How to Write a Business Proposal: Ultimate Guide, Templates & Examples

The first step in learning how to write a business proposal is knowing what needs to be included. Government agencies, public universities, and large corporations typically use RFPs. These are formal solicitation requests for products or services in which the requirements are normally laid out line by line and must be followed precisely.

If you’re writing a proposal for a potential customer undergoing your unique sales process, include things a decision-maker would want to see. For instance, pricing, timelines, and the proposed solution regarding quantities and the mode of product or service delivery are critical purchasing factors to disclose in the document.

Gathering essential information and materials for your proposal can be complex because each potential client may want different details. This could require other personnel to pull the documents and information needed. For instance, some may only request the price and proposed solution, while others will ask for your background story, client reference lists, and work samples to show you’re qualified.

While learning how to write a proposal for business purposes, you may have to dig around your file database for company information, employee biographies, marketing materials, and pricing sheets. Keeping all resources needed for a proposal in one place, like a customer relationship management (CRM) system, makes this process easier.

Your proposed solution involves the processes, materials, product quantities, and personnel required to fulfill the offerings or address your customer’s problem. Additionally, it should be included in the scope of work section in the proposal. For businesses that only provide a product, such as equipment for a manufacturing plant, this step could be as easy as knowing the quantity and having a logistics plan for delivery and installment.

For more service-based businesses, like consulting firms or content agencies, there will likely be more steps and deliverables to complete the work. Regardless of your business, you can use the “who, what, when, where, why, and how” methodology to construct a solution that addresses your prospect’s primary pain points.

• Who: Who will be involved? Include individual contributors, managers, and points of contact.
• What: What solutions or products will be delivered? Include the resources, processes, or technology that will be used.
• Where: Where will work be done or be delivered to?
• When: When will the work start and be completed? Include key project milestones and when each deliverable is expected to take place.
• Why: Why did you choose this particular solution for this customer?
• How: How will work be done? Include how it will be managed to ensure high quality and customer satisfaction.

For example, a business-to-business (B2B) content writing business might be trying to address a client goal like, “We want to demonstrate thought leadership on the topic of the Zero Trust Cybersecurity Framework.” Whatever the case, try it out in one of our free templates or follow along with this business proposal example.

Once you know how you’ll provide your product or service, the next step in writing a proposal is formulating the costs for the document’s pricing section. This is one of the toughest steps because of all the factors that must be considered, such as product cost and other expenses. That’s why it’s critical to accurately communicate your costs to avoid losing a deal for overcharging—or worse—winning a deal with significantly underestimated costs.

You can use a flat fee, hourly rate, per-unit charge, or some combination of the three when pricing products and services. Sometimes, it’s best to work backward by establishing your desired probability first in the form of a percent profit or a flat dollar amount above the work cost.

For example, you want to make a 20% profit on the work for an equipment installation job for a manufacturing business, and you’re pricing using a flat fee. Itemize your costs and use the flat fee formula.

Now that you know your proposal requirements, have gathered the necessary information, determined the proposed solution, and calculated pricing, you are ready to draft the document. Your draft will consist of the following elements, all of which are included in our free templates for business proposals.

Sales teams should be aware of the critical elements of a proposal to effectively communicate value, address client needs, and increase the likelihood of closing deals successfully.

Title Page

Table of Contents

Executive Summary

Company Background

Scope of Work

Timeline

Be sure to indicate how long you expect it to take to complete the entire scope of work. It’s also a good idea to provide estimates for each milestone or individual deliverable you set. Whenever possible, present the information visually to help your reader absorb it better.

For example, your business proposal might outline a kickoff meeting in February and a sales coaching the first week of March. By the end of the first quarter, you might have completed a second round of coaching with a plan to follow up with a compensation meeting in April.

Sales reps should have a business sales proposal timeline to ensure they meet deadlines, stay organized, and address the client’s needs in a timely and professional manner.

Pricing or Price Estimate

Conclusion, Terms & Appendix

Once you have completed the first draft of your proposal, run it by multiple departments to ensure it is comprehensive and accurate. Some things to watch out for include overall readability and technical errors.

• Does it have strong readability? The proposal uses appropriate style, tone, and structured sentences to create a clean flow of information understandable by the specific reader.
• Does it avoid grammatical and technical errors? The proposal avoids punctuation, spelling, or other errors related to proper writing mechanics.
• Does it address all requirements? The proposal contains all the information and sections required to meet the reader’s or customer’s needs and objectives.

Use editing tools such as Grammarly to evaluate your business sales proposal writing for enhanced quality. Grammarly lets users upload text into a system to check for grammar and spelling mistakes as well as engagement and readability. You can even adjust style preferences when subscribing to Grammarly Business to ensure it meets all your goals.

In addition, generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools like ChatGPT can help you improve the overall quality of your proposal by offering suggestions for enhanced readability, tone, and structure. ChatGPT can also assist sales teams in brainstorming ideas, refining complex sections, and ensuring clarity and engagement throughout your document. You can streamline revisions and produce a polished, professional proposal that’s tailored to your audience’s needs.

Now that your proposal is drafted, edited, and has the aesthetics it needs, it’s time to send the document for review. More formal submissions for RFPs may require that you submit them in person, electronically, or both, so review those provisions carefully.

