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1 ©2012 MBO Partners Inc. ©2012 Tom Sant. All Rights Reserved. WIN NEW CONSULTING BUSINESS: THE FOUR KEYS TO WRITING A SUCCESSFUL PROPOSAL

Win New Consulting Business: The Four Keys to Writing a Successful Proposal

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Page 1: Win New Consulting Business: The Four Keys to Writing a Successful Proposal

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WIN NEW CONSULTING BUSINESS:THE FOUR KEYS TO WRITING A SUCCESSFUL PROPOSAL

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MODERATOR

STEVE ARHANCETDirector of Consultant Services

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WEBINAR CONTROLS

The full screen iconmaximizes thepresentation area.

The chat box allows you to send a question to the presenter.

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ABOUT SPEAKER“America’s foremost practitioner of proposal writing”

– American Management Association

Dr. Tom Sant• Co-founder of Hyde Park

Partners• Over 25 years experience• Areas of expertise: proposal

writing, presentation delivery, communication management

• Author of 3 books• Named “One of the ten best

sales trainers in the world ” by Selling Power Magazine

[email protected]

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What is a

SUCCESSFUL PROPOSAL?

THE FIRST QUESTION…

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“ONE THAT’S DONE!”

THE VOICE FROM THE BACK OF THE ROOM…

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How about:

“ONE THAT WINS!”

MAYBE A SLIGHTLY HIGHER STANDARD?

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It’s a matter of delivering

the right message

the right way.

AND TO MAXIMIZE THE CHANCE OF WINNING?

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WHAT IT’S NOT…

Self-centeredCommodity

Transaction, not a solution

Price Quote Product Spec Company History

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Unfortunately,

Those approaches are pretty

typical.

For example, does this look familiar?

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Albion Technologies

Recommendation for an Integrated Communications

and Collaboration Strategy

15 September 2012

L. J. Fremmer

Account Manager

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IntroductionsThe Albion Team:

• Thomas Martinson – COO, EMEA• Peter Campbell – Regional Relationship Manager • Jim Thorslev-Slater – Regional Technical Manager EMEA• Sallie Mae Park – Proposed Account Director • Nigel Bentley–Transition Manager EMEA

© 2012 ALBION, Inc. All rights reserved

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Who is Albion?

© 2012 ALBION, Inc. All rights reserved 14

An $11 Billion Global IT services company that builds, integrates and supports applications and infrastructures for business and government

• More than 80,000 employees• NYSE: ALBN- Headquartered in Liverpool, England• 85 Offices in 50 countries• Leader in communications infrastructure implementation and

support, government solutions, and higher education solutions• Distributed Delivery Framework

– Domestic development centers– IT Operations outsourcing– Offshore development and support

• ISO 9001 certified

Global Strength, Local Touch

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© 2010 ALBION, Inc. All rights reserved

Welcome to “A World of Innovation”

Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Brunei, Chile, China & Hong Kong, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark & Greenland, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, Uruguay, USA

More than 85,000 Employees

Represented in more than 50 Countries

Provisional Revenue 2011: USD 11.5 billion

Operating Margin 2011: 8.5%

Growth 2011: 15%

Gartner Magic Quadrant 2009, 2010

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Delivering Leading Edge Solutions

Innovation leader since 1994

Over 1,000 Clients

World Class Consulting Experience

Uniquely Qualified in Service Offerings to our Clients

State of the Art Technology Solutions

16

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Blah, blah, blahdee, blahMeMore about meSomething else about meDo you love me yet as much as I love me?

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HERE’S A DISTURBING FACT…

Why??!!

Nearly 1/3 of all sales proposals

and pitches start with the

vendor’s company history.

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Proposal writing is hard.

Business owners, sales people, marketing professionals, and proposal writers often look for a quick way out.

THE GRIM REALITY

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ESCAPE ROUTE #1

Cloning previous proposals

Cutting and pasting can result in embarrassing errors!

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ESCAPE ROUTE # 2

“Data Dumps” or “More is Better!”

Nobody buys based on the “thud factor.”

If it’s not meaningful to the customer, leave it out!

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ESCAPE ROUTE # 3Talking about what we know and love best.

Focus on your prospect, not on yourself!

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EXECUTIVES EXPECT A DIFFERENT MESSAGE

Information Evaluation Persuasion

Expert

Highly informed

Somewhat informed

Lay

Comfort Zone

Persuasion Zone

Peer-to-Peer * Outcome Oriented * Bottom-Line Focused

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THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS…

1. No focus on the client’s business problems and payoffs

2. No persuasive structure

3. No clear differentiation

4. Failure to offer a compelling value proposition

5. Key points are buried--no highlights, no impact

6. Difficult to read--full of jargon, too long, too technical

7. Credibility killers--misspellings, grammar errors, wrong client name, inconsistent formats, etc.

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WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU COMMIT THESE SINS?

You lose.

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FOUR KEYS TO BETTER PROPOSALS WINNING MORE, WORKING LESS

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Proposing to Win

2Pack Your Case

1Get a NOSE Job

3Show Me the Money

4A KISS for Luck

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GET A N-O-S-E JOB

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THE RIGHT NOSE CAN HELP YOU WIN

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STRUCTURE IS THE SECRET

TO MAXIMIZE YOUR CHANCE OF WINNING

Present the right information Present it in the right orderCreate the right impression

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WHAT DO WE MEAN BY THE “RIGHT ORDER”?

Consciousness is intentional.

We focus on finding specific content, dependingon our purpose:

• Getting the facts we need • Obtaining an expert opinion• Making a decision

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THE STRUCTURE OF PERSUASION

• Needs: The customer’s key business needs, problems, issues, pains, or opportunities: the drivers behind the deal.

