A possible reason why you did not win more clients was because your business proposals were not good enough. That’s why many of the big potential clients you sent business proposals to chose your competition instead of you.
Dive deep into marketing and use the best of the best methods to make your business proposals much more attractive to your prospects, so that you will be able to win more clients instead of losing most of those lucrative contracts to your competitors.
Here are 10 of the best strategies to create top-notch business proposals.
Selling yourself on paper might be harder than you’ve imagined. One of the biggest mistakes many people make is adding endless words, stats and information that have no impact on the project. 100+ pages of vendor proposals can punish the readers more than they deserve. If you can answer a certain question in less than two paragraphs, do not try and do it in 10 – you will be penalized instead of being rewarding.
The quote “You can’t judge a book by its cover” should never be applied to business proposals. A business that is faced with tens of 200+ pages of business proposals will definitely judge each of them by its summary. The cover page or executive summary should give an inspiring overview of your proposal and should hit all the aspects that matter for your client. Once you manage to communicate to your client that he is important for you and that you are willing to go the extra mile to satisfy his needs, you have already got his attention.
You need to list everything you are ready to do in order to meet the needs of your client. You might need to use certain methodologies in order to accomplish the needs of your client. Of course, it it’s too difficult for you, you can always get some help online. You can find plenty of business templates online, both free and paid. Here is a good example of a restaurant business proposal: https://www.grabmyessay.com/samples/business-proposal-restaurant%20.
Even though you are writing a business proposal and you need to be as formal as possible, do not write too technical or full of jargon proposals. Keep it simple. This step might seem simple, but in fact it is something extremely advanced that might help you double or even triple your impact over your prospects in 2016.
Incorporating technology into your proposal process can drastically improve efficiency and effectiveness. Daniel Lewis, CEO of legalontech.com, explains how AI can revolutionize this process: "AI is a powerful tool that can help businesses create more compelling and personalized proposals by analyzing client data, identifying key trends, and automating repetitive tasks like formatting and content generation. This allows teams to focus on strategy and client engagement rather than administrative work. For businesses, it's also important to ensure that the content generated by AI aligns with legal and compliance standards, especially when dealing with sensitive or regulated industries. By combining AI-driven efficiency with careful oversight, companies can deliver proposals that are not only impactful but also risk-free."
Probably the best way to create a business proposal that stands out in the crowd and exceeds the expectations of your clients is to provide examples of your past projects that you have successfully completed. List between two and four similar projects, and emphasize the similarities between those projects and this current project. Spell all the similarities clearly so that your client can enthusiastically declare: “Oh, this project is just like ours, and this company has done a marvelous job completing it. We’ll hire them right now!”
If you want to be successful and never lose any more precious customers, you have to pay attention to their needs and answer ALL of their questions. There is no need to write a business proposal where you answer questions your client didn’t ask, while not answering questions he specifically asked. Answer your prospects’ questions and prove them that you are attentive to their needs and you really value your potential collaboration.
Testimonials are always a plus. Including real quotes and feedback from previous customers will help your company to stand head and shoulders above your competition. Because very few businesses are actually doing this, you have a real chance to make your business stand out and be considered valuable by your prospects.
In addition to all other parts of the business proposal that have to be done right, you must list the benefits. The reason behind this is simple – people always buy emotional benefits, not the features of a service or product. You need to show your buyer that you can meet his basic needs and also exceed his expectations.
A powerful Call to Action (CTA) is not a bonus of your business proposal, but probably the second most important part after the executive summary. This is a huge opportunity for you to wrap things up and start a long term relationship with a new business partner. That is why you do not have to take this step lightly.
Write a proactive call to action that will set your company head and shoulders above your competitors in the market. Do not forget to write a call to action that is inspiring in your industry and that is meaningful for your clients.
This is the tricky part. Too often many companies with great business plans fall back on pricing when trying to differentiate from their competition. Other times, they are unable to promote their businesses accordingly. Focus both on price and on yourself. However, you should put more focus on yourself instead of the pricing. Speaking bluntly, there will always be someone else to bid smarter on the project.
Write a compelling one paragraph explanation on what makes you the perfect choice for the job. You desperately want your client to be able to say these words after reading your business proposal: “They are the perfect fit for us.”
This is how you can write a winning proposal and win all those precious customers in 2016. Use all the above tips wisely and your success is guaranteed.
BONUS TIP: If you really want your business proposals to stand out and give you the best chance at winning new clients, use ClientPoint Software. It makes creating professional business proposals fast and easy. Click here to get a free demo of ClientPoint Software.
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