I’ve been experimenting with podcasting lately. I recently appeared as a guest on two construction-related podcasts. I thought I’d share these with you because I drop some proposal wisdom and I clear up any misconception about what I do for a living (spoiler alert: I have a job just like you). Construction Industry Podcast In […]
February 23, 2014 by 7 Comments
What If The RFP Contradicts Itself?
So, you are reading an RFP that makes no sense. In one section, it tells you to do one thing. But in another section, it tells you something completely different. Oh, well! Just submit it in the most logical way, right? WRONG! RFPs commonly need clarification. That’s why there is a question and answer period. […]
December 1, 2013 by 22 Comments
The Shocking Proposal Trick You’ll Be Talking About For Weeks
A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of moderating a panel discussion for SMPS Philadelphia. One of the panel members was a marketer named Andy. Andy revealed one of his internal proposal tactics and I think the jaws in the entire room collectively dropped. This tactic was shocking for two reasons: The sheer […]
September 15, 2013 by 7 Comments
The Huge Mistake Most People Make When Writing Proposals
When writing proposals, you have to set your firm apart. So, what do we do? We try everything in the book to convince the client we are better. Our work is better, our people are better, and our customer service is better. There is just one problem: that’s a huge mistake. Tying to convince the […]
September 9, 2013 by 12 Comments
The One Question That Can Dramatically Increase Your Proposal Wins
In a fiercely competitive environment, like we’ve been experiencing over the past few years, small differences can play a major role in whether you win or lose a proposal competition. Let’s be honest with ourselves. We all provide the exact same services our competitors do. And for the most part, our qualifications and experience are […]
August 18, 2013 by Leave a Comment
9 Helpful Tutorials For Non-Techie Proposal Developers
You may not be a tech wizard. But these tutorials will help you overcome common technical challenges and show you a few tricks you can use in your proposal development work. Please note that I have links to some of these programs in my Resources page. #1: Clearing Formatting in Microsoft Word Whenever you paste […]
August 4, 2013 by 31 Comments
3 Tragic Misconceptions About Proposal Cover Letters
Cover letters are one of the most important pieces of a proposal. Unfortunately, 99% of the cover letters I’ve seen during my Brutally Honest Proposal Critiques are cr*p. The problem stems from common misconceptions about the cover letter’s place in the current proposal environment. Let us look at three misconceptions that can lead to epic […]
July 28, 2013 by 15 Comments
Determine How Much Time To Spend On Your Proposal Cover With This Formula
It`s always up for debate. You want to create a proposal cover that will pique the client’s interest. You may think you spend enough time on proposal covers. But others may think you don’t spend ENOUGH time on them. Well, who’s right? Or maybe someone else on your team does the covers. How much time […]
July 22, 2013 by 10 Comments
The Best Comment About Mistakes In Proposals
There were many people who joined the conversation about Whether Mistakes in Proposals Matter. Between this site and LinkedIn, there must have been 50 people who gave their two cents on the topic. Many people agreed with me and completely understood my point. Some people said mistakes do matter (just not the kind of mistakes […]
July 16, 2013 by 79 Comments
Why Mistakes In Proposals Don’t Matter…and What Does
When I first interviewed for my job, the Director of Marketing at the time told me one of her biggest frustrations was mistakes in proposals. She wanted mistake-free proposals. And I was on board with that idea. Over the next 5 years, we spent countless hours combing for, finding, and correcting mistakes in our proposals. […]
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