Some sales plans incorporate unsolicited proposals to new leads to present problems they didn’t know existed with viable solutions they could offer. In these cases, they use the proposal to get their foot in the door and create sales opportunities.

When taking this course of action, add context to the unsolicited proposal. For instance, in a sales email, briefly introduce yourself, your business, and what services you provide. Furthermore, indicate why you wanted to send a proposal to them specifically and let them know they can reach out if they wish to discuss it further.

Even after you send a proposal, the process isn’t over. Make time to follow up to confirm the contact received the proposal and see if they have any questions. Because of the proposals’ details, there are usually other clarification steps in the procurement process, such as interviews, client meetings, or sales presentations before work begins.

A well-written business sales proposal can help small business owners secure funding from investors, banks, and venture capitalists. It outlines your business idea, market opportunity, financial projections, and how the investor will benefit from the investment.

When entering into a partnership or business agreement, a proposal outlines the terms, responsibilities, and expectations of both parties. It ensures that everyone is on the same page and reduces the risk of misunderstandings.

Writing a proposal allows you to showcase your knowledge, skills, and understanding of the market. It helps to build trust and credibility with potential clients, customers, or partners. A thoughtful business proposal demonstrates not only your expertise in your product or service, but also how well you know the customer’s problem or industry.

A sales proposal helps clearly define the goals and objectives of the project or business venture. It also specifies how to achieve these goals, providing a roadmap for success. For instance, a business sales proposal for a small bakery aims to increase monthly sales by 20% through expanded catering services, detailed marketing strategies, and streamlined operations to ensure profitability.

A strong proposal can differentiate your offering from competitors. Outline your unique value proposition to demonstrate why your product, service, or business model is superior. A catering company could highlight its farm-to-table approach in a proposal, showcasing locally sourced ingredients and personalized menus to stand out from competitors.

For businesses offering services to other companies or government organizations, proposals are often required to bid for contracts. A compelling proposal can win you contracts by meeting the needs and requirements of the organization. For example, a cleaning company can win a government contract with a proposal showcasing its reliability, competitive pricing, and compliance with sanitation standards.

Business sales proposals are effective in clearly presenting deliverables, timelines, costs, and other important details. This helps manage expectations and ensures that both parties understand what’s involved. For example, a web design agency can set expectations by proposing to deliver a fully responsive ecommerce website within eight weeks for $10,000, including five product pages and integrated payment functionality.

In short, a sales proposal is a critical tool for gaining support, formalizing agreements, and achieving business goals. It provides a structured, persuasive document to help convince stakeholders of the viability and value of your ideas.

When learning how to make a business proposal, you have to write short, simple sentences. While there is no strict rule on the proposal format or length, make sure it’s straightforward. Avoid loading it with too much business jargon and fancy words. Instead, find the sweet spot between conveying essential information and ensuring anyone who reads it can understand it.

The first thing to do when learning how to do a business proposal is to outline all the major sections of your document. This should also include all the pertinent information that you want to get across. The business proposal outline will help you stay focused on the main points of the document.

Capture your prospect’s attention by including quantitative data and figures highlighting your offerings and the value of your company. For example, you can show your month-on-month sales trends as proof of your stellar performance. Adding visual elements like charts and graphs can also help make your proposal more engaging.

Assert your company’s credibility. Many prospects won’t readily believe your claims about your business and are most likely to trust the word of their peers and other customers. To help build your credibility and gain their trust, include social proof, such as reviews and testimonials from your customers.

After the prospect reads your proposal, direct them to the next step. Use a call to action with a verb that defines what they should do to act on their interest in your proposal. For example, you might conclude an unsolicited business proposal with a CTA to book a strategy session.

Solicited proposals to warm leads might be more direct and prompt the recipient to create their account and schedule with an onboarding specialist. When adding CTAs, create a sense of urgency to make your prospect feel that now is the best time to act. Some people are motivated to do something right away for fear of missing out.

Each company has a different brand voice and personality. Staying true to your business brand is a great way to stand out among your competitors. For instance, an event planner who specializes in corporate events might stick to a more business-casual tone to convey that they can throw a lavish party and stay within their clients’ budgets. But a small design firm targeting game developers might favor a louder, more colorful tone to match its audience’s aesthetic.

The three Cs of a business sales proposal are clarity, conciseness, and credibility. “Clarity” ensures the sales business proposal is easily understood, while “conciseness” keeps it focused and to the point. “Credibility” builds trust, showing the business has the expertise and resources to deliver on its promises.

The three Ps of sales business sales proposals are problem, proposal, and proof. The “problem” identifies the issue or need the proposal aims to address. The “proposal” presents the solution or plan to resolve the problem, and the “proof” provides evidence or examples to demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed solution.

A basic business sales proposal outlines a plan to solve a problem or fulfill a need for a potential client or partner. It typically includes an introduction, a description of the problem, a proposed solution, the benefits of the solution, and the costs involved. The goal is to persuade the recipient to approve or support the proposed plan.

The first part of a sales proposal is typically the executive summary. It provides a concise overview of the proposal, highlighting the problem, the proposed solution, and the benefits. It aims to capture the reader’s attention and provide a clear understanding of the proposal’s value.