How to write a bid or proposal

Landing that game-changing contract starts with one crucial document: a bid/proposal. But what does it take to craft a bid/proposal that outshines your competition? Buckle up, as we break down the basics of writing a bid/proposal that actually wins!

A standout bid/proposal is your organisation’s gateway to lucrative work opportunities. It’s a formal document that outlines the products or services that you can provide to address the specific needs of a customer.

When a customer wants to outsource a work effort or project, they’ll typically release a request for proposal (RFP). This is your invitation to submit a bid/proposal that proves you are the right organisation to undertake that work for them.

Customers will often receive a number of proposals in response to their RFP. A bad or improperly formulated bid/proposal can definitely lose you an opportunity, so it’s important to make sure that your bid/proposal can hold its own among the competition.

What your bid/proposal looks like may vary depending on the project, customer and industry. However, there are a few features that are universally essential.

These include:

• An executive summary.
• Details of the project, including the scope of work and methodology.
• The pricing and budget.
• Your qualifications and experience.
• Value proposition.
• Clear and persuasive graphics.

Customers often specify headings or structures they want to see in a bid/proposal within their RFP. You should always follow the customer’s specifications – these take precedence over any advice you may read elsewhere.

It may sound obvious, but your first step when an RFP is released is to read it carefully. From formatting rules and structure guidelines to the key requirements for the work, you need to understand exactly what the customer is looking for.

A compliance matrix is essentially just a list of all of the customer’s needs and requirements. Having a compliance matrix means that you can plan your bid/proposal to cover every requirement. It also means that you can easily review the finished proposal to ensure it covers everything it needs to.

If you’re submitting a bid/proposal, you should have already communicated with the customer prior to the RFP’s release. If you want to stand out, you should ensure you’re including everything that you know about the customer’s needs and values in your compliance matrix – whether it appears in the RFP or not.

It’s crucial that you develop a strong plan before you start writing. Poor planning can result in inconsistent work, and you run the risk of wasting time and resources due to extensive rework.

You should have a strong content plan that outlines the headings and subheadings you’ll be using. It’s also a good idea to ensure there is a clear outline of what will be discussed in each section, including where each customer requirement will be addressed.

You need to make sure you have a clear conception of your organisation’s win themes – as well as your features, benefits and discriminators. Integrate these into your plan so they are all covered in a logical way that links to relevant requirements.

You should try and start your executive summary early in the process, e.g. after the kick-off meeting. It’s the section that will be most scrutinised, so it’s vital that you give it the attention it deserves. The executive summary needs to include:

• The customer’s business goals.
• An introduction to your solution.
• The price.
• The next steps.

The executive summary should highlight your understanding of the project and key selling points. There will be some people in the evaluation process who only read the executive summary and not the whole bid/proposal. You have to make sure this section captures your customer's attention and provides a compelling overview of your proposal.

Your bid/proposal should outline the deliverables, milestones, and timelines – as specifically as you can. You can use this section to outline the approach or methodology you will employ to execute the project successfully. The customer should come away from reading this part with a clear picture of what it’s like to work with you.

You should show that you will be able to complete the work in a way that meets the customer’s needs, including any innovative strategies and tools that may set you apart from competitors.

It’s important to be transparent about your price in the proposal. It’s easy to shy away from being upfront about your price for fear that it will take you out of the running immediately. However, it’s important to ensure that costs are broken down clearly and justified. This means that your customer can see where the value for money is.

You could structure your pricing section like an argument as follows:

• Clarify the customer’s needs.
• State your costs clearly.
• Show the value for money by demonstrating how the customer will benefit, e.g. the return on investment.
• Summarise the value of your solution for your customer’s needs.

Make sure you thread evidence for your solution’s benefits throughout your proposal. You could describe successes you’ve had in the past, particularly on similar contracts. You could highlight the qualifications and experience of your team, and any data you have to show the benefits past customers have received.

Effective proof points could include:

• Case studies and success stories.
• Customer quotes and testimonials.
• Awards and recognition.
• Examples of overcoming challenges.
• Evidence of meeting customer requirements.

You should explicitly link your proof points to the customer’s needs and requirements. You should also ensure that proof points you use have quantitative evidence attached, and that they are verifiable. This makes them more persuasive to the customer.

• Optimise your bid/proposal for skim reading: Use clear headings and subheadings. Put your most important points at the start of each section so they’re impossible to miss.
• Be customer-first: Use your customer’s name more often than your organisation’s. Put your customer’s name before your organisation’s in your sentences. Use the terminology and language that your customer uses. Don’t assume that they will find benefits in the features you think are most impressive. Instead, research your customer and figure out their mindset so that you can write it with that in mind.
• Write persuasively: Make sure you really understand your customer and appeal to what you know your customer cares about. Use proof points and structure your sections like you’d structure an argument.
• Clearly demonstrate your value: Describe what the client can expect when they work with you. Prioritise outlining the benefits the customer will receive from your solution over the features your organisation has. Make explicit connections between what you’re offering and what they have told you they need.
• Pay attention to the details: Make sure that your bid/proposal is as free from spelling and grammar errors as possible. While a few typos aren’t likely to tank your whole effort, the bid/proposal is an opportunity to demonstrate that ever-important attention to detail.

• The aim of a bid/proposal is to persuade the customer that you’re the best choice.
• Your bid/proposal needs to show how ‘in tune’ you are with the customer.
• It’s essential to plan your bid/proposal before you write it.
• Make sure you understand your organisation’s win themes, and the features, benefits and discriminators of your solution.
• Write your executive summary early and make sure it captures the customer’s attention.
• Give a clear and realistic overview of your specific plans for completing the project from a logistical standpoint.
• Be transparent about your price, but persuade the customer that it will be worth it for the return they receive.
• Demonstrate your organisation’s capabilities and success by using quantifiable and verifiable evidence.
• Don’t leave your customers to fill in the blanks about how your solution benefits them – link everything you write back to the customer’s needs and requirements.

Whether you are awarded a contract or not doesn't entirely come down to the quality of your proposal. However, a poor proposal can do a lot of damage to your chances.

Participating in training programs or workshops can enhance bid writing skills and keep you updated on industry best practices. Continuous learning and skill development improve effectiveness as a bid writer, increasing the chances of winning contracts and projects.

The Association of Proposal Management Professionals is considered the global authority on bid/proposal best practices, and offers multiple certifications that can help you write the best bid/proposals you can.

The Foundation training and certification program equips individuals with essential industry skills, knowledge, and terminology. Micro-Certifications provide deeper insights into specialized areas. With these certifications, professionals can confidently deliver high-quality work, always prioritizing clients and customers.

Start your journey and validate your skills with APMP Foundation and various Micro-Certifications.

Advance your career and showcase your expertise in Bid and Proposal best practices with APMP Practitioner and Capture Practitioner certifications. These credentials affirm your capability to implement best practices in your daily work. Whether you're guiding your team to a successful proposal with the Practitioner certification or managing the pursuit of complex business opportunities with the Capture certification, these certifications highlight your professional skills.

Elevate your position as a leader in the Bid and Proposal industry by attaining the esteemed APMP Professional certification. This certification recognizes and validates an individual’s career accomplishments. It assesses the competencies demonstrated by the individual and evaluates a Proposal Professional Impact Paper (PPIP), mirroring and showcasing real-world proposal experience, skills, and abilities.