If business proposals were judged solely on their weight and volume (rather than their content and focus), most of them would be very successful.

The problem is, somewhere in sales folklore, there are two proposal fairy tales that most proposal writers seem to believe will cast the magic “buy this” spell on any prospective customer.

The stories are:

1) A lot of ‘push’ is better than too little.

2) The first thing that proposal readers look for is information about us.

Driven by a near universal belief in these stories, the mounting order of most business proposals is usually as follows:

-Title page

– Information about ourselves: how long we have been in business, etc.

– Images: Our managers (with professional backgrounds), Our office/warehouse

– Detailed information about our services and products

– Confirmation of the amount of product/service that the customer wants to buy

– The price that the client will have to pay

– Installation and implementation requirements

– Terms and Conditions and copy of our contract

– Conclution

The first horrible truth that I have to present to you, in an effort to steer you away from this mythical-magical proposal template, is written below. It is so central to the entire sales process that I wish you would do this for me right now: (write, print, draw, smear the following words on a very large sheet of paper and place it on your desk where you can see it every day. :

“NOBODY CARES ABOUT YOU AND YOUR BUSINESS”

The word ‘I’ (along with its close companion words, ‘we’, ‘my’ and ‘our’) is the weakest and least persuasive word in the world. And yet it is the most common word in all business communications. Yes, despite the fact that all the research on business persuasion says that ‘things about you and what you think’ don’t have a positive effect on the sales process, business people still fill their pitches with it.

If you want to read up on the research and books on why this isn’t the way to do it, you can start 75 years ago with Dale Carnegie’s seminal work “How to Win Friends and Influence People” (still a bestseller and still in print) and check out all the latest business books. But EVERYONE will tell you the same thing: (Apart from your family and close friends) No one cares about you…or what you are…or what you do…or what you think. And ‘no’ your business is NOT different. And ‘yes’ this applies to YOU ​​too.

So, if you start your pitch with a lot of bullshit about yourself and your business, you’ll soon be in a key position in the pile labeled “Just Like Everyone Else.”

Most proposal writers don’t just fill the first few pages of their proposals with things about themselves (“Yes, this is what you want to know… this will impress you!”), details about it as well. You’ll find full ‘Bios’ and CVs of all their key players, photos of smiling faces, facility photos, warehouse and office photos and even photos of the trucks and vans used for delivery.

As the reader delves further into the proposal, in a vain search for what he is really looking for, he comes across ‘the product brochure’. This usually consists of a description and/or images of the products the customer is interested in, plus, for good measure, all or nearly all other products and services offered (just in case). It is several pages long and often includes detailed technical specifications.

After that comes the price list and the final quote for the job in question. In addition to a complete description of the payment terms and the penalties for not paying on time and other secondary costs.

Finally comes the killer conclusion: “Don’t hesitate to call us if you need any more information. We look forward to hearing from you soon.”

OK You got your wish: You’re dead.

So what is there to do?

Would you like me to show you how your proposal can fare in the rare pile marked “Winner”?

OK, it’s not hard… here goes:

First, let’s remember why your company exists. It exists, like all companies, companies and commercial organizations, to solve at least one problem. That’s it!… If you’re not clear about the problem that your business solves then you probably don’t have a business.

When your client contacted you, or responded to a proposal from you, the only reason they did so was because they thought you could solve at least one problem for them. What that specific problem is (and there may be more than one) depends on the type of problem your business is prepared to solve.

So the first thing that should appear in your proposal is something about ‘the problem’. Because the first thing your prospect will say to himself, opening the pages, is: “My problem… where is it?… Was this person listening to me when I told him all my problems, the ones he could be?” able to fix?… Does it show, somewhere here, that you understand my problems and the effect they are having on me?”

To satisfy this basic customer need, the first few pages of your proposal should therefore inform the customer, in your own words if possible, that you have been listening to and understand all the problems your customer wants to solve. There should be nothing “problem solving” in his first words. It should be a mirror summary of what the client told you.

Immediately after this opening section, start at the top of a new page.

In the next section, you will describe what ‘could’… ‘has’… ‘could’ happen if these problems are not fixed. Magnifying the side effects of not solving a problem initiates a process of psychological reinforcement that increases the convenience of your service. This is especially powerful if you’ve previously been able to get the customer to tell you what they think might happen if the problem continues unchecked. And it’s even better if you’ve disclosed how much the problem is costing you or could cost you. If he has told you, put it on (but don’t invent anything).

