Installment 54: Proposal Writing Guidelines and the Review Process
*** SELLING TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ***
Welcome to our new "back to basics" series called "SELLING TO
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT." In some cases we touch on issues already
addressed in our popular series "DOING BUSINESS WITH GOVERNMENT," but
with new angles and insights.
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Attention Contract Management Professionals
Attend the NCMA Aerospace & Defense Contracting Conference
July 15-16, 2004, Hyatt Regency, Long Beach, CA
"Understanding and Preparing for Change in the Business Environment"
Join colleagues from across the country as the aerospace and defense
industry's top business, program and innovation leaders are brought
together for a complete examination of the state of the industry.
For more information, visit us at
www.ncmahq.org/meetings/WCC04?c1=email&source=bus_w_govt&kw=May27
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Installment 54 - Proposal Writing Guidelines and the Review Process
The very best proposals are those written in a single voice. However, this
goal is difficult to reach if multiple proposal writers are involved on the
project. The best way to create a proposal in a single voice is to provide
writers with (i) content guidelines, and (ii) a sufficiently early deadline
that allows an experienced editor enough time to review and edit the proposal.
By providing your writers with carefully crafted content guidelines, you will
have made the editor's task much easier.
Writing Guidelines
The following writing guidelines, and any others your company have developed,
should be given to the proposal writing team:
* Writing style is important. Write from a logical outline and use topic
and subtopic headings.
* Structure the first paragraph in a topic and subtopic manner so that
it presents the primary point first. Summarize every chapter and topic
with a brief paragraph.
* Use trigger words, known facts, statistics and specific reasons to
convince the reader of the primary point, e.g., a unique feature,
capability, or benefit.
* Illustrate as much as possible.
* Use appendices for detailed material.
* Do not use big words in an attempt to impress your customer. Strive
to be concise and brief. Keep paragraphs short and to the point.
* Avoid using general adjectives. We suggest you should instead choose
descriptive adjectives. For example, consider using phrases such as
"a 10-year track record" rather than "an excellent track record."
Stress to your writing team that it should endeavor to write in the
most clear and concise style as possible. Clear, concise writing has
the following characteristics:
* It is logically and consistently organized. For example, if one of your
writers is attempting to promote your company's comprehension of the
proposal's requirements and is tasked with explaining your solutions,
the solutions' features, your solutions' benefits, and benefit
substantiation, in that order, then have all of your writers present
their material in the same order. Give the section writers templates
and writing samples.
* The narrative should be easy to read and understand. Again, use topic
sentences, short paragraphs, and avoid verbose prose. Use simple
declarative sentences. Think Hemingway, not Faulkner.
In summary, you should develop a technical proposal that is clear and concise
and responsive to the requirements outlined in the RFP. In doing so, you will
make the evaluation process much easier.
The Review Process
Proposal reviews are essential to the quality of your company's final proposal.
You should have at least two reviews handled by a team of evaluators - one at
the second draft stage (we will call this a "Red Team Review") and one at the
final draft stage. It is critical that the review doesn't take place at the
eleventh hour - just before the proposal goes out the door.
The review team should evaluate the proposal from the customer's perspective.
Be brutal and act like an evaluator. Compare everything in the proposal to the
requirements in the RFP. Determine whether your solutions and the benefits
your business offers are clearly outlined? Is the narrative brief and concise?
Highlight those areas in which your review team feels the proposal is deficient
and work diligently to correct the problem areas. The extra work may be
difference between the proposal that wins the contract and one that is
dismissed.
You can be slightly more informal for smaller proposals but the fundamentals
are the same. Don't shorten the review process due to a lack of time. If you
are short on time and the proposal shows it, consider canning the proposal.
After completing the first draft, the lead writer should ask the following
questions:
* Does the proposal effectively demonstrate that our company understands
the customer's needs?
* Did we clearly and succinctly outline our solutions?
* Are the writers on track and writing consistently among their
respective sections?
* Does the proposal read as a unified whole?
* Have we hit on new themes and pertinent solutions?
After the lead writer edits the first draft, the writing team should then
prepare a second draft of the proposal. This draft is subject to the most
important review of all, the Red Team Review. The Red Team Review is so
critical to the process that we will address it as a separate article in
next week's installment.
Learn How to Write Winning Proposals:
http://www.fedmarket.com/productTour/seminar/writingProposals.php
Learn How GSA Schedules Can Be Used to Avoid Expensive Proposals:
http://www.fedmarket.com/productTour/seminar/GSA.php
/-------------------------advertisement---------------------------
Attention Contract Management Professionals
Attend the NCMA Aerospace & Defense Contracting Conference
July 15-16, 2004, Hyatt Regency, Long Beach, CA
"Understanding and Preparing for Change in the Business Environment"
Join colleagues from across the country as the aerospace and defense
industry's top business, program and innovation leaders are brought
together for a complete examination of the state of the industry.
For more information, visit us at
www.ncmahq.org/meetings/WCC04?c1=email&source=bus_w_govt&kw=May27
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Thanks for reading and, as always, best of luck in your business.
Feel free to contact me with thoughts or suggestions. If you need help
with product sales, call or write as follows: (888) 661-4094 x8,
sales@fedmarket.com.
Regards,
Richard White, President
Fedmarket.com
rwhite@fedmarket.com
(208) 726-5553 X18
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