changingminds.org

How we change what others think, feel, believe and do

| Menu | Quick | Books | Share | Search | Settings |

How to Create a Killer Sales Proposal

 

Guest articles > How to Create a Killer Sales Proposal

 

by: Kelley Robertson


The vast majority of sales proposals I have read during my career miss the mark. They either don't address the key issues that the prospect is facing or they fail to demonstrate how the prospect will benefit from buying the seller's solution.

If you need to create proposals here are a few ways to make your stand out from the competitions'.

Open with a situation summary.

One of the oldest and still most effective sales techniques is to summarize your understanding of the other person's situation before launching into a sales presentation (aka sales pitch) and this is the best way to open your sales proposal.

The very first paragraph in your document should highlight or summary your prospect's situation. What is their problem? What are they trying to achieve? What they experiencing or going through right now?

This single paragraph grabs your prospect's attention because it speaks directly to the problems or challenges they want to fix, resolve or remedy.

Key objectives

The next component of the proposal should contain four to six bullet points that outline the customers' key objectives. In other words, what do they want to accomplish or achieve?

The value to the company

Once again, this is a list of several bullet points that describe the value of achieving those objectives. It can be an increase in sales, higher customer loyalty, faster time to market, reduction in expenses, improvement in morale, etc.

The key to developing this page is to ask the right questions during your sales conversation(s). Essentially, you ask the other person questions that uncover the answers to these areas. And you take their comments and insert them into the proposal.

All of this information is placed on the first page of the proposal and you'll notice that it focuses strictly on the customer; not you, your company or your product, service or solution. This is the fastest way to grab their attention and demonstrate your understanding of their needs and issues.

After that, the remaining pages outline what you will do to help the customer achieve the objectives listed on the first page.

Don't be fooled by how easy this sounds...

Many sales proposals open with a page or two (or sometimes three!) describing the seller's company. And it can be tough to wean yourself from this addiction.

However, every piece of information you include in a proposal MUST be interesting and relevant to the person reading it. You seldom, if ever, need to include every single feature or aspect about your solution.

Finally, make it easier to read by adding headings and including white space. A five page, single-spaced proposal written in a 10-point font is not easy to read which means many people will skim through it, or worse, flip to the last page to see how much it costs.

I recall receiving a proposal from one company that spanned 24 pages.

Twenty-four pages!

Who has time to read that much information?!?

Certainly, there are exceptions for complex solutions but generally speaking, the shorter your sales proposal, the better. I have never had a prospect say, "Your proposal was too short, Kelley. That's why we can't consider you."

Changing your approach and creating a sales proposal as outlined here will help you stand out from the other people who also submitted a proposal for consideration.

 

 


© MMXI Kelley Robertson, All rights reserved.

Kelley Robertson, author of The Secrets of Power Selling helps sales professionals and businesses discover new techniques to improve their sales and profits. Receive a FREE copy of 100 Ways to Increase Your Sales by subscribing to his free newsletter available at www.kelleyrobertson.com. Kelley conducts workshops and speaks regularly at sales meetings and conferences. For information on his programs contact him at 905-633-7750 or Kelley@RobertsonTrainingGroup.com


Contributor: Kelley Robertson

Published here on: 18-Dec-11

Classification: Sales

Website: www.kelleyrobertson.com

Site Menu

| Home | Top | Quick Links | Settings |

Main sections: | Disciplines | Techniques | Principles | Explanations | Theories |

Other sections: | Blog! | Quotes | Guest articles | Analysis | Books | Help |

More pages: | Contact | Caveat | About | Students | Webmasters | Awards | Guestbook | Feedback | Sitemap | Changes |

Settings: | Computer layout | Mobile layout | Small font | Medium font | Large font | Translate |

 

You can buy books here

More Kindle books:

And the big
paperback book


Look inside

 

Please help and share:

 

Quick links

Disciplines

* Argument
* Brand management
* Change Management
* Coaching
* Communication
* Counseling
* Game Design
* Human Resources
* Job-finding
* Leadership
* Marketing
* Politics
* Propaganda
* Rhetoric
* Negotiation
* Psychoanalysis
* Sales
* Sociology
* Storytelling
* Teaching
* Warfare
* Workplace design

Techniques

* Assertiveness
* Body language
* Change techniques
* Closing techniques
* Conversation
* Confidence tricks
* Conversion
* Creative techniques
* General techniques
* Happiness
* Hypnotism
* Interrogation
* Language
* Listening
* Negotiation tactics
* Objection handling
* Propaganda
* Problem-solving
* Public speaking
* Questioning
* Using repetition
* Resisting persuasion
* Self-development
* Sequential requests
* Storytelling
* Stress Management
* Tipping
* Using humor
* Willpower

Principles

* Principles

Explanations

* Behaviors
* Beliefs
* Brain stuff
* Conditioning
* Coping Mechanisms
* Critical Theory
* Culture
* Decisions
* Emotions
* Evolution
* Gender
* Games
* Groups
* Habit
* Identity
* Learning
* Meaning
* Memory
* Motivation
* Models
* Needs
* Personality
* Power
* Preferences
* Research
* Relationships
* SIFT Model
* Social Research
* Stress
* Trust
* Values

Theories

* Alphabetic list
* Theory types

And

About
Guest Articles
Blog!
Books
Changes
Contact
Guestbook
Quotes
Students
Webmasters

 

| Home | Top | Menu | Quick Links |

© Changing Works 2002-
Massive Content — Maximum Speed

Site Menu

| Home | Top | Quick Links | Settings |

Main sections: | Disciplines | Techniques | Principles | Explanations | Theories |

Other sections: | Blog! | Quotes | Guest articles | Analysis | Books | Help |

More pages: | Contact | Caveat | About | Students | Webmasters | Awards | Guestbook | Feedback | Sitemap | Changes |

Settings: | Computer layout | Mobile layout | Small font | Medium font | Large font | Translate |

 

 

Please help and share:

 

Quick links

Disciplines

* Argument
* Brand management
* Change Management
* Coaching
* Communication
* Counseling
* Game Design
* Human Resources
* Job-finding
* Leadership
* Marketing
* Politics
* Propaganda
* Rhetoric
* Negotiation
* Psychoanalysis
* Sales
* Sociology
* Storytelling
* Teaching
* Warfare
* Workplace design

Techniques

* Assertiveness
* Body language
* Change techniques
* Closing techniques
* Conversation
* Confidence tricks
* Conversion
* Creative techniques
* General techniques
* Happiness
* Hypnotism
* Interrogation
* Language
* Listening
* Negotiation tactics
* Objection handling
* Propaganda
* Problem-solving
* Public speaking
* Questioning
* Using repetition
* Resisting persuasion
* Self-development
* Sequential requests
* Storytelling
* Stress Management
* Tipping
* Using humor
* Willpower

Principles

+ Principles

Explanations

* Behaviors
* Beliefs
* Brain stuff
* Conditioning
* Coping Mechanisms
* Critical Theory
* Culture
* Decisions
* Emotions
* Evolution
* Gender
* Games
* Groups
* Habit
* Identity
* Learning
* Meaning
* Memory
* Motivation
* Models
* Needs
* Personality
* Power
* Preferences
* Research
* Relationships
* SIFT Model
* Social Research
* Stress
* Trust
* Values

Theories

* Alphabetic list
* Theory types

And

About
Guest Articles
Blog!
Books
Changes
Contact
Guestbook
Quotes
Students
Webmasters

 

| Home | Top | Menu | Quick Links |

© Changing Works 2002-
Massive Content — Maximum Speed