The document provides guidance on how to develop a winning proposal, including how to plan the proposal, market your company, analyze the client's needs, design and estimate the project, and publish the final proposal. It recommends starting with an executive summary that briefly outlines the problem, solution, and your company's expertise. The proposal should clearly communicate how your solution will meet the client's needs and be presented in a well-organized, easy to understand format.

1. HOW TO PREPARE
A PROPOSAL
Developing A Winning Proposal

2. Outline
• What is the proposal and how to get
started planning
• Marketing, analyzing, designing,
estimating and publishing the proposal
• Sample proposal outline and contents
• Final Checklist

3. Your Company Introduction
Developing your commercial
• In one minute or
less tell us briefly:
• Tell us what you do?
• Give us one benefit
statement (why?)
• End with your Name

4. What is a Proposal?

5. • A proposal is a plan of action for fulfilling a need.
• Basically, it is a sales document that responds to the needs of
someone else.
• It is a written document describing in detail the work to be
performed and provides the reader/evaluator adequate
information to make an informed purchasing decision.

6. Why use a Proposal?

7. When a customer enters the market
for making a purchase he/she aims
at making a best purchase of the
product or to opt for the best
business deal that gives best
investment to him as a return. It is
for this reason a marketer needs to
prepare a business proposal in a
professional manner.

8. Getting Started
• The first thing you will need to do is to gather the documentation
for the proposal’s six planning steps.
• 1. Marketing
• 2. Analyzing and making bid decision
• 3. Planning
• 4. Designing, when applicable
• 5. Estimating/Pricing
• 6. Publishing the proposal
• The data-gathering process makes the actual writing much easier.
• The planning stage is a good time to focus your key people on the
mission of the company, available resources, and the project's
overall value to the organization.

9. What is Marketing?
To make a communication about a
product or service a purpose of which is
to encourage recipients of the
communication to purchase or use the
product or service.
MARKETING – The techniques used to
attract, build confidence and persuade
potential customers.
What are you marketing?
You are marketing/selling solutions. Your
proposal should illustrate how your
company understands and provides the
solution to the evaluators problem.

10. Marketing the company to the
evaluator
• Marketing plays an important role in writing a proposal and building
the case for the Company’s capabilities to perform the project.
• Be proactive in marketing.
• The proposer should determine if their company is truly able to do
the job better than anyone else. If the answer is yes, state your
case in writing.
• Next step: develop or review the company’s
vision, goals, objectives, and strategic plans.
• A successful proposal is a win-win situation for the proposer and
the purchaser. Talk about what the purchaser’s agency will gain.
• All throughout the proposal market your company.
What's in it for them? Why is your company the best choice for the project?

11. PROACTIVE MARKETING TAKES TIME
Make a contact and follow up
Develop a plan of action for your 8
to 12 contacts;
• Thank You Card or Letter
• Confirmation Letter
• Follow up telephone call
• Company fact sheet or a capability
statement
• Media articles-A collection of editorial
about a person, the product, or the
company.
• Develop a sales pitch: Why should the
agencies choose your company.
Something more than price and quality.
• PORTFOLIO – A large, bound volume
containing samples of past work and used
to promote business.

12. Analyzing
• What is the key to success? “one
word: customizing” if you don’t
address the specific needs of the
purchaser, you’re wasting your time.
• Only through analyzing the
customers basic needs can you
prepare a proposal stating your
company’s capability to perform the
required work.
• The purchaser may need you to
convince their higher ups that the
project is necessary. Present your
proposal as the solution to the
specific problem.

13. • Public sector purchasers are
accountable to the public, which affects
how they scrutinize proposals.
Generally, experience is more important
to the selection.
The audience for a public proposal is
not just the evaluator, but the general
public.
• When presenting your analysis always
talk the language of benefit.
• Can you respond quickly with a quality
product or service?
How can you demonstrate this?
• A part of your analysis should be
considering if the proposal is profitable
for your company.

14. Planning
• Army Five P’s; proper planning prevents
poor performance.
• Companies that plan, schedule
meticulously and test prior to work
implementation ensure that the work
activities will be profitable and beneficial
to all.
• In your planning process consider
yourself in a contest, focused on how
you’re going to tip the scales in your
favor.
• For an evaluator that looks at proposals
all day long a really good proposal is
often like a breath of fresh air.
• A poor proposal will not win against a
really good proposal, no matter who
wrote it.

15. Questions to Answer
Here are a few questions to answer when
preparing the information for the proposal:
• What is your company good at?
What’s your legal status?
How long have you been in business?
• What is your company’s philosophy on this
type of project?
• What is the nature of the project and how will
it be conducted?
• How will your company respond to the
timetable for the project?
• What are the anticipated outcomes and how
will the required results be evaluated?
• Who are your references?
What certifications do you have?
Awards you have received?

