Writing Proposals

Course Objectives• Why do we write proposals?

• The proposal genre

• The proposal writing process

• Analyzing problems and opportunities

• Types of proposals

• Describing the current situation

• Developing a project plan

• Describing qualification

• Introduction, costs and benefits

• Developing budgets

• Writing with style

• Designing proposals

• Using graphics

• The final touches

Introduction

Charles, the Director of Zenith Computers reads a bid in a local newspaper.

Hope Business School is looking for vendors who can

supply 45 laptops to be used for staffs and teachers. This request for proposal will focus on the purchasing, setup and service of the

mentioned hardware.

Introduction

Only sealed bids are accepted. Please be sure to put “RESPONSE TO LAPTOP

SALES AND SERVICE SOLUTION” on your bid

package and on the outside of the envelope. Failure to

mark envelope may result in rejection of bid”.

Bids can be sent to:-Mr. Justin

Hope Business SchoolLake view hills

New York.

Introduction

Charles wants to grab this opportunity and asks his assistant

Linda to prepare a business proposal and send it to the school.

Introduction

Linda prepares the business proposal and sends it to the school for

reviewing. Let us look at proposal:-Zenith Computers is interested in the bid and is happy to supply 45 Desktop with following features:-

• I5 processors• 4GB RAM• 500 GM hard drive• 22in monitor• Keyboard• Mouse

Introduction

After preparing the proposal Linda send the proposal in an envelope.

Hope Business SchoolLake view hillsNew York.

Introduction

Two days later Charles learnt that their proposal was rejected by the school. He asked for a copy of proposal and found out that it lacked certain basic

information and had more flaws.

Introduction

The proposal was not sealed and sent

It was not addressed to Mr. Justin as instructed.

Introduction

Hope Business School is looking for vendors who can supply

45 laptops to be used for staffs and teachers. This request for

proposal will focus on the purchasing, setup and service of

the mentioned hardware.

Zenith Computers is interested in the bid and is happy to supply

45 Desktop with following features

Introduction

Linda has not understood the requirements of the school clearly and was not punctilious. They have

asked for supply of laptops and proposal was sent for supplying of

desktops.

Introduction

On top of that Linda’s proposal was incomplete.

It did not mention anything about the

installation and servicing. These careless mistakes

done by Linda made Charles feel like a fish out

of water.

Introduction

If Linda had been meticulous and prepared the proposal with

care Zenith Computers might have made a huge profit.

Introduction

To write a winning business proposal the following

points should be followed:-

• Study the requirements• Understand the client• Outshine your competitors• Explain the time and cost• Describe why your

company is the best

Why do we write proposals?

An old proverb says “The only constant is change”. The world is constantly changing. This creates both new

opportunities and new problems. A proposal is a tool for managing change.

Designing of the proposal genre

The proposal genre is designed to address some fundamental questions:-• What is the current situation?• What is needed to improve the

current situation?• What is a good plan for improving the current situation?• Why is your organization best qualified to do the work?• How much will the work cost?

• What are the tangible benefits of the plan?

Using the 5-W and “How” question

The “5-Ws and “How” questions are:-

Who exactly are the readers, and who else might be involved?

Why is the client or funding source looking for someone to do this project?

What do the readers need?

Where is the work site? Where do we need to submit the proposal?

When is the deadline for the proposal, and when does the project need to be completed?

How should the project be completed?

Defining the problem or opportunity

When you can answer each of these in detail, you will have a clearer notion about how to start the proposal-writing process.

What kind of proposal would solve the problem? (Policy)4

How serious is the problem? (Quality)

Is there a problem? (Fact)

What exactly is the problem? (Definition)

Answer the following 4 stasis question:-

1 2

3

Internal proposals

• Internal proposals are written within a company by divisions, departments, groups, or individual to their top management. For example, a product line manager wanting to automate his assembly process, has to sell the idea to his immediate superior, through a proposal. Internal and external proposal have to follow the same principles.

Internal proposals

Body paragraph

The body of the section is where you provide the majority of the details you mapped out in your cause and effect map. The alternate approaches you can use in the body are:-• The casual approach• The effects approach• The narrative approach2A body

Identify a possible solution to the problem

You know your No. 1 & No. 2 objectives. Now, begin the mapping process. One the first try, you do not need to identify the right solutions. List a few possible solutions. Map them out separately, seeing which one best meets your top rank objectives and secondary objectives.

A “Why” table

In this table, write down one of

your major steps on the top line

and offer a brief answer to the

“why” questions.

Then write down the minor steps that support this major step and provide answer to the “why” questions next to each brief answer.

Finally, looking over the

contents of the Table, ask

yourself whether there are any

deliverables that will result

from these steps.

To boilerplate, or not to boilerplate

Boilerplates are generic descriptions of the organization, which are often pasted into proposals instead of project-specific qualification section. In the rush to push the proposal out the door, some writers simply slap in their organization’s boilerplate rather than write an original description customized for the project and client. They regularly contain information that is outdated or irrelevant to the proposed project.

How readers look at proposals?

A good design should give the readers easy “access points” to enter the text from various points and

process the text at different levels.

The cover page

The cover page typically includes the following items:-• Title of the proposal• Name of the client’s company • Name and logo of the company • Date on which the proposal was submitted

This is a DEMO Course On – Writing Proposals.

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