In business, we’ve learned that to earn a customer, your company doesn’t always need to have the longest list of features and benefits. What matters most is proving to your specific audience that you have all the features and benefits that matter to them.

To prove to potential new clients that your business is an ideal partner, you need to nail your proposal. We’ve created our fair share of these documents and presentations over the years. In that time, we’ve picked up several valuable tips to make each pitch as effective as possible. We’ll walk you through our best pieces of advice that can help any company develop a successful proposal.

Make It Personal

Every business proposal you write should be tailored to the needs of each individual client. Sure, you might include the same standard background information on your company in every version, but the research and recommendations must be unique to the business’ own industry, audience, and challenges. Generic templates and boilerplate recommendations simply don’t win very many proposals.

If you know going in that the company is looking for a specific solution, be sure to hit on what they think they need in your pitch. However, don’t be afraid to additionally pitch what you would recommend, even if it’s not the feedback they’re expecting. Smart companies will realize you’re the expert in your industry, and more often than not, will be willing to adjust their original plans to take your advice.

Lead with Value

Along with personalizing the proposal for each individual prospect, it’s also important to emphasize the benefits and value your company will provide them. Remember, this proposal isn’t really about your company or the work you do – it’s about how the client can drive more success (with your help, of course). For each personalized recommendation you make, follow it up with data-backed reasoning and explain how your suggestions will support the client’s main objective. They’ll appreciate your client-focused mindset and the specific thought you put into helping them achieve their goals.

Keep It Big Picture

While you do want to give a comprehensive overview of each proposition and benefit, avoid getting too deep into the weeds of your ideas. Your first proposal should cover big-picture concepts and plans, rather than explain each minute step you’ll take along the way. Over-explaining the process and bogging your proposal down with flowery corporate jargon will only sidetrack the audience and detract from your main points. However, it’s absolutely fine (and encouraged) to explain your methods and lay out primary action items. You don’t want your prospect to think you’re hiding anything. In some cases, your willingness to share your process may be the difference between a signed contract and a cold lead.

Show, Don’t Tell

Whenever possible, show, don’t tell. That means illustrating your ideas and recommendations with examples, mock-ups, graphics, and key statistics, rather than explaining your own opinion further in depth. As you make your case, it will be much harder for your prospective client to argue with your points when they are grounded with facts and visuals instead of abstract ideas. Plus, as they say, a picture is worth a thousand words – so if relevant, be sure to include graphs, charts, and other visuals to support your strategy.

Make Your Case

As you polish up your written proposal, our final piece of advice is to ask if you can give the prospect a presentation before sending a hard document for them to review on their own. You always want the chance to verbally make your pitch and convince the client they need your help before they have a chance to pick apart your written proposal. It’s also easier to explain your reasoning and answer questions when talking face to face (or Zoom screen to Zoom screen), which may provide the clarity your prospect needs to move forward.