Earlier this week, I posted a list of essential rules for sales proposals and asked if there were any more. As I had hoped, you guys came through with some that should have made it on the list. I’ve edited them a bit to match the format of the original post and added a credit and (when possible) a link to the contributor who came up with them:
- Does the proposal express a real need, want, and desire that the customer shared? (William Stewart)
- Does the proposal mitigate enough risk so that the customer is in a comfort zone? (sw33418)
- Is there a deadline for the customer decision-making process? (Donald Daly, CEO of The TAS Group)
- Does the proposal make sense within the context of the customer’s corporate culture? (sw33418)
- Can the customer actually afford your solution? (William Stewart)
- Is the proposal getting to the real decision-makers or just going to purchasing? (Michael Kreppein)
- Is the customer really able to release the money for your solution? (William Stewart)
- Are you going to have a chance to present the proposal personally? (Nelson Vanelderen)
As before, if the answer to any of these questions is NO, then you’re probably not going to get the business.
Great stuff, people!
