We run a custom web development agency, and for years, we structured our sales process like everyone else: scope the project, export a PDF, email it, and wait.
We recently realized this was actively killing our margins. Here are the three biggest lessons we learned about why static documents break the B2B sales cycle:
1. Time kills exchange rates: If you deal with international clients, a 3-week approval delay on a static PDF means the currency exchange rate will drift. You either eat the loss or renegotiate.
2. The "Friction of the Yes": Getting a client to sign a document is only half the battle. If they have to close the PDF, open their banking app, and manually wire the money, you lose momentum.
Hey Product Hunt! 👋 I'm André, maker of Cord.
I run a custom web dev agency alongside my partner Diego. Because we deal with high-ticket custom software globally, our sales cycles are notoriously slow.
The Problem: For years, our biggest nightmare was the closing stage. We would send a static PDF proposal, wait weeks for a client's board to approve it, watch the multi-currency exchange rate drift, and then have to chase them down again just to get the actual invoice paid.
The Solution: I built Cord to completely eliminate this friction. Cord replaces static PDFs with live, interactive web links. But it’s not just a quoting tool—it’s a complete, global B2B sales and revenue infrastructure.
Here is what we built:
Real-Time FX Locking: The exact millisecond a client hits "Approve" on their browser, the backend deterministically freezes the multi-currency exchange rate.
Cord Payments (Instant Global Checkout): Powered by a deep Stripe Connect integration, clients can pay directly from the approved quote via international credit cards or local bank transfer methods depending on their region. Funds land directly in your bank account.
Automated Invoicing: Seamless, automated billing generation built right into the closing flow to keep your accounting clean across borders.
Developer-First Architecture: We built robust API keys stored as irreversible sha-256 hashes. If our system detects a leaked sk_live_ key on public GitHub repos, automated fraud mechanisms preemptively suspend it. We also ship with React and Next.js SDKs, webhooks, and a dedicated Cord Workbench.
What started as an internal tool to stop our agency from bleeding money on currency drift is now a standalone, bootstrapped global SaaS.
I’ll be hanging out here all day. I would absolutely love your raw, unfiltered feedback on the developer docs, the Stripe integration flow, or just to chat about the nightmare of global B2B sales cycles! Let me know what you think.