Proposals are offers to perform a service or to do something or a submission for approval such as a credit proposal. It is derived from the word propose and makes a proposition to the reader – a proposition the reader can accept or reject.

Proposals may be:

Internal: This is within the organization such as a proposal to purchase an asset or a credit proposal (in a bank)

External: This is to outsiders. This could be a proposal offering services.

Proposals can be solicited or unsolicited.

  • A solicited proposal is one which the reader (customer) has asked for. This may be a credit proposal wherein the writer seeks credit facilities from a bank and submits a report on itself with facts and figures in support of this request.
  • An unsolicited proposal is one that the customer has not asked for. The writer may submit a proposal by which the customer could benefit. This may be on the basis of some study done by the proposer.

The format for:

  • An internal proposal is similar to that of a memo. There will be no salutation etc.
  • An external proposal is similar to that of a letter.

Text

As a proposal is to seek acceptance or approval, it should state at the beginning what the proposal is. It should then state the concerns/ issues and why the proposal is being made.

If the proposal is to evaluate more than one alternative, the advantages/ disadvantages and the critical information regarding these alternatives should be stated. Then, the writer should make an evaluation and submit a conclusion/ recommendation. Nothing is more annoying than receiving a lot of data culminating with a terse statement, “awaiting your advice.”

While making the submission you should ensure that:

  • It answers all the questions that are likely to be raised.
  • Generalities are avoided.

It is to be remembered that apart from reading proposals they are evaluated by the reader and often compared with other similar proposals received. When you are writing a proposal you need your customer to buy in. Therefore the proposal must be marketed correctly.

It must be apparent that:

  1. It will benefit the reader from accepting your proposal. You should explain clearly why your proposal is superior.
  2. You know your product and that you know what you are talking about. You should speak of its superiority and if there are any weaknesses why they are irrelevant or how these would make no difference.
  3. You know your market. This includes how big the market is and the competition. You must know the strengths and weakness of the competition.
  4. It is professional. The proposal should be well presented and appear professional in every way. There must be no misspelled words or typographical errors. It should be reviewed thoroughly. The sentences must be grammatically correct.

Above all, the proposal should arouse interest. It must get the reader excited and convince him that the proposal would benefit him and that he should accept it. While writing the proposal always place the most convincing and strongest material first. If weak material is placed first the reader could lose interest.


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