Proposal Strategy and Awards Strategy
Strategies and Content That Reinforce Your Reputation and Land Deals and Dollars
Companies large and small often “save money” by handling proposal strategy, proposal content, and award nominations in house. Lacking an overarching strategy, some companies employ any number of problematic tactics, including excessive boilerplate, insufficient weigh-in from subject matter experts, marketing speak and inflated rhetoric, unsubstantiated claims, badly written content, and poor grammar and punctuation.
The better your underlying strategy and the more powerful the arguments you make in your proposal submissions and award nominations, the more opportunities that will come your way. It really is that simple.
Proposal Strategy and Content
Your company may submit proposals all year long, or you may rarely dip your toes into the contracting waters. Either way I can support your success. I regularly work with corporate managers, business development teams, and in-house writers to craft strategies that win new business. My proposal services include the following:
- Develop clear, compelling technical approaches and messaging that strengthen your position.
- Respond to statement of work criteria without relying too heavily on dull boilerplate.
- Produce standout responses that make the strongest business case possible.
- Perform final QA to check requirements and fine-tune responses, messaging, and grammar.
Award Nomination Strategy
Award-winning projects gain you visibility among your peers in the industry. In fact, award-winning projects can bring you the kind of attention and prestige that money can’t buy – the kind that makes prospective customers take notice. My award nomination services include the following:
- Decide which national and international awards to go after and create a winning nomination strategy.
- Make a thoughtful, compelling, well-written business case that puts your company in the running.
- Earn great PR for your firm by showcasing your innovative and amazing work.
- Perform final QA to check requirements and fine-tune responses, messaging, and grammar.
Work with a Proposal Strategy and Award Strategy Expert
I’ve supported more than 50 proposal efforts throughout my career, and I teach persuasive writing workshops nationwide. I’ve also written RFPs, evaluated proposals, and written and evaluated award nominations. I’ve seen firsthand how upwards of 50% of submissions are tossed into the “no” pile for noncompliance. I’ve seen vanilla documents hastily compiled and poorly edited. And I’ve seen companies win with smart submissions that garner attention while their less-prepared competitors rail at the “rigged” system.
I’ve written winning proposals for Jacobs/CH2M, Brown and Caldwell, BI/GEO Group, and Unisys. I recently supported BI/GEO Group’s winning bid for the $2.2B ISAP IV contract. The largest proposal I have supported is Kaiser-Hill’s winning bid for the $3.5B Rocky Flats Cleanup contract. I then submitted a Rocky Flats project nomination to the Project Management Institute (PMI). The project subsequently won the PMI Project of the Year Award, which recognizes the best $100M+ project in the world.
If you’re going to submit a proposal or award nomination, make your investment count. Let’s talk.
