Know How To Make Sample Business Proposals Into Real Proposals

By Noah Reid

If you're the owner of your own business, it's safe to say you're eager for more clients. Thanks to today's economy, there's no room for subpar business proposals. Instead of winging it, find sample business proposals and use them to build a solid foundation for a business offer that will attract clients and score some work before you're desperate.

First, never underestimate the power of pre-writing. Since this is your first draft and you're not submitting it to potential customers at this time, relax and try to have fun. Do your pre-writing and figure out what exactly you are going to pitch in this proposal, what goals you have and what will differentiate your services from the other distractions your clients have to weed through every day.

Consider your business proposal and what you're offering. Cut your goals into numerous steps, writing down what will be needed to win each step. Organize your steps so that your reader is led to believe that by following your proposal, they will without question be led to success by way of that goal you wrote about in the pre-writing phase.

Now, write a cover letter to place at the top of your proposal. It should be short, so use only two to three paragraphs and simply state the major points of your proposal, i.e. "Our company will assist your business by delivering x, y, and z services. We serve X number of businesses in the region." Though there is nothing wrong with elaborating, keep it simple so you don't overwhelm your actual business proposal.

Next up: write the business proposal proper. Typically, proposals are sectioned into five parts: first stating what you do and who you are in an executive summary, a declaration of work stating the services you actually plan on providing, steps to take to reach this goal, reasons why you are more qualified than the next business, and finally the payment arrangements and terms of your contract.

Don't let yourself freak out over mistakes, as this is still your first draft and will probably be prone to more than a few goofups. Imagine your client sitting with you right now. What could you tell them that would cause them to invest in your ideas?|

The quality of your writing doesn't have to be high -- first drafts are rarely error free. Just worry about completing your proposal and squeezing all your information into the rigid structure of the proposal. If you need to change anything, make a note of it but don't actually follow through yet.

Next, consider your pricing and your contract. Keep your prices competitive by doing a little footwork to find out what similar companies are charging. Now's the time to find out you're overpriced -- you don't want to be sitting down at the table with your client when you realize your prices are less than stellar.

With that first draft in the can, it's time to rewrite your business proposal as is necessary. Try asking a friend to look over your proposal to catch any typo's you may have passed. If you would like to fix, change, or add, do it now, and then re-read your work.

When you believe you've got your proposal in a finished state, try a little role-playing to head off troublesome customers. Why not try putting on your customer's shoes for a little while? Consider how they'll see your proposal. Is there anything that might hang them up? Brainstorm as many reasons for the client not to buy from you as possible, and then create counterarguments to squash their anxiety.

Though it's hard work, writing a business proposal is far from impossible. By taking the time to run through the above steps with your sample business proposal in hand, you'll save tons of time and deliver a quality piece of work that will satisfy not just clients, but your company also. - 30445

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Network Management System: A Necessity

By Marcus Winterborn

Taking care of your computer network can be a tedious job. However, a network can make a lot of difference if you have a host of computer units working for a single purpose, making resource access and communication more convenient. This can suffer some troubles though, which are caused either by human factors or by technical anomalies.

The possibilities of such problems can even be more certain if your network is an extensive one. These can only be prevented with a network administration system that oversees it entirely. Just as most big organizations do, you may find it necessary to have a network management system to take care of such task as well as the other works related to it.

Just like software network tools, a network management system is the solution for network issues and problem. Basically, it is software and hardware combined to administer a network. Therefore, it is the most important of all the devices and computers involved and connected. Some would even call it as the center of the network.

Ideally, it should only be using one computer program. It should be software that can be employed in all the tasks necessary for managing the network. This would include operation, maintenance, administration, and provisioning. Therefore, this should have the capability to automate all the computers involved in the network.

As a network tool, this should keep track of a network's operation. It may also have the ability to recognize problems in the operation even before all the users are affected. Hence, it allows human administrators to introduce solutions immediately before the malfunctions become network-wide. If not, it can solve the problem automatically by itself.

As an administrative tool, a network management system may be employed to watch over the work of all the units contained in a network. You may use this to handing out assignments and observing its progress. This function allows you to access all the units involved at any given time as long as these are online.

This can be used for troubleshooting defects in the net. It can be the medium for upgrading the network software being employed by individual computers connected. You can also start repair work on the network by applying maintenance software on the administrator computer and the said management system software.

