Once you understand how themes can make your proposal stand out, you'll kick yourself several times for not doing so earlier. The ability to use themes in business proposals is one way to highlight the unique strengths of your bid. However there is some confusion as regards what it means to … [Read more...]
How to Write an Abstract – Part Two
January 23, 2014 by
They say the definition of a smart mind is the ability to write a good abstract. In the first tutorial, we looked at how to structure an abstract by developing the tone, phrasing, and also explaining how its purpose differs from the main document. However, before we go any further, let’s … [Read more...]
How to Peer Review Business Proposals
October 21, 2013 by
From one angle, writing the proposal is the easy part. The difficulty is when you have to check what you’ve written, cross-reference it against the Request For Proposal, and ensure all parts fit together seamlessly. If you're writing the document by yourself, you need to find way to check your … [Read more...]
How To Control Proposal Files and Bid Documentation
October 14, 2013 by
One of the difficulties as a proposal manager is how to organize the documentation related to the bid. Not only do you have to manage the Request For Proposal document, but you also need to write, submit, and review clarifications, check submission guidelines, and make sure that support … [Read more...]
Proposal Writing: 7 Dos and Don’ts
October 7, 2013 by
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...]
11 Reasons Your Proposal Was Rejected
October 21, 2011 by
Ever wonder how your business proposal gets evaluated? One of the problems when responding to Request For Proposals is that, unless you know how proposals are scored, you might focus your efforts on areas that have less value and win less contract awards as a result. With that in mind, here … [Read more...]
Free Checklist – Responding to Request For Proposals (RFPs)
October 14, 2011 by
Want to avoid last minute mistakes when submitting your business proposal? It’s easy to forget something when responding to an Request For Proposal (RFP) as there are so many activities to coordinate. One way to ensure your proposal gets delivered on time – and with all requirements covered – is to … [Read more...]
RFP Checklist For Describing Functionality
September 2, 2011 by
How do you describe the website’s functionality in your RFP? The next section in your Website RFP is to describe how it works, i.e. functions. The functionality section of your RFP can be distilled to a few pages. Share sample sites that illustrate functionality you’d like to see on your … [Read more...]