Within the block you can configure:
Whether storyboarding is required, recommended or off
The default storyboard template
Who can complete storyboard work
Whether later workflow stages are gated by storyboard completion
When completion is enforced
Where a workflow includes a required Storyboard block, BidScript enforces it:
Users are guided to complete the storyboard first.
Draft submission can be blocked until it is complete.
Bulk generation may skip questions with incomplete required storyboards.
Questions display a storyboard status of Required, Optional or Finalised.
That third point is worth knowing before a large bulk generation: questions with outstanding required storyboards will not produce drafts.
Who can do what
Core users | Create and edit storyboard content, structure responses, assign ownership, capture Win Themes, add evidence notes, and collaborate on section-level plans. |
Admin users | Everything core users can do, plus configuration that affects the wider team: managing storyboard templates, setting default structures, controlling approved reusable content, and defining organisation-wide storyboarding standards. |
Admin-only controls are gated so that core users cannot accidentally change shared templates, team-wide defaults or governance settings used across other bids.
Best practice
Build reusable templates in Template Studio for your common response types.
Use workflow Storyboard blocks where storyboarding should be standard across a project.
Make storyboarding required for complex or strategically important questions.
Attach Bid Library documents to the correct blocks rather than the first one.
Review and approve storyboards before generating drafts.
Treat the storyboard as the plan for the answer, not a first version of it.
Related articles
Generating drafts — generating once the storyboard is approved.
Creating and assigning Win Themes — the themes referenced in storyboard blocks.
Configuring Workflows — building the workflow a Storyboard block sits in.
Team Content Controls — organisation-wide storyboard requirements.