Sure, you’ve submitted countless proposals. You’ve certainly won and lost your share of competitions. But do you really know whether your proposals are any good? There is a great episode of 30 Rock where Jon Hamm plays Tina Fey’s new boyfriend who she learns is “living in a bubble.” Everybody compliments what he does and […]
April 21, 2013 by 4 Comments
The Networking Mistake That Causes Distrust. Are You Making It?
I see it all the time. People go to networking events and immediately give people a reason to distrust them. And worst of all, they have no idea they are doing it. So, I’m going to explain what this mistake is and give you an easy way to avoid it. But first, let me tell […]
April 14, 2013 by 2 Comments
Do You Have a Sales Advantage Over An Extrovert?
It never fails. People always make the same stupid mistake. They assume that extroverts have an advantage when it comes to sales. Worse yet, since they are not extroverts, they assume they don’t have what it takes to sell. So what do they do? They go out and hire an extrovert to sell for them. […]
April 11, 2013 by Leave a Comment
How To Write A Business Letter
Email is the primary form of communication in the business world. But the business letter is still around. Eventually, you’ll have to write one. But you might not remember how to put one together. Don’t worry, I got you covered. I’m proud to announce BusinessLetter.co (yes, .com was taken). This site reminds you how to […]
March 29, 2013 by 1 Comment
The Secret to Success Discovered?
Many years ago, I was on the phone with Tim Klabunde (now with Timmons Group) and he said something that probably changed my life. Today, I sent Tim an email that said: “You’re gonna love this…” The email contained a link to an article printed in the New York Times entitled, “Is Giving The Secret […]
March 17, 2013 by 35 Comments
The Best FREE CRM For A/E/C Firms Is Here
It’s been a while since I gave you something that was truly, mind numbingly, awesome! OK, FancyHands was close…but you had to pay for that. But what I have for you today takes the cake. Let me explain… CRM…Urggg! CRM is obviously a huge frustration in our industry. A few years ago, I even got […]
March 10, 2013 by 24 Comments
Why The Technical Staff Doesn’t Respond To Your Requests
We’ve all been there in one time or another. We ask for something important and either we don’t get it or we get it way too late. Why do they do that? Is it because they are inconsiderate jerks who just don’t get it? Maybe. But maybe there are other, more plausible, reasons. Let’s look […]
March 4, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Surprising Statistics About Federal Bid Protests
Wally Zimolong over at Supplemental Conditions posted a piece about federal bid protest statistics. There were a few statistics in the report that I thought were pretty telling. First off, the number of formal bid protests rose almost 50% between 2008 and 2012. But the statistic that stayed consistent was also pretty disturbing. Over 40% […]
February 24, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Why The Type of Procurement Matters To Your Proposal
Some people think proposal competitions are all the same. We compete and whomever had the best relationship wins. These people are wrong. This is because the type of procurement has a dramatic effect on the proposal competition. Let’s look at a few procurement types and discuss what effect they have. Low Bid Low bid or […]
February 17, 2013 by 1 Comment
The Difference Between a Proposal and a Choose Your Own Adventure Book
Remember those old choose your own adventure books? You would read a passage and which page you would turn to depended on which decision you would make. Well, proposals aren’t choose your own adventure books! Someone will evaluate your proposal. For the love of God, do not make that person’s job hard. Address every single […]
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