The top three elements of an effective proposal

I discovered Dr. Tom Sant and the Sant Corporation several years ago when I was heavily involved in proposal writing. Dr. Sant is a leader and innovator in the proposal writing field and the author of Persuasive Business Proposals.

I highly recommend this book, as well as Sant’s amazing proposal generation software (ProposalMaster) that helps you create persuasive proposals. Working with Microsoft Word, the software guides you through a series of screens where you select relevant content to easily build your document.

Do you know the most important elements of an effective proposal? See if you can pick the top three from the following list:

1. Accuracy of the content
2. Addressing the customer’s needs and objectives
3. Addressing the requirements of the RFP
4. Case studies / success stories
5. Clarity of the writing
6. Completeness
7. Compliance
8. Conciseness
9. Cost justification / ROI / Life cycle cost analysis
10. Facilities section
11. Graphics
12. Management plan
13. Pricing
14. Prior experience
15. Project plan
16. References
17. Resumes
18. Technical innovation
19. Technical plan
20. Vendor’s history / capabilities / experience

According to Sant, the three that seem to matter the most are:

• Addressing the customer’s needs

• Addressing the requirements of the RFP

• Cost justification / ROI /Life cycle cost analysis

“People want to know that they’re getting what they need, that you’re going to deliver it in a way that conforms to their expectations and technical requirements and that will offer good business value. The other stuff? Background support. Substantiation. Sometimes a reason to eliminate a vendor. But ultimately not as important.” (from What Matters the Most in Winning, Sant’s Messages That Matter blog).

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