Respond to a proofing request

When you receive a proofing review request, it will include a link that takes you to a review page in a new browser tab. On the review page, you can take the following actions:

• Leave annotated comments linked directly to a piece of content

• Have conversations with other stakeholders

• Approve a proof or require changes

Review a proof

Who can review a proof?

Anyone who has been invited to review can participate.

Where you take action depends on whether you’ve been shared to the sheet on which the proof resides:

• If you have access to the sheet where the proof resides: You can review the proof directly in the sheet or on the external review page. 
• If you aren't shared to the sheet: You'll be able to take action only on the external review page.

When someone sends you a proofing review request

You’ll receive a notification. To get started with your review, in the notification you received, select Review Proof.

What you do next depends on whether you already have a Smartsheet account:

• If you already have a Smartsheet account: You’ll land on the external review page.
• If you don’t have a Smartsheet account: You’ll be prompted to create a free account before you can view the external review page.

Reviewing the proof on the external review page

Anyone with permission to view the sheet can review the proof on the external review page in a new tab. Whatever permissions you have on the sheet will be the same as on the external review page. 

If you're on the sheet, you can go to the external review page by following these steps:

1. In the proof view, select Export .
2. Choose Open proof in new tab.

Include comments with your feedback

Use the comment box to add a comment if you have general feedback. 

To add a comment

1. In the proof view, type your comment. 
2. Press Enter.
   Use the @mention feature to let the requestor know you’ve completed the review. When you @mention them, they'll receive a notification with a link to the proof where you tagged them. 

If you want to leave feedback on a certain area of the content you’re reviewing, use a markup tool to combine your comment with an annotation.

Include annotations with your feedback

You can use the following types of annotations to mark up the content in a proof:

• Pin annotation
• Box annotation
• Arrow annotation
• Symbol annotation

All annotation types can be added using the desktop app. However, only pin annotations can be added using both the mobile and desktop apps. 

To add a pin annotation

1. In the proof file, select the location where you wish to leave a comment.

   After doing this step, you’ll see an annotation pin on the proof.
2. In the comment box of the proofing view, type your comment.
3. Press Enter.

To add a box annotation around a specific area on the proof

1. Hover your pointer over the proof. 
2. Select Comment on an area  . 
3. Optional: To change the annotation object’s shape, in the list that appears, select any of these options:
   • Box
   • Dashed Box
   • Circle
   • Dashed Circle
4. Select and drag the pointer to highlight an area on the proof.
   • Doing this will add an annotation box with your desired dimensions. A pin will be located at the tail end of the box.
5. In the comment box of the proofing view, type your comment.
6. Press Enter.

Once you submit your annotation, a numeric value is added to the pin annotation on the proof. The annotation number reflects the order in which the annotation was added.

To add an arrow annotation between two locations on the proof

1. Hover your pointer over the proof. 
2. Select Comment with an arrow . 
3. Select the location where you wish the arrow tail to begin.
4. Select and drag the mouse to where you want the arrowhead to be located. 
   • Doing this will add an annotation arrow with your desired direction and size. A pin will be located at the tail end of the arrow.
5. In the comment box, type your comment.
6. Press Enter.

To add a symbol annotation

1. Hover your pointer over the proof. 
2. Select the Comment with a symbol icon.
3. Choose an emoji.
   

Customize your annotation object

You can change the annotation object’s color. To customize the color, follow these steps:

1. Hover your pointer over the proof. 
2. Select the Comment color icon. 
3. Then, in the color picker, choose your color of choice.

Add an annotation to a video

When reviewing a video proof, you can use the same markup tools to add annotations to specific frames.You have four options for navigating to a frame that requires an annotation:

• Select Play. Then, select Pause when you reach the correct frame.
• Select Step Forward to move the video one second forward.
• Select Step Back to move the video one second back.
• Select anywhere on the video timeline to move to that moment.

When you add an annotation, the frame is marked in the video timeline with your profile image.

After adding an annotation to a video frame, there are two ways to jump back to that frame:

• Select the associated comment.
• Select your profile image in the video timeline.

Approve a proof or require changes

To approve a proof or require changes, select either of these buttons:

• Approve: Select this option if the version you’re reviewing requires no further revisions.
• Requires Changes: Select this option if you need the requester to make a few more changes to the proof.

Only people who have been invited to participate in a review will see these options.

As others make their approval decisions, each viewer of the proof will be able to see a tally of the following:

• Approve/Require Changes responses
• Pending review requests

You can check the names of people who have chosen an option or have yet to review. To see their names, hover your pointer over the Approve or Requires Changes button, or the Pending tally.