50 proposal skills that planners must have in 2020

Introduction丨Proposal is also a technical job

A good strategy requires not only a good writing skill , but also an experienced proposal developer . During my time as a freelancer, I experienced nearly a hundred proposals of varying sizes.

Based on the experiences and lessons learned from past proposals, I have summarized some good tips and would like to share them with you. Regarding proposals, it is a matter of personal opinion and there is no specific standard. It can be used as a reference.

01. Keep your energy up

Remember not to work overtime too late the night before the proposal. Stay in the best condition to make the proposal. Only when you have energy can you grasp the overall situation.

02. Proposal preview

Be sure to rehearse the plan internally in the company first, anticipate the questions that customers may ask, and find ways to respond.

At the same time, you can also find someone in the company who is not related to the case and look at the possible problems with the plan from an outsider's perspective.

03. Find the winning point

Before talking about the plan, you need to know clearly what the winning point of the plan is.

Maybe it is strategy, creativity, media, execution, etc. Find the winning point, focus on the key points, and let customers remember what they should remember.

04. Bring your business cards

Bring your business cards with you and give them to your clients proactively. Don’t wait until the client exchanges business cards and you don’t have one, which creates an awkward atmosphere.

05. About clothing

For some industries, maybe you still need to pay attention to what you wear. As for cosmetics, girls are better off wearing light makeup, and boys need to pay a little attention to their outfit. For maternal and child products, you don't need to be too flashy, as long as you give people a comfortable feeling.

06. Understand the product

Know enough about the trends, people, brands, products and customers in this industry, and understand what you should know. It is not only professional but also a matter of etiquette.

07. Get to know the founder

Understand the style of the founder and the style of the person in charge. The style of a company must follow the founder.

08. Know your competitors

Before writing a proposal, it is best to look into the competitors bidding at the same time as you, understand their strengths and weaknesses, and find breakthroughs in writing the proposal and the highlights of the differences in the proposal.

09. Determine whether you are a bidder

There are two situations here. One is that the client has no intention of doing it at all and is just trying to trick you into giving away your ideas. Here you can find out from peers whether this company often commits fraud, or ask internal acquaintances or people who have worked in this company.

In another case, the client wants to do it, but you are just a cannon fodder, just to make up the numbers so that the other party can legitimately choose the agency they have finalized. Here we need to see whether the customer has a regular cooperative relationship with a supplier, and why he suddenly wants to change suppliers this time. Is it an excuse or is there something wrong with the other party?

10. Submit your proposal

Interview > Phone > Email. If possible, try to get an interview. The solutions for interview and phone are based on speech logic, while the solution for email is based on reading logic.

11. Develop your own style

Create your own style based on your own characteristics. Only with style can you be remembered.

12. Who should be brought to make the proposal?

Bring the following people to fill out the case: the person who gives a live speech on the case, the person who actually writes the case (the two may overlap), the person who can hold the whole scene, and the person who understands the implementation.

13. Have a cup of coffee before making a proposal

Coffee can instantly refresh and excite people, and coupled with psychological suggestion, it will help people get in the mood quickly.

14. Take your seats

Generally, people sit opposite each other according to their job levels to facilitate conversations and responses between people at the same level. If there are a lot of people, reserve the C position in the middle for the person with the highest level, so that the other boss knows who your person in charge is, instead of having him look around with his eyes.

15. Have a directory

The catalog is a typical pyramid logic. First, let the customer know the framework of your entire plan. This applies to most proposals.

But there are also creative story-telling proposals that use linear logic and don’t require a table of contents to break up the plot, but that’s another story.

16. Look at people more and look at screens less

The screen is a prompt and an aid. A proposal is a conversation with a client. Just like talking to a person, don't keep looking at the other side. A proposal is a two-way communication, not a one-man show.

On the one hand, it means that you are not familiar with the case and need a screen to make a proposal. On the other hand, it means that you are not confident in your case and dare not face the client directly.

17. Silence your phone

Silencing your cell phone is not only a basic courtesy, but also a way to prevent sudden ringing from affecting your proposal.

18. Don’t be overly enthusiastic

Be presentable, but don't be slick, as this will make customers feel that you have no ability, or that even if you have ability you are frivolous and unreliable.

19. Team Introduction

Before the show starts, an introduction must be made. Whoever does the introduction should talk about themselves first, then the key characters, and then the others.

20. Limit the length of your presentation

Generally, clients will set a time limit for proposals. Due to differences in proposal types and content, there is no limit on how many minutes a proposal must take.

The principle to follow is to try not to mention things that are optional, and to keep your time and attention on the most important parts.

21. Stand up for the proposal

If possible, try to make your proposal while standing, as there are four advantages: (1) standing makes you the focus of the audience more likely to be there than sitting; (2) your speech will sound more powerful; (3) it is easier to make gestures and other actions to assist with your proposal; and (4) it is easier to observe the customer's reaction.

22. You can use a page-turning pen appropriately

If you are standing while presenting a proposal, it is not convenient to turn the pages by yourself, and it is not very smooth for colleagues to help translate. Use a page-turning pen to turn the pages according to your proposal.

