By Clifford Contreras at February 03 2020 10:05:24
Every entrepreneur has been there. You need to write a business plan to get your idea off the ground and have no idea how to approach it. The first thing most people do is Google, "Sample business proposal." Why? Well, it's quite simple really. They want to get a head start on the process by looking at what someone else has written. It is an understandable position to take if you are under pressure and need a boost. What people don't realise is that there are inherent dangers in using a sample business proposal.
Don't send your proposal out before you proofread all the pages. Remember that spell check cannot catch words that are correctly spelled but misused. It's always a good idea to enlist someone who doesn't know your work to do a final proofing pass, because all writers miss errors in their own work. Finally, save your proposal and then deliver it to your potential client or funder. The best delivery method will depend on your relationship with the recipient. It's common to email a PDF file to a client, but you may want to make a personal effort and hand deliver a printed proposal to show you're willing to go that extra mile.
To propose a partnership with another company for a mutually beneficial business arrangement, show how the partnership will benefit both parties (mostly focusing on the partner). Use templates such as Amenities, Cost/Benefit Analysis, Strategic Position, Competitive Analysis, and so on. A good example of a partnership would be an adventure tour service provider pitching an arrangement with a local hotel. Marketing a sports company or team? Then you'll include topic pages with titles like Marketing Plan, Market and Audience, Sales Plan, and so on. If you are writing a business plan to start or expand a business, include financial details with topics like Funding Request, Repayment Plan, Location Analysis, Competitive Analysis, Budget, Cash Flow, Balance Sheet, Company Operations, etc.
After you have the information in hand, writing the proposal will be reasonably straightforward. That's because proposals that offer services, regardless of the type of services, follow a similar structure: first comes the introduction, then a summary of the needs, followed by descriptions of the services offered, as well as details and costs. Then the proposal concludes with information about the service provider, such as relevant experience, credentials, and capabilities.