When the customer buys your product, he is buying a thing. When he is buying your services, he is buying your time. There is a fundamental difference between selling a thing and selling your time. That goes for the proposals you have to write as well. When you sell a product, the customer can “test

How do you budget for your proposals? You do draw up a budget for your proposals, don’t you? If you don’t, you’re not alone. Many firms neither budget for nor keep track of costs for proposal development. They simply write the costs off as “overhead.” Bad plan. If you don’t know how much you are

Think about your client for a minute. He has issued an RFP and now has a stack of proposals to wade through. It could be a tall stack or a short one, depending on how many people proposed. It doesn’t matter how tall the stack; what matters is that your client is about to read

In a past article, I wrote about the importance of sizing up the competition and discovering ways to differentiate yourself from them. Well, it’s more important now than ever. Why? Because the competition is stiffer, more firms are competing for the same work, and there is often little or no perceptible differences between the firms

Having a good cost estimate is one of the most important factors when creating your proposal.  In addition to sticking to the client’s budget, you need to consider several other ways to provide the best cost estimate possible.  Read the following PDF to learn more… Copy and paste this URL into your browser to download

Here is an example of a cost proposal: http://www.epa.gov/ogd/recipient/sample1.htm

In addition to planning your proposal, it is helpful to follow a checklist.  This will ensure you do not skip any steps or important information.  For a complete proposal checklist, click here: http://www.proposalwriter.com/checklist.html

If you want to write a successful proposal, it is best to plan before you begin writing.  There are many aspects of the proposal that need thought and preparation to create a winning proposal.  Here are some planning tips: http://www.smps.org/mrc/articles-html/proposalplanning.htm

There are several tips to follow when aiming to buy smarter.  These include: Asking front-line managers whether they have purchase cards and whether the cards ease small purchases. Making sure internal procurement rules reflect acquisition reform. Asking whether the agency routinely uses performance-based contracting. Finding out whether the agency is taking advantage of improved FSS