16. DESIGNING
• The design part of
the proposal
includes such
items as
schedules, sketche
s, plant
layouts, work flow
diagrams, scale
models, mockups,
ROI and
prototypes.

17. Estimating
• Estimating is one of the most important steps.
Estimating includes forecasting (predicting) the
amounts of administrative
time, materials, man hours, travel and all other
costs required to accomplish the job.
• You will not know all the expenses associated
with the project until the project details and
timing have been completely worked out.
• Thus, the main financial data gathering takes
place after the master proposal has been
written.
• However, at this stage you need to sketch the
outlines of the budget as you go along to be
sure that the costs are all accounted for.

18. Publishing
• This includes the
organizing, writing, editing, planning
, and binding of the proposals.
• Follow the required proposal format.
Proposals that do not follow format
instructions are rejected.
• The emphasis should be
neat, accurate, easy reading with
easy references to assure the
evaluator the company has the
capabilities and experience to
perform the work.
• The appearance and adequacy of
the proposal are crucial.
However, excessive proposals can
show a lack of cost consciousness.

19. Writing Objectives
• Keep the writing simple. Proposals with clear
objectives and methods are generally the most
successful.
• Avoid jargon. Also be sure to spell out the full names
of any acronyms.
• Have someone proofread your proposal. A fresh set
of eyes can help you identify sections that are
unclear and catch typographical errors.
• Follow directions. Every year, proposals are
disqualified because the writer failed to follow
general format directions regarding the number of
pages, appendices, fonts, spacing etc.
• Evaluators rank proposals lower when writers fail to
follow instructions regarding what content goes in
which section of the proposal.

20. Sample Proposal Outline
When a format is not provided.
• Executive Summary: a short statement of your case
and summary of the entire proposal; typically 1 to 2
pages.
• Statement of Need: why this project is necessary; 1
to 3 pages
• Project Description: nuts and bolts of how the
project will be implemented; 2 to 5 pages
• Bid Amount/Budget: financial description of the
project plus explanatory notes; 1 to 2 pages
• Organization Information: history and structure of
the company; its primary activities, clientele, and
services; 1 to 2 pages
• Conclusion: summary of the proposal's main points;
one-page.

21. The Executive Summary
The first page of the proposal is the most important
section of the entire document. Here you will provide
the reader with a snapshot of what is to follow. It
summarizes all of the key information and is a sales
document designed to convince the reader that this
proposal should be considered. Be certain to include:
Problem: A brief statement of the problem or need your
company has recognized and is prepared to address
(one or two paragraphs);
Solution: A short description of the project, including what
will take place and the benefits, how it will operate, how
long it will take, and how it will be staffed (one or two
paragraphs);
The organization and its expertise: a brief statement of the
name, history, purpose, and activities of your company,
emphasizing its capacity to carry out this proposal (one
paragraph).

22. The Statement of Need
• Write your proposal like a sales documents.
• The statement of need will enable the evaluator
to learn more about the issues and to
understand the problem that the project will
remedy.
• It presents the facts and evidence that support
the need for the project and establishes that
your company understands the problems and
therefore can reasonably address them.
• You want the need section to be logical, yet
persuasive. Like a good debater, you must
assemble all the arguments. Then present them
in a logical sequence that will readily convince
the reader of their importance. As you marshal
your arguments, consider the following points.

23. The Statement of Need
• Demonstrate complete understanding of the
stated requirement or problem.
• Be specific and direct, being vague only
demonstrates that you do not understand the
requirements and will create questions in the
mind of the evaluator.
• Be sure the data you present are accurate.
There is nothing more embarrassing than to
find out your information is out of date or
incorrect.
• Decide which facts or statistics best support
the project and substantiate your promises
with facts and details.
• Information that does not relate to the
project you are presenting will cause the
reader to question the entire proposal.

24. Developing Your Conclusion
• Every proposal should have a
concluding paragraph or two. This is a
good place to call attention to the
future, after the project is completed.
• If appropriate, you should outline some
of the follow-up activities that might be
undertaken.
• This section is also the place to make a
final appeal for your company’s
consideration.
• Briefly summarize what your company
wants to do and why it is important.

25. Finishing touches
Packaging
• Cover design
• Cover letter
• Spell check
• Gather appendix materials
• Prepare table of
contents, section
dividers, etc.
Production
• Where and by whom will the
document be produced?

26. Proposal delivery
• Deliver on time.
• Label the original documents
and required number of copies.
• Seal the original and copies in a
package and label appropriately.
• If mailing, don’t forget to check
delivery schedules.
• If hand carrying, provide a
signature receipt for the
delivery person.

27. Thank you for listening!
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