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12 Key Traits of Successful Proposal Writers

Over the past decade I have met countless proposal professionals. Most have a love/hate relationship with proposals – a love of putting together a winning proposal and a hatred of the constant deadlines, red tape, and stress that comes with working on projects with so much money on the line.

Many people stick with it though because once you get the hang of it, proposal writing can actually become fun.

If you’re waiting for that day to happen, or you’re hoping to hire a proposal writer who sticks around, below are a list of the most common traits I’ve encountered in successful proposal writers, and tips on how to develop these traits on your own.

5 Proposal Rules I Love to Break

When you search for proposal tips, you’ll find endless lists of rules to follow and recommendations on how to write your proposal. While all of these rules are full of good intentions and will make your proposal stronger, there are a few that you can maybe ignore.

Here are the top 5 proposal “rules” that I love to break.

My Biggest Proposal Horror Story (and how to avoid the same mistake)

On a random November Wednesday many years ago I learned that a rainy day in Vegas is not the same as a rainy day in the Midwest.

That particular Wednesday was the due date for the largest proposal I had worked on up until that point. Estimated at $20 million per year with 4 optional renewal years (a total of five years), it was a lot of money, and a lot of work.

Productivity Hack: How to Write Proposals Faster

One question that has come up several times in the past few weeks is “How do I write faster?” Especially when dealing with RFP deadlines, everyone wants to know how to make the process easier to hit more deadlines while still creating quality proposals.

I tend to be a quick writer naturally, and over time, I’ve developed a few additional strategies to help me write my first drafts even faster. If you’re watching the clock and wondering how to make your writing easier, try out some of the tactics below!

How to Organize Your Proposal

I started writing proposals in response to RFPs, and while RFPs have many cons, knowing what they want to see in the proposal is typically not one of them. Many RFPs detail the exact format to send as your bid, making my job a lot easier.

This isn’t always the case, unfortunately.

I remember the first time I had to create a proposal that wasn’t an RFP. It landed on my desk, and I asked my boss at least four times, “But how do I organize it?”

In the years since that stressful moment, I’ve worked on more and more proposals that don’t have a specific structure (including creating my own proposals as part of my business). In that time, I’ve developed a proposal structure that works no matter what you’re selling.

Let’s take a look at how you should organize your proposal in a few different situations.

How you should NOT start your proposal

When I drafted my first proposal, I had zero business writing experience. I knew very little about what would actually help sell within the proposal, and my general idea was that business writing had to be dry, technical, and to-the-point.

Like most people, to figure out what I should do, I turned to Google for answers. Our proposal template at the time started with a cover letter, and many cover letter examples (and even proposal examples) had similar opening sentences:

Why your proposal needs MORE information (and what to cut out)

A top concern for many sellers is keeping proposal content clear, direct, and to the point. While clear and concise proposals are essential for selling, if you keep your proposal too short, you might be leaving out key information that can help you sell. Read on to learn key information to add to your proposals, and what you should remove.

Two Writing Techniques that Persuade Buyers

Like any type of persuasive writing, proposal writing performs best when key persuasive techniques are used. Many companies fall into the trap of outlining a black and white proposal that details their offering without focusing on how to actually sell within the proposal.

If you find that your proposals aren’t performing as well as you like, these two persuasive writing techniques can help your content better resonate with the buyer and result in more projects.

11 Writing Quotes to Make Your Proposals Better

Writing proposals is hard. Many times you’re working on the content in between meetings and other obligations. There’s nothing more frustrating than staring at the page, wondering if what you’re saying will make sense to the buyer.

It may bring you some consolation to know that even professional writers struggle with putting words on the page. In their perseverance, they’ve uncovered some tactics to help make the process better and maybe even more enjoyable. Read these famous quotes on writing and how they can help with your proposal content.

Proposal WritingDemi UtleyJune 13, 2022proposal writing, Proposal Writing, Proposal Content, RFPs

The One Thing Every Proposal Needs

Most proposals follow a similar structure. They might start with a cover letter or an executive summary before moving into the project scope, solution overview, and so on. Sellers concisely lay out product descriptions, team overviews, and pricing to show buyers exactly what they will receive and when.

Despite all of the perfect summaries and clear explanations, many proposals miss out on one critical component.

That missing piece?

Should I Hire a Proposal Writer or Do It Myself?

There comes a point for every B2B business where you have too many proposals on your plate and not enough time to do them all. The natural next question is: Should I hire a proposal writer or keep doing this myself?

If you’re struggling with that question now, let’s take a look at your options to determine what is a best fit for your company.

Writing Advice from Fiction Authors to Improve Your Proposals

With proposals ranging from two pages to over two hundred pages, it’s easy to start to compare your writing process to that of a full-time novelist. Fortunately, the world of fiction has plenty of advice for how to handle writing large sections of content. Let’s take a look at a few that can be applied to proposal writing.

21 Overused Words and Phrases to Avoid In Your Proposal

In the world of business proposals, jargon abounds. While it’s important (and often essential) to eliminate jargon from your proposal, sometimes it’s impossible to cut out all of the business lingo. If you’re struggling to reduce your jargon, focus on eliminating these most common overused words and phrases to make your proposals more engaging for readers.

5 Reasons to Build Your Content Library Now

There are many methods to write a proposal. A popular approach is to copy and paste from past proposals to create a new one using your favorite sections. Or you might use an old template that was created years ago with outdated content that you update every time you send it out. Let’s not forget the wait-until-the-last-second-and-frantically-type-everything approach. No matter what group you fall into, rest assured that there is a better way that takes much of the stress out of proposal writing.

7 Strategies to Make Your Proposal Brief and Clear

One of the most common business writing tips is to make your content brief and clear. This sounds great in theory, but if you’ve ever drafted a document only to find out that it’s way too long, then you might be wondering how to actually put this into practice. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at a few specific tactics you can use to improve the clarity of your proposal writing.

How to Add Credibility To Your Proposal

One of the most important purchasing decisions is determining if a company can be trusted to provide what they claim. In proposals, it’s important to make sure that you incorporate elements that add to your trustworthiness. If you’re not sure how to do that, read on for a few of our favorite tactics!

5 Books to Help You Write Proposals

Writing is a skill that requires constant work and improvement. Like any skill, sometimes you need a bit of outside help and guidance to continue to improve. There’s no better place to get help than a good book, and the resources on this list are the perfect place to get started. So if you’re ready to take your proposals to another level and curl up with a good writing book, read on!

How a Content Library Will Save You Time & Money

There are three main approaches to creating proposals. The first one is to write from scratch every time, which can be time consuming, frustrating, and inefficient. The second approach is to copy and paste from past proposals. This is more efficient but leaves room for error and repeated mistakes. The last, and best option, is to use a content library to save time and avoid mistakes. Let’s take a look at how you can implement this in your business.

Your Proposals Aren't Winning? This might be why.

There are few things more frustrating than spending hours (or weeks!) on a proposal only to have the buyer go with someone else. Until it happens again. And again.

If you’ve found yourself in this position, then you’re likely wondering why this keeps happening. Let’s take a look at a few of the common reasons why the project might be awarded to someone else

Proposal WritingDemi UtleyJanuary 31, 2022proposal writing, Proposal Writing, Proposal Content, RFPs, rfp

If I could tell clients 1 thing it would be...

For several years I have worked with clients on their proposals. Most have many strengths – such as a deep understanding of the customer, good design, strong competitive points, or a unique solution. However, there is one thing that I find myself saying more often than not.

Proposal WritingDemi UtleyJanuary 24, 2022proposal writing, Proposal Writing, RFPs, rfp, Proposal Content

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