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How to Write a Business Proposal in English – A Step by Step Guide

You have started a new business and you are growing too. But deep down you know that you could be doing better than this. Or your already established business is not making enough progress or sales which is why you are worried. There is a big chance that you can do better. Thus, why not. One of the best ways to grow your business is to target potential customers the right way. And that is where business proposals come into play. In the article below, we will tell you anything and everything about business proposals. In the end, you will learn what is a business proposal, its types and how to write a business proposal in English.

What is a Business Proposal?

A business proposal is a document that any company creates to persuade its clients or prospects to secure a business agreement. Besides, a business plan and a business proposal are the same things. With a business proposal, you sell your service or product to your potential clients and seek new clients meanwhile business plan helps you sell your business itself.

Types of Business Proposal

There are basically three types of business proposals.

  1. Formally Solicited
  2. Informally Solicited
  3. Unsolicited Business Proposal

Formally Solicited Business Proposal

A formally solicited business proposal is composed when you as the business holder receives an official request from a prospective client. In this case, you will have enough information about the client which is why there is no need for extra research on your side. All you need to do is compose your business proposal according to the requirements and information you have.

Informally Solicited Business Proposal

An informally solicited business proposal is written when you as the business holder do not receive any official request from the prospective client. But you make the business proposal out of an informal conversation between you and your client. In this case, you need to do a lot more research at your end to better understand your client’s requirements.

Unsolicited Business Proposal

The main difference between a solicited business proposal and an unsolicited business proposal is that the solicited business proposal is a response to a customer’s need or request. However, an unsolicited business proposal aims to advertise to potential clients.

What is the Purpose of a Business Proposal?

Mainly, a business proposal aims to help you target a potential client and sell your products or services. It also helps you to:

  1. Make realistic plans and projects for your business.
  2. Secure funding.
  3. Identify your strengths and weaknesses
  4. Get your business direction and structure.

A Business proposal should include:

Firstly, your business proposal should be able to answer the following questions:

  • Who are you and what does your company do?
  • What are the problems your clients may be facing?
  • What are the solutions your company may offer them?
  • And how your company will implement those solutions to help your client?
  • What resources do you need to implement those solutions?

How to Write a Business Proposal

Before we start writing our proposal, we first need to do some research to thoroughly understand your client’s problems and their needs. If you are writing a solicited business proposal, you will, no doubt, have an official request which includes all the details about your client. Otherwise, you will have to give some time to do a handful of research about your client and their needs to be able to compose a good business proposal.

Once you have done your research and have all the necessary details, you can start writing your business proposal. Though there is not a one size fits all solution for a perfect business proposal, but here are some elements that every business proposal should have. So, let’s learn how to write a business proposal in English.

First, Write a Compelling Title Page

Your title page includes the basic information about you, your company, and your client. On your title page, you present a brief introduction of yourself and your business. Moreover, you include the date you have submitted the proposal to your client and your client’s name. Moreover, be sure to select a tone that you can follow up ahead in your proposal. You should try to select a solution-oriented, sleek, and professional tone for your title page.

Table of Contents

The main purpose of a table of content is to make it easier for the reader to navigate to different parts of your proposal easily. So, you need to make things easier for your clients on the other side of the proposal. Including a table of content in your business proposal will help your clients to easily understand the structure of your proposal and they can easily jump to different sections to read further.

Executive Summary

An executive summary is a way to tell your client why they should choose you and why the solutions that you offer to them are best for their problems.

It simply tells your reader how you can solve your client’s problems without them having to worry. Thus, after reading your executive summary, your client must get a clear view of why you are the best choice for them and their requirements – especially even if they do not read the entire proposal.

In a nut shell, your executive summary should be able to:

  • Introduce you and your company well to your client.
  • Give a brief overview of your company.
  • Provide a full view of your company’s vision, milestones, and future goals.
  • And tell them why they should choose you.

The Problem Statement

This section includes a brief overview of the problems your client is facing. The problems statement is one of the best ways to tell your client that you understand them and their requirements and there is no doubt that you are the best option for them.

To compose a powerful problem statement, you have to do some homework. First, you have to do thorough research about your prospective client and their issue. Then, you should look for the best solution to help your client. Lastly, write it down and present it in a way that will help you win the client.

The Solution You Offer

In this section, you offer your client your strategy to solve their problem. Like the previous section, here you have to thoroughly learn about the problem your client is facing and make sure that your solution is well customized according to your client’s needs.

Besides, it will also be useful if you tell your client which methods and strategies you are going to use to best solve their issues.

Qualifications

Here you will tell your client on what basis you are suitable for them and why they should trust you. You can include your expertise, projects you have completed, people and organizations you have worked with, success stories, and awards you have won.

The Timeline

With a timeline, you can divide the process into small sections and steps which will help your clients learn about your methods and strategies. Besides, a timeline is most useful in the case of a long project.

Pricing and Billing

In a business proposal, this one is a tricky section. Because you do not want to overprice or underprice your product or services. Thus, you have to come up with a suitable price. Besides, some proposal software includes responsive pricing sections or tables which helps customers check products and services they want and their prices come up automatically.

Terms and Conditions

In this section, you simply summarize anything and everything you have promised to offer and everything your clients will have to deliver in return. It includes the project timeline, pricing, payment method and schedule, and more. Since it outlines all the legal aspects of your project and the deal, it is a very important section. Therefore, we recommend you finalize this section only if all of your team agree with it.

The Acceptance

The final step to learn how to write a business proposal in English is acceptance. This is a small section where your prospective client has to sign only if he has read the entire business proposal and agrees with the services he offers.

Also, do not forget to add your contact information at the end so that your client can easily contact you.

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