Among network tools, the network management system is considered as the most vital. Obviously, the reasons stated above makes it a necessity and, therefore, obliges all network operators to install it in their domains, especially if these are large ones. - 30445

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Office Design Plays A Large Fraction In Workers Performance

By Adam Cheng

The office design of a workplace is very important. This aspect of a work environment can make or break a company in how efficient the job gets completed. An office design needs to take into account a few key elements such as size of the space, company goals and employee input. These are all very important aspects in designing a perfect office space.

Improving and maintaining employee morale as well as productivity is a goal of many big companies. A high employee morale means more work is getting completed. Many offices are small, dark and dreary. This mood will affect how the employees work and that in turn affects profits. An office manager or owner needs to decide on what is the correct solution to the problem of office design and then decide how to proceed to correct it.

Observations of the workplace need to be the stepping stone to any office redesign project. A manager needs to ask himself if there are any areas of the office that appear to be a problem and are some areas too small for the equipment in them.

Someone trying to determine whether the present office space is suitable should draw a picture of the traffic throughout the office during a workday. See how workers move within the building. A visit to worker areas and conference rooms every half an hour can show what is getting completed in what area and what is not.

Communication with employees is crucial to finding a design that works well. However it can also bring about employee demands that are not realistic. Work with employees to come to a compromise on the most important problems. Just remember that one office design will not please everyone. Do the best you can.

Before the redesign occurs, make sure to decide about what your office goals would like to accomplish. Make a list and decide on four or five goals to address. Some popular ideas are if the supervisor has the corner office with windows, it may be beneficial to put the rank and file workers around the corners near the windows and put the supervisor towards the middle of the space. By placing the employees who spend more of their time at their desks near the windows, it will increase their morale and productivity.

After determining where the areas of concern are in a workspace, the next question is what should occur? Should a total redesign with construction take place or will just rearranging furniture and equipment suffice? Will the job be too expensive and would it be more realistic to shop around for new office space entirely?

Office design can be a tricky thing to accomplish. It is worth the time to plan and think it through. It is very important for the whole team to be involved in planning and deciding what to pursue. In the end, it will create a better work environment that promotes more productivity and increase revenue. - 30445

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Office Design Carry A Large Part In Workers Performance

By Allan Chong

Most employees spend at least forty hours per week in their workplace. An efficient office design is crucial to the amount of work that gets completed. Office design can positively or negatively affect an office's performance. There are key elements that need to be examined in any office redesign and that is the amount of needed space, company goals and the input of the worker.

Studies have shown that a well designed office has improved employee morale and overall productivity. Bad office layouts are a thing of the past. Office spaces are all different. A lot of office space is too cramped, dark and downright depressing. An office manager needs to determine what would be the best solution to the office design issues.

To start with an office manager should use their observational skills. By observing carefully, they can figure out where the problem areas may lie. They can determine if the space is too small for all of the equipment and furniture.

A good idea is to have the manager draw a picture of the traffic patterns within the office. Observe how employees move throughout the day. Also observe the conference rooms and workstations and see where the work is getting completed. Is there any empty space not being used?

Communication with employees is crucial to finding a design that works well. However it can also bring about employee demands that are not realistic. Work with employees to come to a compromise on the most important problems. Just remember that one office design will not please everyone. Do the best you can.

Determining office goals is a good thing to do prior to a redesign project. List four to five goals and determine which shall be addressed. An idea that has grown in importance is to move the manager to the middle of the work floor and move the workers near the windows which give them access to natural light. It has been proven that by moving the workers, it increases morale and productivity since these workers are at their desks most of the day.

After determining where the areas of concern are in a workspace, the next question is what should occur? Should a total redesign with construction take place or will just rearranging furniture and equipment suffice? Will the job be too expensive and would it be more realistic to shop around for new office space entirely?

Completing an office design can be a hard job to work on. It takes a lot of planning and thought. It is important to take everyone's views into consideration prior to moving on the project. Remember in the end it is worth the effort, it will increase worker morale which in turns increases productivity which in turn increases profit margins. - 30445

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Bottled Water Dispensers For Better Living

By Perry Thurston

If you are considering adding a bottled water dispenser to a home or office, there are a few features that you should consider before you make your decision. You may be familiar with the plastic dispenser withe colored knobs to dispense water. These dispensers have a five gallon jug turned upside down on top of them to provide the filtered water that has been delivered by truck.