So in these first two sections you have shown the client that unlike ALL the other proposals on your desk, YOU were listening to what they were saying. This is about as rare as a ’90 cent bill’

Only at this point is the customer sufficiently ‘smoothed’ and therefore open to reading about how your service and/or product will be able to address the issues outlined above. Having been reminded of his problem, he is ready for the solution.

But beware; At this stage, DO NOT be tempted to talk too much about what the product ‘is’ or about your company and its background. Rather state the way and manner in which your product or service will solve the problem. In other words, focus on the solution (‘the benefits’) rather than the hard facts (‘the features’)

And DO NOT fall for the common trap of adding a bunch of other features and benefits that don’t address the specific issues the customer has given you. Spurious bits and pieces that are added, like sprinkles on a cake, to give a proposal substance (and generally soften it a bit), will generally not have the desired effect.

Far from making a proposition more desirable, research shows that there is a direct correlation between a bunch of unsolicited bits and pieces and the potential customer who complains about the price.

Yes, sometimes, despite your huge arsenal of products, they only want ONE thing from you… that’s all; and in that case, that’s enough!

So if, for some vague masochistic reason, you want to raise price quibbles, add more unsolicited stuff. If you don’t want them then NO.

Now that you’ve gone to the trouble of paying the customer the compliment of clearly listening to their problems and showing them how to fix them, you’re looking at the price.

So in the next section (new page) put it very simply. And always strive to have already given them a good idea of ​​what it will be in previous conversations. The proposal should, whenever possible, NOT be the first time the prospect has learned of the price. If there hasn’t been an opportunity to do this, you should do everything in your power to deliver the proposal in person and discuss it with the client face to face.

If your proposal is actually a response to a Request for Quotation (RFQ) or Request for Proposal (RFP) received from a prospect out of the blue (no face-to-face discussion possible beforehand), then I have something rather alarming to tell you. : you are probably very late to the table and the whole thing is more or less seeded with someone else. You are being used!

Invariably, another preferred provider has already quoted. But during the decision-making process, the boss asked for some comparative quotes just to cover himself if anyone asked. The problem is that the bidding document is based on the existing price (and strengths) of your competitor, so from the beginning, you are fighting a very tough battle.

Most unexpected requests (no discussion possible) will result in a lot of wasted time and mostly no deal.

Well, here it is… most of the important work is already done.

If you want, you can now add, to the back, a few short sections about yourself, your company, and how long you’ve been in business, but keep it short. People don’t have the time or the interest to read a lot of stuff… Would you? And, as a general rule, no photos of warehouses, factories or trucks… one looks like the other. Nobody is impressed.

It is often good to offer references at this point, but only if they have been asked for. Remember that the reader of the proposal has usually subconsciously already made a decision. This is because people (your customers) accept you primarily based on the amount of interest you have shown in them.

The final part of compiling your ‘Winning Proposal’ should focus on telling the client what to do next. This should be couched in very positive terms without any of the usual ‘Please feel free to call me’ stuff that accompanies most business offers and cover letters. Remember that the human brain cannot contain a negative thought and does not register ‘no’, leaving only ‘Please… feel free to call me’ as the final message.

Also make sure to print and bind your proposal with a decent cover and a clear cover. Make multiple master copies too in case your prospect wants to distribute it to their colleagues; much better for everyone to have a top copy instead of a gray, misaligned, one-copy, one-copy. If you can’t do it, take it to your local copy shop, on a memory card, and ask them to do it for you. If you do this, DO check that the pages look the same on your P/C and that there are no formatting differences that cause words, titles and sentences to leak onto the next page.

Now print it on very good quality paper (not the usual 60-80g copy paper). Check for misspellings, especially people’s names, and use a good clear font (NOT ‘Comic Sans’, it makes it look ‘stupid’, not ‘quirky’). And number the pages, and after the cover, add a content page… it makes the document look more professional.

There is nothing else you need to add and it is not difficult to do.

-Title page

– Content page

– Problems that need fixing

– Side effects of not fixing

– Our focused solution

– Price

– Who we are/experience/background

– References

– Any other relevant material (keep it short and simple)

– What to do next

Following the method outlined above will make your proposals more interesting, readable, and effective when you present them to your client.

It’s also going to set your offering apart from many, even if your product looks a lot like your competitors. And best of all, it will bring you more business.

that’s not a fairy tale

bob etherington