A Couple of Ways to Improve your Marketing Proposals

For many small business marketing efforts, a marketing proposal is THE key document. Here are three ways to make your marketing proposal work harder:

Always include a section entitled "Cost of Not Doing Business"

Clients need to  be reminded that NOT inking a deal with your firm is more costly than signing the contract. That's why I recommend that a marketing proposal always include include a section entitled "The Cost of Not Doing Business with XYZ Company". Then outline what costs the firm will incur by not giving your firm the business. Common costs of not doing business are: 1) Lost sales to competitors 2) declining sales 3) Eroding profits 4) Lower awareness or 5) Lost momentum.

Always offer a range of options for the client to choose from

Offering a good-better-best array of pricing options subtlety shifts the decision making over to the client. In today's opt-in marketing world, clients like to feel like they're in control. Offering an array of options in a proposal helps the client reach a decision faster, and also lets them feel as if they are still in charge.

In future issues of my Marketing Tips and Tools e-newsletter, I'll cover even more Marketing Proposal Tips.