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
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
About the Author:
Writing business proposals can be intimidating -- why not find a sample document to work from? Not only will they show you whats is ok what is not, but they can also be used as a template to improve your own writing. To guarantee it is genuine, find your sample business proposal at a trusted website.
