Tuesday, October 15, 2013

PREPARING YOUR SALES PROPOSAL

As you know most of us spend a considerable amount in dollars and energy securing an opportunity to present a proposal to a prospective customer. With that being the case, it is critical that we prepare the proposal in such a way that we convince the buyer that we are the company they should choose to be their service provider.

So what is your success ratio? Are you putting thought into how you will present your company or are you just offering a "bid" number for them to look at?

Before I talk about what information that should be included in the proposal, I want to discuss the  difference between bidding the job and offering a proposal. Have you ever asked a prospect "When do you go out for bid" or "can we get on your bidders list" or "next time you go out for bid, can we have a shot at the business"?

When you ask questions like those above what you have done is put your company in the business of selling a commodity. What you are in effect saying is you are like all the other "bidders" and you want to bid to see if you can go lower. What, you say, I am better than the competition. Really? Then why are you bidding the work instead of offering proposals for providing the facility with the services required by your prospect? I don't want to sound negative in this blog posting but our industry complains about how our customers are always price shopping and yet we will ask them to "bid" their work. We do it to ourselves, don't we. Bidding implies a commodity, proposals imply just what they say, a proposal of how we convince the prospect that we are the best choice to provide their service.

The difference between bidding and proposing has long been a passion of mine and I talk about it to my clients every day.

To talk about it to everyone that has an interest, I have joined forces with The Janitorial Store to present A ONE HOUR WEBINAR ON WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 30 ENTITLED, THE COMPONENTS OF A SUCCESSFUL SALES PROPOSAL. The main topics we will cover in this fast moving, jam packed hour will be,

----10 things to include in your proposal

----In what order do you place them

----Where do you talk about price

----What to say when they say "just drop it off"

----Why not to include references

You can register by going to www.thejanitorialstore.com or on our web site www.consultantsincleaning.com where we will redirect you to the registration blank on their site.

The good news is that if you are a Janitorial Store member the webinar is free. If you are not a member there is a small registration fee of only $27. May just be the best investment you will make in a while.

Even if you are a long time pro and are satisfied with the way you present your proposal, this one hour webinar may jog your memory on some improvements you may be able to make. Just a thought.

Remember, the proposal is your best opportunity to "close the deal" and you want it to tell your story in a professional way. Maybe this webinar will give you that one idea that you can include in future proposals that will bring you more sales.

Hope to talk with you on the 30th. Register today, we'll both be glad you did.

Till next time.

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