Today you will find that there are water dispensers that are designed to hide the water bottle or those that do not require a bottle. These bottleless water coolers can offer many other features that include ice cold water, near boiling water and room temperature water. These features can also be found in bottled water dispensers too.

If you choose a dispenser with cold water, you may find that the feature is very useful. Cups or water bottles can be filled and do not need ice. Near boiling water works great for instant soup, hot tea or cocoa. It keeps users from having to heat water for these choices.

When water dispensers do not have a bottle, they generally offer filtered water. The filter is not needed for the actual water bottle dispenser as the water in the bottle has already been through a water filtering system. Bottled water generally has all of the contaminants removed before it is bottled.

In the office, many employees appreciate the effort to help them get enough water to drink that does not have a chlorine taste. Workers that have enough to drink are more productive than those who do not drink enough water during the day. By providing a dispenser, the employees do not have to bring their own bottled water to work. Addition of hot or cold water makes the dispenser even more useful to the employees.

For the home you will find that there is likely a water cooler that will fit into your decor. Dispensers are available in stainless steel, wood or can even be custom built to fit into your home. Your water delivery company may offer you a rental water cooler or you may purchase dispensers from office supply stores or online.

There are several things to consider as you choose between the bottle or bottleless dispenser.

Bottled dispensers require storage space for both full and empty bottles. In addition it is possible that you could run out of bottled water before the next delivery date. There is little required maintenance and installation is a simple as plugging the unit in to provide hot or cold water. You will need to clean the base on occasion, but many of the delivery companies offer cleaning as a free service.

Bottleless dispensers require no storage of bottles, full or empty. They dispense water from they lines in your home that is filtered for great taste. Since they are connected to the plumbing, you may need to pay a professional to provide the supply line from your existing plumbing. Filters will need to be changed occasionally and the reservoir needs regular cleaning. As long as the filters are changed, you never run out of water. - 30445

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Developing Time Management Capabilities For Increased Productivity

By Martin Haworth

Many managers have difficulty with finding enough time to do their work - in fact it's probably the biggest gripe you hear.

Others may take on too many things at once and struggle to accomplish anything of value much of the time. Managing your time to balance work and play can be difficult for many.

Time management is not about managing time but what you are doing with your time. No matter how much you try there are only those 24 hours in a day, the same for all of us. Getting to the bottom of where you are wasting time is always a good place to start!

Perhaps you spend a lot of time reading unimportant e-mail or wastefully checking your Facebook pages. By ascertaining what you are doing when you should be focused and doing more useful tasks, you will give yourself a heads-up on the problem you face.

Once you know how you are wasting time then set yourself some productivity goals. These will help you change your behavior, making sure you get things done within the specified timescale. you might also develop your own time management plan that can help you see where you are successful and those areas that may still need improvement.

Reviewing progress towards effective time management goals will help track how successful the efforts have been.

There are plenty of tools to use for effective time management these days, from precise software or other proprietary tools. You could even simply just write down what you want to get done and what you are going to do with your time and see what that brings you.

By prioritizing goals and tasks for the day the most important tasks are likely to be done properly. Determining which tasks are crucial to be accomplished and which ones can be done another time - or even better, delegated, it's possible to make much more out of the available time.

In the workplace, it may be possible to delegate those non crucial tasks to someone else - developing them as well, along the way. Don't underestimate the value of delegation as a tool to empower and enable your people for the future.

Once you finally have a time management routine that you can stick to, you will find that your are much more productive than before. Once you have reached this point you should start setting time limits for yourself, being challenging and stretching and then you will see what really can be achieved with your mind set to it. - 30445

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Why You Should Use CRM Software

By Jonathon Hardcastle

CRM software is a must have for any business. Whether you have a small business or large corporation, a business' clients are the backbone of their success. Therefore, it is important to be able to analyze the customer base, communicate effectively and efficiently cater to the needs of the customer. Customer relationship management tools will help with this.

Efficiency is one way that CRM software can help you. You will have all the information about your customers in an easy format that is organized. You can work directly from this to communicate. Being able to easily look up, report on and communicate with customers will save money. With efficient use of time, you can directly affect your bottom line in a positive manner.

Your success depends highly upon what your customers perceive you and your business as being. With good reporting policies because of CRM software, you can notice trends and customer needs and make improvements to your company's handling of those needs. A simple task such as paying close attention to your customers' wants and needs is good; you ensure happy customers that refer family and friends.