23. Company Introduction

Summarize the company's strengths and cases it has worked on (related to the type of proposal) in one sentence, and use this as a hook to give people a good first impression.

24. Self-introduction of the proposer

Before introducing your company, it is best to introduce yourself by stating your position and selling yourself in one sentence.

25. Questions

It is best to have a big shot to support this stage. If the proposal is good, it can be the icing on the cake; if the performance is not good, it can also be selected to help.

At the same time, people who understand implementation are also needed to be present. If a customer asks about the strategy or creativity they are paying for, they need to have a clear idea of ​​it, rather than just making a rough draft.

Never let the presenter answer all the questions. That would make the company look very unprofessional.

26. Try not to annotate your PPT

Remarks are constraints, and eventually they basically become obsessions, or form dependencies, which is easy for anyone with a discerning eye to see.

If there is really no way to avoid making a note, keep it as short as possible.

27. PPT also needs guidance

You can also give hints on which ones are rough and which ones need to be emphasized.

28. Memorize it by heart, don’t recite it

As a proposer, you should keep the core logic and key points of the PPT in mind and speak out yourself instead of reading to the screen.

Everyone knows the words above, so don't read them out loud. If there are parts that need to be highlighted, you can read them aloud emphatically.

If you read it aloud, it means that the person who wrote it is not familiar with it and cannot pass it, or it means that the person who wrote it did not write it himself and did not do his homework, which means that he does not value the client.

29. Use ups and downs in your tone, not just one sentence

Intonation refers to the ups and downs in the volume of your voice and the pauses and turns, which is mainly to let the customer understand the key points you want to say.

Pausing and raising the volume is a form of emphasis and also reflects confidence.

If you speak without pause, the customer will not be able to keep up with your pace, and it will seem that you want to finish quickly and end as soon as possible.

30. The plan must withstand scrutiny

You need arguments and reasoning, not just guesswork.

31. Logic has series connection

There should be logic and connection between parts and pages, rather than abrupt connections.

This not only avoids confusing customers, but also gives you peace of mind.

Logic is a thread that connects beads to form a necklace.

32. Insight is conflict

If an insight does not have any contradictions or conflicts, then this insight will not impress people at all.

33. Creativity should be an action

Creativity should be a specific action, an action in one sentence.

34. Tell your story with creativity

From insight to creative deduction, tell stories in a provocative way that is contagious but not too sentimental.

35. Strategy must have power

The strategy must be concise, without deleting any words, and must touch people's hearts.

36. Data report display

There must be a source. It is not recommended for icon designers to take screenshots directly. It is best to make one yourself.

First, it can avoid blurry screenshots or watermarks, and second, it can show your intentions.

37. Must have a demo

People are visual animals, let your demo add points to your creativity.

38. Let customers remember a few words

After a proposal, it is impossible for the client to remember everything. Let the client remember what you want them to remember most and focus on the key points.

39. The team plays a double role in the proposal

If the proposer gets stuck, remember to continue the speech to avoid a dull moment. If the person in charge of Party B finds that the proposer has gone off track or is too long, he or she should take appropriate action to smooth things over.

40. Choose 1-2 campaigns and talk about them in detail

If it is a full-year plan, it is impossible to talk about multiple campaigns in detail. You only need to talk about 1-2 in detail.

41. Understand the role of each part of the project

Party A’s leaders look at strategies, executors look at details, and finance/purchasing look at quotations.

42. One idea per page is best

Don't express too much on each page of the PPT. Just give the key points and data sources.

43. The executive team must be fully equipped

The personnel serving to execute this project must be complete and have experience in this industry/project type, so that customers can feel at ease in handing the case to you.

44. Take meeting minutes

During the process, someone must take meeting minutes and observe the feedback from various client roles on the plan.

45. Post-meeting email feedback

If there is another opportunity to make a proposal, remember to email the client for feedback after submitting the proposal, unify the consensus reached at the meeting, and then start making adjustments.

46. ​​Avoid bad catchphrases

For example, maybe, probably, perhaps, I think... These catchphrases are okay to use in normal speech, but if you often use them in proposals, it will make you seem unsure or too subjective.

47. Don’t speak too fast

No matter how urgent you are, don't speak too fast. You can choose to speak out the key points, but don't let your rapid speaking speed make your brain unable to keep up, and don't let this rapid speaking speed make your customers look confused and nervous.

48. Confidence

You must be confident and have an aura without being boastful.

Because in fact, many times, the client himself is not sure, and when the proposals given by everyone are basically the same, he needs you to give them confidence as the final finishing touch.

49. Consider not writing “Thanks” at the end

At the end, don’t say thank you to the customer. Instead, be careful and use a sentence or two to remember the key points of your plan, or even use a word to wish the customer the best.

50. Copyright is stated on the last page

In order to prevent clients from stealing proposals and writing fraudulent manuscripts to a certain extent, you can mark at the end, "We reserve the right to take legal action against any unauthorized copying or misappropriation of proposals and ideas."

Author: Zang Feng

Source: Self-cultivation of strategic people ( clrdzwxy )