A true story. Five bids arrived. We, the evaluators, tore open the packages and plonked the documents on the table. We’d decided who’d review which bids, and so set about. We meet again later than afternoon. Note: this was a preliminary stage before the actual evaluation began. At this point, … [Read more...]
Are you making these 7 proposal writing mistakes
October 1, 2013 by
It’s easy to become snow-blind when writing a business proposal, especially if you are performing more than one role in the team. And if you're new to proposal development, bidding, and grant applications that are many pitfalls to avoid. Some are predictable, others less so. 7 Proposal Writing … [Read more...]
The Steve Carell Customer Acquisition Strategy
September 30, 2013 by
If you’ve watched Steve Carell (Michael Scott) in The Office, you could be forgiven for thinking that it was a miracle his branch ever stayed open. That’s what I thought too. But there was a very interesting episode recently where Jan came to town with the aim of landing a major deal with a local … [Read more...]
Increase your Proposal Success Rate
September 6, 2011 by
"For your own good" is a persuasive argument that will eventually make a man agree to his own destruction. Janet Frame Why do you write business proposals? Same reason we do! We write proposals to win more business, pay our bills and send the kids to college. Same as you, I guess! … [Read more...]
9 Business Proposals Formating Tips
January 4, 2011 by
Last week we looked at how to format your Business Proposal, use a Style Guide, select the right type of font, language and writing style to impress the proposal evaluation team. Let’s look at other ways you can improve your next Business Proposal or Grant application. 1. Proofreading Always … [Read more...]
Business Proposals: How to Write Costs For RFPs
December 28, 2010 by
Having difficult getting started with the Budget and Costs section in your Business Proposal? The purpose of the Budget is to give more than just a statement of proposed expenditures; it is an alternate way of showing, for example, the fluctuations that may arise depending on how the scope of work … [Read more...]
Business Proposal Development: How to Calculate the Effort Required By Funding Agencies
December 7, 2010 by
One mistake to avoid when writing a Business Proposal is to hide or disguise the resources the funding agency needs to commit to the project. Indeed, you can increase your chances of winning a government contract if you show in the Executive Summary the amount of effort that required by the agency … [Read more...]