The RFP Template - Writing Proposals That Win Bids

Many businesses and organizations use a request-for-proposal (RFP) format to receive bids for work or goods that they wish to purchase. By using this proven RFP template below, you can become more successful at proposal writing and win more bids.

Because RFP writing can be challenging and time-consuming, many businesses either don't participate in the bid process or they don't write bids that win. Proposal writing is a combination of science and art: you need to follow guidelines or a template (the science) and you need to write a compelling and persuasive bid (the art).

First, recognize that there are a number of different methods used for bids or tenders: request for expressions of interest (RFEIP), request for proposal (RFP), request for qualification (RFQ), request for information (RFI), and request for technical specifications (RFTS). These requests are typically used by all levels of government; hospitals; schools, universities and colleges; and a number of organizations (typically larger organizations such as banking institutions, utility companies, and so on). Often the value of the 'buy' dictates whether or not the request for proposal or bid process will be used (for example, no one is putting out a request for proposal for a roll of toilet paper, but if the request is to supply the whole hospital with toilet paper, it is likely to be purchased through the RFP process).

The RFP Template - Writing Proposals That Win Bids

Then, before you begin writing your response to the RFP, review the request for proposal and ensure that you want to bid for it; I've known clients that have got all the way to the end of proposal writing and then decided the RFP wasn't a good fit for them or that the bid was too big, too small, not right. Develop your own bid or no-bid criteria and assess each RFP or other requests (RFEIP, RFQ, RFI, RFTS) before you begin the work of writing proposals.

This RFP template provides an outline of how to write a proposal: (Note: this is for a common type of RFP; there are many variations)

The typical bid package or documents will include:
A project or goods overview or summary, including specifications, quantity, time frame and/or other details required for the proposal; A due date for the bid and for the work to be done or the goods delivered; If applicable, the vendors meeting schedule (usually provided if the specifications are complex and need to be discussed); Buyer's contact name, phone number, address and/or email address for delivery of the bid; Attachments as necessary: which often include payment terms and conditions, legal and insurance requirements, other related information; The package will also include management and technical requirements and expectations for the bid; The bid documents should also include a contact if questions are allowed (recognize that most times, questions and answers are posted for all respondents to see - be careful what you 'give away' to your competitors in your questions).

Your proposal needs to include:
Your Qualifications: Consider whether you have the necessary qualifications and experience for the proposal; if not, consider an alliance or partnership with another vendor or consider subcontracting parts of the bid. Make sure that with either scenario (partnership or subcontracting) that you control the service and the product: your reputation is on the line. In your qualifications, make sure you include a description of who will be working on the project and why your company is uniquely qualified to deliver the product. Provide individual or corporate resumes and biographies if appropriate and necessary. Your References: References should answer the question; Why should you get this bid? What is better and/or unique about your service and/or product - compared to your competition? Your references need to be carefully selected and you must contact those people you use as a reference in advance to ensure that they are willing to be your reference (I recommend asking for a reference (written if possible, plus contact information) well ahead of the need for one). Read the bid requirements carefully; some bids will limit the number and type of references you can provide. Try to use references for similar types of bids; if you do not have any, then ensure that you write the connection between your experience and the work you're bidding on (that is, what are transferable skills from your experiences). Your Solution: In this section, present your unique solution; the one that differentiates your proposal from others. Also, define your understanding of their request and how you plan to address their needs. Your service or product positioning must be clearly written. Make sure that your solution indicates to the buyer that you understand their problem, their market and that you can deliver the best solution. Your Price or Fee: Consider pricing strategies that are specific to your bid. The lowest price is not the one that wins - all the time. If you need to buy materials as soon as you are awarded the contract, write your bid to include progressive payments. You might want to show what the price includes, for example, 5 days on market survey design and launch; 5 days on survey tabulation and focus groups, etc. Your payment terms must be clearly identified and easy to understand (and not in conflict with any terms in the request for proposal). Build a cancellation clause into your bid: for acts above and beyond your control (earthquake, floods, fire, etc.) - have a lawyer review your clause and then use that as a standard clause on each proposal that you write. Build a price escalation clause for long term projects; you might want to tie the price escalation clause to inflation or to your projected cost increases. There are always administrative details to review; make sure you take the time to read them carefully and if you do not agree or cannot comply, then address the issue in your bid. Do not leave any sections or questions unanswered in your bid: you will score zero on that answer in the evaluation process (which usually 'marks' the answers in each section).

