Template Sets let you build system templates once and roll them out to the contractors in your network — so every contractor quotes from the equipment, tiers, and matchups you've approved. This article walks through creating a distributor-managed system template, grouping templates into a set, and assigning that set to your contractors.

Why Use Template Sets

Getting contractors set up with the right equipment used to mean walking each one through their own template build — or hoping they got it right on their own. Template Sets move that control to you.

You build the system templates, bundle them into a set, and assign the set to as many contractors as you want. The templates show up in their account ready to quote from. You decide which equipment, tiers, and matchups they start with, and the templates stay managed by you.

How It Works

You build system templates from your equipment, the same way contractors build their own — tiers, model lines, and matchups.
You group one or more templates into a Template Set.
You assign the set to one contractor, a group, or your whole network.
Assigned templates appear in each contractor's account as read-only managed templates they can quote from right away.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Open System Templates

From the SetSale Connect left navigation, go to System Templates.
This opens the System Templates page, which lists your distributor-owned system templates along with a summary of each template's configuration, which sets it belongs to, and how many contractors it's assigned to.

2. Build a System Template

If you don't have a template yet, build one first. Distributor templates use the same builder contractors use, so the structure will be familiar.

Create a new template and name it for the system it covers (for example, "Heat Pump System" or "AC + Furnace Split").
Set the equipment, tiers, and matchups for each tier.
Enable only the matchups you want contractors to quote. Disabled matchups won't pull into their quotes.
Use the Coverage Checker to confirm there are no gaps where a tier has no matching equipment.

For a full walkthrough of how the template builder works, see How to Configure Equipment Rules and Templates.

3. Create a Template Set

Open the Template Sets tab.
Click Create Set, give the set a name, and confirm. Set names must be unique.

You can also create a set on the fly from the System Templates list when you assign a template to a new set by name.

4. Add Templates to the Set

Open the set to view its detail page.
Add the system templates you want to include. A set can hold more than one template, and the same template can belong to more than one set.

5. Assign Contractors to the Set

On the set detail page, click Assign Contractors.
Search for contractors and multi-select the ones you want. You can assign a single contractor, a group, or your full network in one action.
Save. The templates in the set appear in each assigned contractor's account.

✨ Pro Tip: You can also manage assignments from the other direction. Open an individual contractor's detail page to see and edit every Template Set assigned to them in one place.

What Your Contractors See

Once a set is assigned, the templates show up in each contractor's System Templates as managed templates, with a label identifying you as the source.

Read-only by default — Contractors can quote from your templates but can't edit or delete them. Managed templates appear in their quote template dropdown alongside their own, in one sorted list.
Create a copy to edit — If a contractor wants to tweak a managed template, they can duplicate it. The copy becomes their own editable template and leaves your original untouched.
Disable — A contractor can hide an individual managed template if it doesn't apply to them. This only affects their account, not the set or other contractors.

⚠️ Heads Up: A managed template can only populate equipment the contractor actually has in their account. If a template relies on model lines that haven't been synced to a contractor yet, those matchups won't appear on their side. Make sure the underlying equipment is in place before assigning.

Managing Template Sets

Rename or delete a set from its detail page. Deleting a set removes the assignment for the contractors it was assigned to.
Reuse templates across sets — Because one template can live in multiple sets, you can maintain a single source template and roll it out through different sets for different contractor groups.
Deleting a template in active use — If you delete a template that contractors are actively quoting from, SetSale will warn you before you confirm.

A Note for Territory Managers

Territory managers can build templates and manage assignments for the contractors in their scope, with a couple of guardrails:

TMs can't delete templates.
TMs can't unassign a set from a contractor that falls outside their assigned territory.

Tips

Start narrow, then expand — Assign a set to one or two contractors first, confirm the templates land the way you expect, then roll out to the rest of the network.
Group sets by contractor type — Build separate sets for different kinds of contractors (for example, residential vs. light commercial) instead of one set for everyone.
Check coverage before you assign — Run the Coverage Checker on each template so contractors don't open a managed template with empty tiers.