By Jennifer Clark at February 26 2020 23:49:37
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.
The only time we would recommend using a sample business proposal is if you are approaching a bank for finance and they provide an example of what they would like to see. However, banks don't provide samples, they provide templates, which is basically them trying to educate entrepreneurs before they apply for finance. In this case this is the bank endorsing a structure for the proposal so it is OK. It still leaves all the blanks to fill in though so it isn't really a full solution to your problem.
What is The Solution? This might all seem a little bleak but there is an easy solution to this dilemma and it demands a little more of your time and effort in return for a deeper understanding of your business. You have to learn to write a business proposal rather than using a sample business proposal to take a short cut. Don't do the latter as it will make the experience of approaching investors and financiers unnecessarily painful and will dilute your experience of creating your vision from scratch and your strategic understanding of your own business. Plus, you will be found out!
Thinking of sending out a one_size_fits_all cover letter, along with a list of services and associated prices? That's a mistake commonly made by inexperienced proposal writers. Don't do it. A proposal is not a brochure. A proposal is a document intended to persuade someone to give you their business or funds. To be successful, you must gain their trust and make them understand that you can deliver the services to those who need them. A price list cannot substitute for a real proposal.