Writing with AI - Learn more
This how-to guide provides specific tips and strategies to consider when writing an entire proposal, so you can close more business.
Download the complete guide to writing an effective business proposal–from types of business proposals to creating a detailed proposal plan for prospective clients.
Fill out the form to the right to receive this guide to begin improving your team's or your proposals.
Proposal writing involves creating a document for a specific request or opportunity. A proposal is not a business plan. Business plans present a company’s operational and financial objectives.
A proposal is not prepared as a cold call to a client. There is always an indication provided by the client as to their needs. A proposal can be as formal and large as a public governmental Request for Proposals (RFP) or as informal and small as an email following up on an encouraging conversation at a networking meeting.
There’s no one type of proposal – in purpose, content, or format. But there are three main types you can consider:
Check out ten best business proposal examples. From digital marketing proposals to engineering proposals, these examples give you guidelines and critiques to follow for your own proposal.
Starting to write a proposal is usually the hardest part of writing. That’s why we recommend following a specific writing process (as detailed in our guide).
The proposal reader is the most crucial factor to get right when preparing the proposal. The writer must understand the potential customer on the other side of the document.
Begin with an in-depth call or meeting to gather the answers to these questions. Understanding your audience will help you avoid creating a generic proposal (a major mistake with proposal writing).
Planning out your content first before drafting is crucial to the writing process for proposals.
Outlining is an example of a content generation strategy. Map out all relevant details for your proposal.
Make sure the order of your information makes the most logical sense for your reader.
For a business proposal, we recommend the following sequence (hint: categorize and sequence your content in your outline or concept map):
Perhaps you already have some of this info already set up in a business proposal template. Templates can be helpful time-savers for proposals. However, templates can be dangerous because they may tempt the writer to create a generic proposal. Make sure you use a template as a foundation but tailor it to the specific client.
Your proposal document is intended to sell your company, so it must be persuasive. The text should be crafted to elevate your solution. Use strong, convincing language.
For example, instead of the title “Digital Marketing Software Proposal,” you could call your proposal, “Delivering on Your Digital Objectives.”
We’ll use another example of engineering services to a construction company:
Uninspired: Geotechnical Assessment Proposal
Persuasive: Ensuring a Solid Foundation: Proposal for Complete Pre-Construction Geotechnical Assessment
Including positive words or phrasing will add to the appeal of the proposal. Clients want to see positive results and successful projects. Just make sure the information is accurate.
Business proposals should be visually easy for your reader to digest. Here are a few ways to make your proposal visually pleasing.
No matter how much you want to edit your proposal while you draft, wait. It’s actually unproductive (and increases your writing time) when you try to fix grammar errors and sentence structure while drafting.
Edit thoroughly and update as needed. Once complete, submit it to the client. Follow up with the client appropriately after the submission of the proposal.
A winning business proposal is your opportunity to showcase your business and your unique strategy to meet a client’s needs. Developing a strong proposal is not a quick or easy task. But, when done well, it is the key to business success.
Download our guide to write a compelling proposal document and get an in-depth overview of the proposal writing process.
©2025 Instructional Solutions Refund Policy | Terms | Privacy Policy