10×
What a design change costs after development starts, roughly.
0 open points
The state a design round must reach before approval.
1 signature
Stakeholders comment — one person owns the yes.
Why the design freeze is a gate, not a formality
Projects rarely fail at design or build. They fail in the fog between the two.
An approved design is a contract with a version number: this is what we build, this is what you’ll accept. Without it, the design phase never really ends — it just goes quiet until development makes changes expensive, and then reopens as a dispute. The approval gate converts taste into decisions while decisions are still cheap.
Without a gate
“Great, let’s start building!”
- Which of the four Figma pages was the yes for?
- Open comments ride silently into development
- “Small tweaks” reopen the design in week 6
- Acceptance becomes a matter of memory
With a design approval
Version, zero open points, signature
- One fixed design version carries the approval
- Every comment resolved or explicitly deferred
- Later wishes become change requests
- The build points to the record, not to memory
What design approval software must provide
A design freeze that means it
The approved design is a fixed version. Everything after it is a change request — not a “small tweak” that reopens the phase.
Feedback resolved before the gate
Open comments and an approval can’t coexist. The software should force the list to zero — resolved or explicitly deferred.
The decision-maker signs, not the group
Stakeholders comment, one person approves. If nobody owns the yes, the build starts on quicksand.
A record the build can point to
When “that’s not what we approved” arrives in week 6, the approval record with version and date answers in one line.
The half-approval trap
Run the design gate in bepeq
Share the design version behind one link, let stakeholders pin their comments without logins, resolve the round — and close it with a sign-off that documents version, approver and timestamp as a PDF. Wishes after the freeze arrive as change requests, not surprises.
Start bepeq for freeSign-off record generated automatically
Version: staging.clientsite.com
Jul 8, 2026 · 2:32 PM · IP recorded
2 open points (category B) with a deadline
Related workflows
Online proofing
The umbrella workflow: proof, revise, approve with a record.
Design feedback tool
Collecting feedback during design iteration — before the gate.
Artwork approval
Releasing final creative assets: print files, key visuals, banners.
Change request form
What wishes after the design freeze turn into.
Common questions about design approval
What is design approval software?
Design approval software manages the sign-off milestone between design and build: a fixed design version is reviewed, open feedback is resolved, one accountable person approves, and the approval is documented with version and date. It turns “I guess we’re done designing?” into a defined gate.
Why does the design phase need a formal approval?
Because building on an unapproved design means designing twice. Every hour of development multiplies the cost of a design change — the approval gate is where changes are still cheap. Projects that skip it don’t skip the discussion; they just have it in week 6, at development prices.
What’s the difference between design approval and design feedback?
Feedback is iterative and open-ended: directions, preferences, refinements while the design moves. Approval is binary and final: this version, yes or no. Good software keeps them apart — a feedback thread that quietly becomes “approved” is how scope disputes are born.
What happens to change wishes after the design is approved?
They become change requests: documented, classified as defect or new wish, estimated and decided — instead of silently reopening the design phase. The approval record makes that conversation easy, because “what we agreed” has a version number and a date.
Does bepeq support design approval?
Yes — share a fixed design version behind one link, collect pinned feedback without logins, resolve the round, and close it with a sign-off that generates a timestamped PDF record. The same workflow then carries the project through build review and final acceptance.