Just because a potential client loves what you say or do, doesn’t mean they’re going to hire you. These days, people check with multiple companies to find out what is the best option for them.
Companies evaluate all aspects of your presentation, especially your business proposal.
So if you want to increase your odds with that prospect that looks so promising, you’re going to have to put together a great business proposal.
Consequently, what should you include in your business proposal?
Well, you probably already know the basics, such as:
.What you are offering,
.The benefits that the client will receive,
.The scope of work,
.The time required for its completion
.The price,
.The validity of the proposal and
.The terms and conditions.
But that is not enough. There are more things you should include.
How To Make A Remarkable Business Proposal
Table of Contents
Customize The Presentation Of Your Commercial Proposal
You can use a template for your business proposals, but then you have to customize it in each case. If all you do is use a lot of filler text and add the client’s name here and there, clients will notice quickly and may think you’re not going to put much effort into their jobs.
Just think about it: if you’re too lazy to create a custom proposal, what’s going to happen when it comes to doing the hard work?
One of the easiest ways to make a custom proposal is to modify the design of your template. You can do it, for example, simply by adding the client’s logo.
Social Proof
You have to assume that your proposal will circulate in the company, perhaps among some managers or colleagues. And it may be that those people are not up to date with what is happening or why your company is so efficient.
Therefore, be sure to include:
.A corporate biography – don’t panic it’s just a paragraph or two about your company and why it’s great. Show the philosophy of your company to its culture. Make it stand out. Don’t just write something generic like telling them that yours is the best company in that category, as all companies will surely make that statement.
.Logos – display some of the clients you work with or have worked with in the past. The more important logos you can put, the better. If small companies find that big companies trust you, chances are they will trust you too.
Warning: Each country is different, what can be a total success in the US can be a point against Spain, for example. For this reason, you must first have permission from those clients to publish that you work or have worked with them. You should know that some clients will want you to sign a confidentiality clause and others, even if they don’t ask you specifically, assume that you will not divulge that you work with them. Therefore, it is always better to consult first.
Regarding the second point, before highlighting your work with large companies, it is convenient to first evaluate the “psychology” of your potential client. Some people believe that if you work with large firms, hiring your services will be out of their financial reach.
The Client’s Problem
Most of the time, the problem the customer wants you to solve is not the only problem they have. Sometimes to solve this problem you have to face other tasks first, in this case, it is best to include a list of the specific problems that you have detected and that must be solved first.
The Proposed Solutions
Although it sounds like bad business to specify solutions to detected problems, the vast majority of clients want others (in this case, you) to implement the solutions for them while they concentrate on their work.
Of course, here I have to make the same warning mentioned above, you have to be aware of the “psychology” of the business class in each country, in some, if you sketch the solutions for them, they will say thank you (and some not even that) and they will risk implementing them themselves. And, although it will most likely go wrong, you already lost your job…
Scope and work to deliver
In this section of the proposal, you should tell the client what you are going to do for them. Also, divide it into several plans.
The first plan should contain only what the customer requested, and the price should be within their budget range. Be sure to analyze all the things you will do within this plan. The more detailed, the better.
You should also include one or two plans that contain more than what the client ordered…naturally, these plans must be more expensive. In these plans, you must offer to solve all the problems that you have pointed out in the proposal. Once again, you must detail very well what you offer in those plans.
Finally, in all the plans, a work scheme must be added with a schedule of times to complete each action element in each of the plans. In addition, it is necessary to specify if the client will receive monthly reports or calls (it depends on each type of service).
Personalize Your Commercial Proposal
Large consulting firms typically award new accounts to their associates. If you have a boutique agency, make it clear that experienced people are going to work on the account.
You can show this by adding an area detailing who will work on the account. Be sure to include that person’s biography, highlighting their experience. Keep the bio short and to the point.
Study Of Cases
As I mentioned before, you have to think that your proposal will circulate at certain levels of the company. You cannot assume that the person reading it knows about your company or you. For this reason, it is always convenient to include case studies at the end of the proposal.
I usually like to include case studies that are relevant to the proposal I’m creating. So for example, if I were preparing an SEO proposal for an e-commerce company, I would like to include an e-commerce case study.
Each case study should not occupy more than one page. It should include what you did, the results, and a testimonial, and it should be easy to flip through. Ideally, you should include two to three case studies in every proposal you submit.
Conclusions
If you implement what I have mentioned above, your chances of closing a deal will increase.
I used to prepare generic proposals and had a very low close rate. Once I followed the steps above, my close rate increased by almost 3x.
There is one detail that I have not mentioned above since it is difficult to add, and it is the approximate estimate of the results that you are planning to offer.
Is there anything else you could add to a business proposal to make it stand out from the crowd?
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