Once the bid or tender is awarded, and if you were not the winner, ask for a debrief or review: you want to find out why you didn't win the bid and you want to apply the lessons learned in the debrief on your next bid. Learning how to write an RFP, specifically how to write winning bids, becomes easier the more bids that you write. Once you've developed this RFP template into your own template for your business, you will find that writing proposals is faster, more effective and more successful. The goal is to write winning proposals.

The RFP Template - Writing Proposals That Win Bids
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Not all sales come from RFPs, learn how to Improve Your Proposal Writing Skills with more proposal writing tips and techniques focused on the selling process.

Kris Bovay is the owner of Voice Marketing Inc., the business and marketing services company and owner of the small business resource website, http://www.more-for-small-business.com

Kris has more than 25 years experience in successfully managing and leading large, medium and small businesses; businesses that she has worked with have grown by more than 30% in sales in the first two years. Use Kris' experience to help you manage and lead your business. Copyright 2008 Voice Marketing Inc.

Report Writing - How to Format a Business Report

Introduction

Report writing is a time consuming business so it is a great shame if, having devoted all that time to writing your report, the quality is such that hardly anyone can be bothered to read it. Quite frankly, most report readers do not actually read all the report; they are too short of time. You might as well know it and accept it -- that is normal. They only read the parts that interest them. Frequently these are the summary, the conclusions and recommendations.

Of course, some readers do need all the details you so carefully included, they are specialists, but most do not. Most readers just need two things: that the information they want is where they expect it to be so they can find it, and that it is written clearly so that they can understand it.

Report Writing - How to Format a Business Report

It is similar to reading a newspaper. You expect the news headlines to be on the front page; the sports coverage to be at the back; the TV listings on page whatever and the editorial comment in the middle. If what you want is not in its usual place then you have to hunt for it and you may get irritated. So it is with a report.

There is a convention as to what goes where. Stick with the convention and please your readers. Break the convention and people may get slightly irritated - and bin your report.

So what is that convention, the standard format?

Standard Sections

Title Section. In a short report this may simply be the front cover. In a long one it could also include Terms of Reference, Table of Contents and so on.

Summary. Give a clear and very concise account of the main points, main conclusions and main recommendations. Keep it very short, a few percent of the total length. Some people, especially senior managers, may not read anything else so write as if it were a stand-alone document. It isn't but for some people it might as well be. Keep it brief and free from jargon so that anyone can understand it and get the main points. Write it last, but do not copy and paste from the report itself; that rarely works well.

Introduction. This is the first part of the report proper. Use it to paint the background to 'the problem' and to show the reader why the report is important to them. Give your terms of reference (if not in the Title Section) and explain how the details that follow are arranged. Write it in plain English.

Main Body. This is the heart of your report, the facts. It will probably have several sections or sub-sections each with its own subtitle. It is unique to your report and will describe what you discovered about 'the problem'.

These sections are most likely to be read by experts so you can use some appropriate jargon but explain it as you introduce it. Arrange the information logically, normally putting things in order of priority -- most important first. In fact, follow that advice in every section of your report.

You may choose to include a Discussion in which you explain the significance of your findings.

Conclusions. Present the logical conclusions of your investigation of 'the problem'. Bring it all together and maybe offer options for the way forward. Many people will read this section. Write it in plain English. If you have included a discussion then this section may be quite short.

Recommendations. What do you suggest should be done? Don't be shy; you did the work so state your recommendations in order of priority, and in plain English.

Appendices. Put the heavy details here, the information that only specialists are likely to want to see. As a guide, if some detail is essential to your argument then include it in the main body, if it merely supports the argument then it could go in an appendix.

Conclusions and Recommendations

In conclusion, remember that readers expect certain information to be in certain places. They do not expect to hunt for what they want and the harder you make it for them the more likely they are to toss you report to one side and ignore it. So what should you do?

1. Follow the generally accepted format for a report: Summary, Introduction, Main Body, Conclusions, Recommendations and Appendices.
2. Organise your information in each section in a logical fashion with the reader in mind, usually putting things in order of priority - most important first.

Good luck with your report writing!

Author: Tony Atherton
© Tony Atherton 2005)

Report Writing - How to Format a Business Report
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Tony Atherton is a freelance trainer and writer based in England. He has had four books published and about 90 of his articles have appeared in various magazines and journals. After an earlier career in industry he now runs in-company training courses in business writing, report writing (including technical reports) and taking minutes, as well as negotiation skills and time management. Over 6000 delegates have attended his courses. See http://www.tony-atherton.co.uk/reportwriting.htm for details of report writing courses, or see http://www.tony-atherton.co.uk for general information.

Technical Writing - Importance of Scope Statement, Marketing Specs,and Functional Specs Documents

There are many different kinds of "spec sheets" that a technical writer should pay close attention to since they may (and they do) prove to be indispensable for writing all sorts of technical document.

