How Do I Write A Proposal?
This is not so much about your selling process as the mechanics of writing a proposal. If your looking for how to use proposals as part of your selling process there is a big section in this Marketing Manual which you may find helpful.
The secret to writing a good proposal is to put it off for as long as possible.
A good proposal is a record of a meeting you have already had and a record of what you have already agreed. It should come late in the process as a confirmation of discussions with your customer. Unsuccessful proposals are often like shooting in the dark, written more in hope than anything else, hope that you have understood, hope that you have got the right tone and hope that what you are proposing will interest the customer. This is hard work and rarely succeeds.
A great proposal is not a sales document, it’s more like the minutes of a meeting.
When do clients buy?
A client buys when the price is right and they know exactly what they are getting for their money. If your proposal is to help them with this then you need to find out some information. You need to know:
- Their objectives - what they want
- The value they place on solving the problem or getting the result
- How important this is
- The cost of not doing it
- Their expectations of you
In other words, find out everything you can before you start writing.
Outline
Once you have the information you need and have had a discussion with the customer about options and ideas then you can write it down and send it to them. Here’s an outline for a typical proposal in this style
- Situation summary
- Objectives
- Value
- Measure of success
- How we work - methods, approaches, system etc.
- Timing and scope
- Who is responsible for what?
- Some kind of guarantee that removes the risk
- Terms and Price
Use an FAQ style
One approach that lends your proposal a practical and pragmatic tone is to write it in the style of “Frequently Asked Questions” (from the customers perspective). Here’s an example using the headings above:
- Your current situation is…
- What you would like to achieve…
- The value you place on this work…
- You’ll measure our success this way…
- How we work
- Early timings and proposed scope
- Who does what
- Our guarantee
- Our price and terms of business
Action
Why not create a proposal template document using one of the outlines above? No harm in being ready and you could also use it as a checklist when you meet a new client.
Remember
Do a thorough needs assessment first. Make sure you are speaking to decision makers and try everything you can to get a face to face meeting before sending anything.
A well written proposal will protect you against ‘scope creep’ and against vaguely worded deliverables. Helping your customer define their deliverables more clearly is very valuable to them. Give this the time it deserves.
Speculative proposals where customers insists on hearing all about your offer without either meeting you or letting you have any details of their situation, are often a waste of time and money. One way to deal with this is to have good quality materials on a website that enable time wasting clients to find out for themselves.
Although your proposal needs to be comprehensive, don’t give everything away, it’s not a detailed project plan. Your actions and results should be clear but the specifics of how you do it do not have to be.
Aim for short, jargon free and pragmatic - two or three pages at the most.
