Proposals that Secure Relationships

The first title I came up with for this week's Impact Improver was "Proposals that win business". However, I realised pretty quickly that this was in direct conflict with the first point I wanted to make - which was that proposals shouldn't win business at all - you should have won the business long before sitting down to write the proposal. So just what is a proposal for and how do you write a good one?

What's the purpose of a proposal?
Writing proposals represents significant expenditure of effort and if you're a micro or small business 'effort' is one thing you don't have buckets of - it has to be rationed out very carefully. Too often I've seen fellow business colleagues - usually with a corporate background - rush into the proposal writing stage too early, believing that it takes them a step closer to winning the business. Sadly, there are some disingenuous prospects out there who use the proposal stage to either (a) educate themselves, (b) play one supplier off against and another, (c) score political points internally, ("See, I told you it would be too expensive, now we have the evidence") or (d) get an over-enthusiastic supplier off their back, because they feel embarrassed about saying, "No thank you". I have no real issue with (a) and (b) in moderation, but taken to extremes and mixed with (c) or (d) it all becomes a huge waste of effort.

There are two rules that business has taught me about proposals:

1. Good proposals rarely win business
2. Bad proposals can lose you potential business

I have quoted Bob Burg previously, "All things being equal, people will do business with those that they know, like and trust" - Bob doesn't say, "...those that write the best proposal".

I believe your job is to first win the business, then write the proposal, and use it to secure your future relationship.

It's your opportunity to clearly lay out how both parties are going to win from the deal.

If you accept this as being the case, then the above statement strongly influences what a good proposal looks like - and helpfully, it also reduces the amount of effort that goes into writing one.

The three elements of a good proposal
One thing you don't need to do is replicate the mistakes of so many 'corporate' proposals, by stuffing your document full of irrelevant history about your own company and your own successes. Remember, you're already at the point where the customer knows, likes and trusts you - you don't have to convince the reader of that.

Focus on demonstrating the following:

1. Your understanding of the customer's situation
Focus clearly on the 'gap' in the customer's organisation, processes, systems, people, (whatever). Illustrate that you understand where the pain is, what it is and how it is affecting the customer's business.

2. Your understanding of what the customer wants to achieve
Replay your understanding of...

...what the customer wants to have happen as a result of doing business with you...

...and note how different this is from a description of "what I'm going to do for you". The former is focused on the customer's needs, the latter on your capabilities.

State your understanding of how the customer will measure the success of the project - this is the only way in which you can measure your own success and hope to have a successful, long-term relationship.

3. How your solution will help the customer
The key to this section lies in the first word - how - as opposed to what. Describe how your solution helps the customer achieve the results he or she seeks, as opposed to describing what your solution actually is. Of course, you do have to actually describe what your solution is - but do make sure that you link your description to the customer's needs. Demonstrate how you will deliver your solution within budget.

Finally, keep your language simple and clear. Sentences rarely need be longer than 20 words and certainly not the 53 word, single sentence paragraph I read recently. Use diagrams and invest time in laying out the document so it's easy on the eye and a pleasure to read.

That's it folks for this week - as usual, your comments welcomed and appreciated, particularly with reference as to what you'd like to hear about. I do get quite a few emails by the way, and I read them all, so please don't feel shy about getting in contact.

Best wishes for the coming week.

Chris Davidson
Editor, Professional Speakers Journal