In addition to customer service policies, buying trends can also be analyzed. If you see a trend toward a particular product that you do not stock in bulk, you may be able to get better pricing for additional orders in anticipation of a growing need. You may also notice seasonal trends that may dictate temporary changes in operations. This will have a direct, positive financial impact on your business.

When it comes to meeting the needs of your customers, communication is important. They want reassurance that you aren't just listing, but addressing their concerns. When you and your customers can take detailed notes on each customer conversation, you can notice and track all open issues until they see a positive end.

You can also delegate particular tasks to different employees within your office. For example, you can have a separate staff for technical support and sales; route each customer call to the proper department for the best level of service quickly. With this specialized service, your customer gets the help they need at a fast rate of pace.

Reporting mechanisms available have endless possibilities. You can track your best customers, you can see who are repeat customers and you can list one time customers. You can target promotional materials accordingly with the click of a button. You may see an immediate increase in customer orders when you market to specific groups of customers.

The efficiency and improvement in productivity offered by CRM software is unbeatable. Good communication will increase sales. Keeping a detailed database of all customers and conversations will give your business the upper-hand in providing the best customer service. - 30445

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How You Can Benefit From Time Management

By Randy Kriller

A lot of people find it hard to finish all their chores in a single day. If you will think about it, 24 hours are not enough to accomplish everything that you need to do. Sometimes we feel like we are missing a big part in our lives because we do not even have time for any fun.

We get caught up with everything that we do. There are so many things that needs to be done like meeting deadlines, making projects, taking care of the house and kids, doing assignments, studying for exams, making reports, and so on. The problem is we do not have enough time, is this true?

We can not stop time but we can make ways to fit everything that we need to do in the available time that we have. Time management helps us achieve our goals and finish what needs to be done.

It is up to us how we do our tasks but time management helps us finish more tasks in a lesser time frame. You work relentlessly everyday but if you come to think of it, did you accomplish your main task? Work is endless, after finishing a task another one will show itself and this can easily overwhelm you.

Time management helps us see clearly if what we are doing is really finishing the job. For instance, if you will write down the usual things you do everyday, you will see that some tasks you are doing are just a waste of your time. Reading junk mails, going back and forth to the store, getting caught up watching tv, and doing little chores for others, all of these does not help you get your job done.

If we just sit down and start jotting down important things that we need to do for the week and start allocating them in days that you have enough time to finish it. You will be surprised that you have extra time in your hands to go out with friends or have some fun time with the family. Time management helps you get the most out of your time.

Be aware of what you do and lessen those activities that are just time wasters. Once you have finished your job for the day, then you will have more time to enjoy yourself and the fruits of your labor. It is also important to have some time off in between tiring jobs. This will help you get that extra energy and finish your job more easily. - 30445

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Knowledge Base Software Set Up for You

By John Rickson

Networking and file sharing has made it possible for a lot of people to access important data from different locations. Now, though, you can do more than just share files between your computers at home or in an office and share information over the Internet through knowledge base software.

You may not notice it but knowledge base software can be found anywhere. You may not be aware of this however as it comes in a variety of forms that will meet every unique needs of the client. And one of the most common businesses that have been using this application is call centers.

Call centers these days, especially those who are dealing with the technical inquiries of the clients, rely on knowledge base software. This is because they have one universal application that can provide the troubleshooting steps on each issue. Aside from this, call centers are also lessening the occurrence of people calling all the time even for very simple issues like a computer that is not powering up. They have already made knowledge base applications available to the public so they can read and do some preliminary troubleshooting.

The knowledge base applications mentioned above are the ones that are for public use. However, those who are inside a company are given knowledge bases that are accessible through their intranet. These may contain some confidential information about the company's procedure and policies.

When you employ knowledge base software you will also be able to gather the information you need for yourself. This means that you'll have access to all the reference material you need to deal with any inquiries.

There are actually two ways to have a copy of a knowledge base. First of all, you can search for them on the Internet if there are free knowledge bases for your needs. This way, you can have an application that will let you share files without file servers.

The other way of getting knowledge base software is that if you are a big company that needs to have an organized database of information, you may want to contact a professional software developer to fix your knowledge base. The good thing here is that this application is customized for your company's needs and will last for a long time with some updates.

So, whatever needs it may be, it is certain that knowledge base software can provide its service for everyone who needs it. This is a very efficient in providing information and at the same time takes care of your files. - 30445

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