---
title: How Do Esign And Digital Signatures Work?
description: How e-signatures work in Exterio — ESIGN and UETA compliant, with automatic sold marking, a Certificate of Completion, and a document fingerprint.
---
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# How Do Esign And Digital Signatures Work?
## Customers sign proposals electronically from any device — phone, tablet, or computer — with no account to create and nothing to print. The signature is legally binding, and Exterio generates the documentation that proves it.
### When would I use this?
- Closing a job without a second trip to the kitchen table
- Getting a signature from a homeowner who’s at work or out of town
- Signing on site, on your tablet, before you leave the driveway
- Getting a signature on a change order mid-project
### How do digital signatures work?
1. You send the proposal, change order, or eSign Document
2. The customer opens it on their phone, tablet, or computer
3. They review it
4. They draw or type their signature
5. The proposal is legally signed
### Are digital signatures legally binding?
Yes. Signatures in Exterio are legally binding under:
- **The ESIGN Act** (US Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act)
- **UETA** (Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, state law)
Exterio facilitates electronic signing on behalf of the sender and is not a party to the agreement.
### What documentation is created when a proposal is signed?
Two separate records.
**Signing Details** — included in the signed receipt the customer receives:
| Field | What it shows |
| --- | --- |
| Status | Completed |
| Signed | Date and time with time zone |
| Method | Drawn or typed electronic signature |
| E-Sign Consent | Accepted |
| Document ID | The proposal’s unique identifier |
**Certificate of Completion** — the full audit record, kept in your account:
| Section | What it contains |
| --- | --- |
| **Document details** | Proposal number, title, project, customer, email, sent/viewed/signed timestamps, status, certificate ID |
| **Signer authentication** | Signature, email, signing timestamp, IP address, browser, operating system, device type, and confirmation that the signer accepted electronic disclosure and consent and acknowledged intent to be bound |
| **Event history** | Every event with timestamp and actor — proposal created, agreement signed |
| **Document fingerprint** | A SHA-256 cryptographic hash computed over the frozen document content, signer identity, signature data, and timestamps |
| **Legal notice** | The ESIGN and UETA basis for the signature |
### What is the document fingerprint?
A cryptographic hash calculated at the moment of signing, covering the document content, signer identity, signature data, and timestamps.
Any later change to the signed record would produce a different fingerprint. That’s what proves the document in your hand is the one that was signed — unmodified since.
### What does the customer experience look like?
**Opening the proposal**
The customer clicks the link in the email and it opens in their browser. **No account or login required.**
**Reviewing**
They scroll through the full proposal and can zoom in on mobile.
**Signing**
At the bottom of the proposal:
1. Check the acceptance box
2. Draw a signature with a finger or mouse, or type their name
3. Click **Sign**
**Confirmation**
The customer automatically receives a **signed receipt** by email, which includes the signing details above. The Certificate of Completion is not sent to the customer — it stays in your account.
### What happens in Exterio when a customer signs?
**Every estimate or change order the customer selected is automatically marked as sold.** You don’t need to mark anything manually after an electronic signature.
If your proposal allowed multiple package selections, each package the customer chose is marked sold. If it allowed only one, that single selection is.
### Can a signature trigger an automation and/or notifications?
Yes. **Proposal Signed** and **Change Order Signed** are both available as workflow triggers, and either can drive any action available in Workflows — updating the project stage, creating tasks, or notifying you or your team.
This is the most useful thing you can set up around signing. A signed proposal that sits unnoticed for two days is a production delay you created. See [*How to Set Up a Workflow Automation*.](https://www.getexterio.com/help/how-to-set-up-a-workflow-automation?hsLang=en)
### What is countersigning?
Turning on the countersign option in your proposal settings automatically applies the sales rep’s countersignature to the proposal. There’s no separate step for your team to complete.
### Can a customer decline a proposal digitally?
No. There’s no decline option in the signing experience. A customer who doesn’t want to proceed will tell you directly, and you’d update the project accordingly.
### Where do I find the signed proposal and Certificate of Completion?
Both are available in two places:
1. **From the Proposals tab**
Open the project, go to **Proposals**, and find the line for the signed proposal. The signed document and its Certificate of Completion are there.
2. **From the Files tab**
Open the **Files** tab of the project the proposal was signed under. Both documents are stored there as well.
### Tips and gotchas
- **Your selection settings decide what gets sold.** Because signing marks every selected package as sold, the allow-multiple-selections toggle has a direct financial consequence. Set deliberately: one selection for good/better/best of the same system, multiple for services that stack. See *How to Edit and Customize a Proposal for a Project*.
- **Check which estimates were marked sold before ordering materials.** The sold estimate is what your material order pulls from. On a multi-package signature, confirm you’re ordering against the right one.
- **Keep the Certificate of Completion, not just the signed receipt.** The receipt shows that a signature happened. The certificate proves who signed, from what device and IP, that they accepted electronic consent, and that the document hasn’t changed since. If a signature is ever questioned, the certificate is the document that answers it.
- **If a customer asks for proof of what they signed, send the receipt.** That’s what they received at signing and it carries the signing details. The certificate contains their IP address, device, and browser — information they didn’t ask for and don’t need.
- **The fingerprint is your protection against a modified-document claim.** If a homeowner later says the terms were different than what they signed, the hash either matches the record or it doesn’t. That’s a stronger position than any amount of recollection.
- **Send to the decision-maker’s own email address.** The certificate ties the signature to the email it was sent to. A proposal sent to a shared address or forwarded through someone else weakens the link between the signature and the person who made the commitment.
- **One signature binds one signer.** If both homeowners are on the deed or both need to approve the spend, make sure the proposal reaches the person who will actually sign. For commercial work, consider requiring signer name and job title in your proposal’s legal document settings.
- **Sign on site when you can.** The strongest moment to close is while you’re standing there. Pull the proposal up on your tablet and let them sign on the spot — identical legal standing, no waiting on an email they’ll open Thursday.
- **Automate what happens next.** Proposal Signed as a trigger means the project moves, the tasks get created, and the right people are notified the moment the customer commits — without anyone watching their inbox.
- **No account means no friction — and no gate.** The signing link works for anyone who has it. That’s what makes signatures fast. Send it to the right person.
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