Have a registered business name, and use that business name throughout the proposal except where you have to sign. Corporate organisations don’t relate or discuss business with individuals. To get the attention of organisations or government, you need to have a registered company. If not, none of them would take you seriously. Getting your business registered is really simple. This article is to guide you through the process. When you register your business name, create your logo and use it on the document. You could hire a graphics expert to design your logo for a small fee.
- Do your research: Find out everything you can about your potential client. What is their mission and goal? What problems do they face and how does your proposition help them solve the problem? People only listen to you if your idea helps them fill a need or problem – keep this in mind. If your proposition does not help a client fill a particular need, you need to reconsider your pitch.
- Keep your proposal short and precise: Yours probably won’t be the only proposal they have to consider. Keep it short, simple and attach only important details. Make sure your title and the first sentence are captivating enough to hold the interest of the reader.
- Put yourself in the place of the company/reader: If you were the reader and someone presented that proposal to you, what would you like to see? What areas of problem and solution would you like the proposal to discuss? What tone and structure would you like the proposal to carry? People often turn down requests because what they like to hear does not appear. This is where doing your research becomes important because you need to know what challenges and problems they face and how best to solve them.
- Why should they choose you? There are probably other proposals they have to consider. Why should they refuse others and choose yours? Highlight your skills, talents and experience at handling such issues: a brief profile of yourself or your company and what best qualifies you for the job.
A winning business proposal needs to have three basic elements. We call them the 3 Ps: The problem, the proposed solution and the pricing information. You need to show to the client that you understand clearly what the problem is that you are trying to solve. You should state enough to show that you also have the solution to the problem. When you know the problem and you have the solution, the pricing information states your fee or, if you are looking for funding, your profit-sharing formula. When you have the 3 Ps, you need a tool to help you put it all together.
One of the best ways to draft a business proposal is to use software or download a template and edit to suit your particular needs. Pandadoc.com has lots of proposal templates for different situations. It comes in handy because you would not need to learn how to write a business proposal (every word) from scratch, which could be very challenging. You can also download a trial version of Proposal Pack Wizard for free – it is one of the best proposal applications I ever came across.
It is appropriate to warn you though, while using a template or software, make sure to add your own touches and keep your proposal unique. You are probably not the only one using that same software or template and it doesn’t help when your proposal looks like it was copied.
Consistent perfect practice makes perfect. Why not give it a go? Draft a sample business proposal now using the above information. If you have written one before, compare what you have now with what you had before? What is the difference? Do you have further questions on how to write a business proposal? I would love to know about it. Let me know in the comment box. Cheers!
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