How to Build Your First Scope Template in RuleDox (Step-by-Step)

If you're coming from manually copying Google Docs scopes, building your first template in RuleDox feels like a different process. It is — but it's not complicated.

This guide walks you through building a working scope template in 4 steps: structure, variables, form questions, and testing.

Time estimate: 1-2 hours for your first template. Subsequent templates take 30 minutes.

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Before you build anything in RuleDox, define what sections always appear in your scope.

Open your last 5 scopes. What's identical every time? Those are your structure.

Example: Shopify Build Scope

Every Shopify scope has these sections:

• Project Overview & Goals
• Deliverables (theme setup, custom apps, migrations, training)
• Timeline & Milestones
• Roles & Responsibilities
• Assumptions
• Out of Scope (exclusions)
• Change Request Process
• Next Steps

Write this down. This structure won't change per project—only the content inside the sections changes.

If your table of contents changes every time, your scope will always feel like writing. A fixed structure means:

• Consistent review experience (you know where to look)
• Easier delegation (structure is predictable)
• Faster assembly (no deciding "what goes where")

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Variables are the things that change per project. Not the structure—the inputs.

For a Shopify build, your variables might be:

• Client name
• Project type (simple build, migration, redesign)
• Number of custom apps
• Needs migration? (yes/no)
• Training hours included? (yes/no)
• Timeline (8 weeks, 12 weeks, 16 weeks)

Write these down. These will become your form questions.

Ask yourself: "What do I ask the client before I write the scope?"

For Shopify: "How many custom apps?" "Do you need a migration?" For SEO: "What tier?" "How many keywords?" "Add-ons?" For web design: "Page count?" "E-commerce?" "Custom integrations?"

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Your form is the starting point. Users answer 5-10 questions, and RuleDox assembles the scope.

Form questions should be:

• Simple (yes/no, dropdown, number input)
• Specific ("How many custom apps?" not "What else?")
• In the same order as your scope (makes it easier to understand)

Example Shopify Build Form

1. Client name? [text input]
2. Project type? [Shopify Build / Migration / Redesign / CRO]
3. How many custom apps? [number]
4. Needs data migration? [Yes / No]
5. Timeline? [8 weeks / 12 weeks / 16 weeks]
6. Training included? [Yes / No]

These 6 answers feed into everything else.

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This is where RuleDox assembles the scope.

You're saying: "When someone answers this form, pull these answers into these sections, and calculate these numbers."

[FIXED TEXT] Theme design and configuration in Shopify. Hours: 40 Hours: 40 hours × $150/hour = $6,000 ​

[VARIABLE] You've requested {{custom_apps}} custom apps. Hours: {{custom_apps}} × 15 hours each = {{custom_apps_hours}} Cost: {{custom_apps_hours}} × $150/hour = {{custom_apps_cost}}

[CONDITIONAL - only show if "Needs migration" = Yes] We'll migrate your existing data to Shopify. Hours: 20 Cost: 20 hours × $150/hour = $3,000

[CONDITIONAL - only show if "Training included" = Yes] We'll provide 8 hours of staff training. Hours: 8 Cost: 8 hours × $150/hour = $1,200

The form answers fill in {{variables}}. The conditionals show/hide sections.

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Before finalizing, generate a scope for 3 different projects.

Test 1: Simple build (2 apps, no migration, 8 weeks, training)

• Does the scope generate correctly?
• Are all numbers right?
• Do the conditionals work (training shows, migration doesn't)?

Test 2: Complex build (8 apps, migration, 16 weeks, no training)

• Check numbers again
• Do exclusions update correctly?
• Does timeline change impact anything?

Test 3: Redesign (0 custom apps, migration, 12 weeks, training)

• Does it handle the edge case (0 apps)?
• Are sections still sensible?

If a number is wrong or a section doesn't make sense, fix it:

• Update the calculation
• Reword the conditional text
• Adjust the form question

Once tests pass, you're done.

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Here's the before/after:

Manual process (what you do now):

1. Open last scope
2. Copy entire document
3. Change client name, details
4. Recalculate hours and pricing
5. Review for consistency
6. Send
7. Time: 2 hours per scope

Automated process (with RuleDox):

1. Answer form: 6 questions
2. Click "Generate"
3. Review generated scope (2-3 min tweaks usually)
4. Send
5. Time: 10-15 minutes per scope

For 15 scopes/month:

• Manual: 30 hours/month = 360 hours/year
• Automated: 2.5 hours/month = 30 hours/year
• Time saved: 330 hours/year = $45,000-65,000 in labor cost

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Mistake 1: Too much variability in structure

❌ "Every scope is different, so I'll make every section conditional"

✅ Structure stays fixed. Only content inside sections changes.

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Mistake 2: Treating calculations as formulas

❌ "I'll just type $12,500 and update manually for each client"

✅ Build a formula: Hours × Rate. Changes automatically.

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Mistake 3: Not testing edge cases

❌ "Looks good, let's go live"

✅ Test 3 different real projects before finalizing. Find the bugs now, not with a client.

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Mistake 4: Making the form too long

❌ 20 form questions

✅ 5-8 questions. Keep it simple.

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1. Define your structure — What sections always appear?
2. List your variables — What changes every time?
3. Create your form — What 5-8 questions get you those variables?
4. Build the template — Connect variables to sections
5. Test with 3 real projects — Make sure it works
6. Go live — Start using it for new scopes

Once you have one working template, building others is much faster. Most people have 2-3 templates handling 80% of their work.

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Try the live demo → to see how scope assembly works before building your own.

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• Building Pricing Rules in RuleDox — Detailed pricing formula examples
• How to Write a Scope of Work — The structure and content framework
• Setting Up Conditional Sections — Advanced: show/hide logic