March 2010

You can win or lose work depending on how well you write a business proposal.

A good business proposal presents a convincing case to your client. The decision makers reading your proposal need to be convinced that your organisation understands their business requirements, has strong credentials, a good pricing structure and can deliver on the proposal.

Writing a winning business proposal starts a long time before the pitch process commences, and continues well past the submission of the proposal.

In essence, successful proposal writing incorporates:

• Understanding the pitch process
• Identifying opportunities and issues
• Knowing your business objectives
• Understanding your client’s needs
• Understanding the decision makers’ needs
• Preparing your proposal
• Selling your credentials
• Checking for ease of reading
• Reviewing the proposal and offer
• Sealing the deal: delivering on your proposal