After the pitch is made and stirred up interest the next request from your customer is , “Can we have a proposal?”. You have come a long way from identifying a customer to meeting them and this step is now going to decide whether you close the deal or not. I am surprised at the number of startup companies who do not think through their proposals before sending them out to target customers. This is when your professionalism, authority and commitment to the project is reflected and defined. Yet time and time again, copy pasted proposals are being sent out without taking into account the customer and their unique requirement.

Over the course of this week I will talk about basic strategies that need to be incorporated into business proposal writing processes to improve their rate of success. Some of the steps may appear to be simple and logical , yet , we overlook them. I have been through this phase till one of my mentors took a look at what I was sending out and I got back a proposal covered with red ink. It helped me see the business proposal process from a completely different perspective and resulted in better proposals which ultimately resulted in more deals.

Business communication is a critical element of any organization. You have to ensure that you present yourself in a consistent, professional and engaging manner at all times. You need to develop a central theme around your business that covers your company’s values and beliefs comprehensively. This in turn will help you develop a more committed relationship with customers as well as draw customers who share your perspective. So, next time you are writing out a business proposal, make sure the manner in which you pitch your message is consistent with the rest of your organization.