• Outcomes: The positive impact that will come from meeting those needs: the motivation to move forward.

• Solution: A recommendation for a product or service that will solve the problem and deliver the outcomes

• Evidence: Proof you can do the job on time and on budget: your differentiators.

The Persuasive Paradigm

N

O

S

E

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PACK YOUR CASE

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OUR JOB…

Create a specific, client-centered

business casethat answers the client’s three most important questions:

Am I getting what I need?

Is it good value?

Can they really do it?

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PEOPLE BUY FROM PEOPLE THEY TRUST

C x RS

Where:

T = trust

C = credibility

R = rapport

S = risk of self-serving behavior

T =

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T = C x RS

SELLING ON TRUST

Where most

sales

messages

focusWhere:

T = trust

C = credibility

R = rapport

S = risk of self-serving behavior

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T = C x RS

SELLING ON TRUST

Where:

T = trust

C = credibility

R = rapport

S = risk of self-serving behavior

The right

focus

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WHY DO RAPPORT AND CLIENT FOCUS MATTER?

The Primacy Principle

The Principle of First Impressions

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WHAT KIND OF FIRST IMPRESSION ARE YOU MAKING?

• Title— “Proposal”

• Initial focus?

• Your name or the client’s?

• Are you pushing a product or proposing a solution?

“Don’t waste my time with a bunch of

boilerplate!”

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SEVEN CLIENT-CENTERED QUESTIONS

1. Client’s problem, issues?

2. Why is it a problem?

3. Desired outcomes?

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FOUR AREAS OF GOALS

Business / Financial· Budgetary compliance· Profit improvement· Downsizing· Mergers / acquisitions· Market share· Reduced risk· Better clinical outcomes

Technical / infrastructure goals

· Introducing best practices

· Adding flexibility· Improving QC

Social goals· Internal

- Improve morale-Reduce absenteeism-Decrease turnover

· External-Gain public support-Win approval-Enhance recognition

Personal goals

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SEVEN CLIENT-CENTERED QUESTIONS

1. Client’s problem, issues?

2. Why is it a problem?

3. Desired outcomes?

4. Most important?

5. Potential solutions?

6. Probable results?7. Why are we the right

choice?

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SHOW ME THE MONEY!

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FACT: WITHOUT VALUE, WINNING IS JUST LUCK.

You must establish superior value

based on technical, contractual, managerial, quality, or service differentiators,

Or the customer will choose based on

PRICE

or may choose to do

NOTHING

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SMART BUYERS DO LOOK FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

• Revenue generation• Operational efficiency• Reliability of mission-critical operations• Quality• Worker productivity• Customer satisfaction• Regulatory compliance• And other key performance indicators

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THE VALUE PROPOSITION

(Values - Costs) > (Valuea - Costa)

Where:

Values = the value of your offering

Costs = the cost of your offering

Valuea = the value of the next best alternative

Costa = the cost of the next best alternative

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FOUR PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE VALUE

1. Make sure the client cares

2. Measure it

3. Picture it

4. Link it to your differentiators

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COMMUNICATING VALUE THAT HAS VALUE

Differentiators

Proof

ValueProposition

Value That Has Value.

What you do that no one else does. What you do differently from anyone else.

Verifiable claims you make about yourself. Claims your clients make about you.Third-party evidence.

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A KISS FOR LUCK

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KISS: KEEP IT SHORT AND SIMPLE

The first principle of persuasive writing:

Do not confuse the reader. Live by the “first time right” rule.

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FOUR PSEUDO-LANGUAGES TO AVOID

Fluff

Guff

Geek

Weasel

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Fluff:1. Grandiose claims

2. Vague generalities

3. Clichés

4. No proof

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FORGET THE FLUFF!

World class

Best of breed

Leading edge

State of the art

Quality focused

Uniquely qualified

Innovative

High performance

Synergy

User friendly

Integrated

Partnership

Seamless

Robust

Here are a few examples…. Anything look familiar?

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Guff.

Guff:1. Long sentences

2. Too many big words

3. Too much passive voice

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Geek:1. Disregard for the

audience

2. Overuse of jargon and acronyms

3. A focus on technical details instead of business fit or impact

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AVOID THE WEASEL!

Weasel:1. Unnecessary use of

weasel words

2. Hyperqualification of every statement

3. Passive voice

4. Subjunctive constructions

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WEASEL WORDS“can be”“might”

“helps”

“could”

“may be”

“enable”

“allow”

“up to”

“like”

“virtually”

“significantly”

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Fi ve ways to a chieve clarity:

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Five ways to achieve clarity:

1. Short sentences

2. Short words

3. Passive voice ≤ 10%

4. Readability index ≤ 10

5. Minimal jargon and acronyms

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LET YOUR WORD PROCESSOR DO THE WORK

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1. Short sentences

Average sentence length

15 to 17 words per sentence is a good average sentence length.

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2. Short words

Average word length in characters

5 characters or less means your words probably aren’t too long.

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3. Passive voice ≤ 10%

Percentage of passive voice

Keep passive voice below 10%.

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4. Readability level ≤ 10

Readability Scores

Aim for a Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level index of 10 or less.

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5. Minimal Jargon and Acronyms

Ask your mum.

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Proposing to Win

2 Pack Your Case

1 Get a NOSE Job

3 Show Me the Money

4 A KISS for Luck

IN SUMMARY…

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WANT TO LEARN MORE?• EMAIL US

[email protected]

• VISIT OUR WEBSITEwww.mbopartners.com

• FOLLOW US ON TWITTER@mbopartners

• SIGN-UP FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION• Receive updates for upcoming webinars - email

[email protected]• Sign up for our Independent Consulting Brief at

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THANK YOU

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