We have already covered in another article what Design Specs, and Testing Specs documents are and why a technical writer should be familiar with them.

Here are some other important "spec sheets":

Technical Writing - Importance of Scope Statement, Marketing Specs,and Functional Specs Documents

SCOPE STATEMENT - Technically this is not a "spec sheet" but it is still very important since it is the very first statement that needs to be written down before a project can start. It defines the general nature of the project; its audience; what it is supposed to deliver and solve what kind of a problem (the "problem statement"); the names of "stake holders;" what should be project produce at the end ("project deliverables"); major "milestone" dates in project calendar; and the rough cost estimate.

MARKETING SPECS (a.k.a. "Marketing Requirements Document (MRD)," "Marketing Requirements Specs" or just "Requirements Specs" for short) - The list of all the functions and features that the product should have; the profile ("demographics") of the market segment(s) that the product should be targeted for; the list of benefits that the product should offer to the end-users; analysis of competing products with their contrasting and similar features and benefits; etc.

FUNCTIONAL SPECS (a.k.a. "Functional Specifications Document (FSD) or just the "specs,") - The detailed engineering document that lists of all the technical features of all system components and functions. Without the details included in the functional specs, no product can be designed or manufactured.

For example, a marketing spec can mention that "the Gadget delivers ice cubes shaped like stars at the push of a button."

But that means almost nothing for engineers unless they also know the shape and exact size of the Gadget, all the circuitry and digital components in it, the temperature range within which the Gadget should operate, what kind of "system load" it should withstand, where should exactly each bolt, screw and nut be placed, etc. 

That's why a functional spec is usually the longest, most detailed and hardest to understand spec sheet that a technical writer has to deal with. But for the very same reason, it is also the most important since it usually has the answers to many product-related questions that a writer might have.

Technical Writing - Importance of Scope Statement, Marketing Specs,and Functional Specs Documents
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If you are interested to read more about technical writing as a career and how it can help you earn a steady living, visit http://www.learntechnicalwriting.com. You might be pleasantly surprised with what you'll find out. Join the thousands who are already helped and inspired by this information provided by a Fortune 500 Senior Technical Writer. Visit today and claim your free report "How Much Do Technical Writers Make?"

Dr. Ugur Akinci is a Fortune 500 Sr. Technical Communicator http://www.technicalcommunicationcenter.com/

Writing a Newspaper Article - What to Include

Have you ever wanted to write for your local paper? Seeing your byline, or name, in an article is definitely something to be proud of. Though many people might be intimidated with writing a newspaper article, it is actually fairly simple, as long as you follow some general rules in writing.

What are the things included in a newspaper article? There are certain things that a writer must be aware of, in order to write the article well; effectively reaching out to the readers. Keep in mind that a newspaper article should be entertaining and yet must also be able to educate the readers.

The first part of the article should already capture the readers right away. You must be able to present the main details of the story-including the five W's: who, what, when, where, and why, as well as how. This should immediately convey to the readers what the whole article will be about. This part is called the "lead."

Writing a Newspaper Article - What to Include

You should be able to give enough background information to your readers; try to know who your audience will be, and what they know about the news you are presenting. A writer should never assume that the audience already has some knowledge about what he or she will be talking about. A brief background of the topic will usually suffice.

Because newspaper articles present facts, it should be done in a straightforward manner, free from biases. A writer must always have a critical as well as an objective eye. A writer's sources for the facts should be clearly stated in the article and properly documented.

Your writing should also be direct to the point, without frills and avoiding flowery words. The article should be able to present things clearly and directly, though not in a dry manner. After presenting the main information about the article, the writer must follow the pyramid format, where information is presented from the most important down to the least, so that the readers will get the most vital part of the news right away. This, then, should draw the reader into reading the rest of the article.

Sometimes, using direct quotes may help the writer convey his message to the audience better. When interviewing people, a writer may want to incorporate a line or two into his or her article. This can be a great help to the writer, as this will give the story more depth and feel. Sometimes, what an interviewee says also encapsulates the main gist of the news item, so quoting him or her will greatly aid in writing. However, using quotations too often will have the opposite effect-it will result in an article which seems as if the writer did not research or think thoroughly about; simply putting in others' thoughts and opinions. Learn how to use them well, but do not use them liberally.

After writing a newspaper article, you should check it for some errors. Make sure that everything is grammatically correct, and that there are no misspelled words. No one wants to read an article that is filled with errors, be it technical or factual. So make sure that you always edit your work before submitting or publishing it.

Writing a Newspaper Article - What to Include
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