Proposal writing support: faster proposals in your voice

Key takeaways

Proposal writing support works when the routine parts of a proposal, such as company information, case summaries, standard terms and pricing tables, are drafted from a content library, and your experts write the parts that win: the understanding of the client's problem, the approach and the price. Turnaround drops from days to hours without losing your voice.

• Build a library of approved proposal sections.
• Support drafts the standard 60% to 70%.
• Experts write the problem, approach and price.
• Agree a turnaround target for every proposal.

Which parts of a proposal can be drafted for you?

The standard sections: company background, team biographies, relevant case summaries, methodology descriptions, standard terms, insurance and accreditation details, and pricing tables built from your rate card. A managed team assembles these from an approved library and formats the document, ready for your expert to complete.

• Which business processes should you outsource?
• Document formatting support: proposals that look right

What must your own experts write?

The parts that show you understand this client: their problem in their words, why your approach fits, what risks you see and how you will manage them, and the price. Buyers can tell a generic proposal immediately. Your experts' time should go here, not on formatting and copying biographies.

• The client's problem and goals.
• Your approach for this client.
• Risks and how you will handle them.
• Price and commercial terms.

• Should you outsource pricing? Why the decision stays in-house
• Does this process win you customers? The differentiation test

How does a proposal library work?

It is a set of approved, current sections, each with an owner and a review date. After every proposal, useful new content goes back into the library. The managed team keeps it tidy, removes outdated case studies and checks facts such as insurance limits and accreditations are current.

• Bid and tender admin support: respond to more tenders
• Internal knowledge base: answers your team can find fast

When should proposals stay fully in-house?

When every proposal is bespoke and short, such as a one-page letter, or when you send only a few a year. The library and handoffs only pay back with steady volume. Public sector tenders have their own rules and formats, so check the procurement documents before reusing content.

• How much volume makes a process worth outsourcing?
• Your website and public sector tenders: what buyers check

What does this look like in practice?

A pattern we see: senior people spend most of their proposal time on formatting, finding old content and checking details. With the standard sections drafted, they spend their time on the pages the buyer actually reads closely.

• See client work
• BPO Solutions for UK businesses

Proposal support checklist

Set these up before the next proposal.

• Approved library of standard sections.
• Owner and review date for each section.
• Brief template for each new proposal.
• Turnaround target for the first draft.
• Expert sections clearly marked.
• Final check of facts and prices.

• Sales processes to outsource without losing deals
• The process selection score: outsource, split or keep?

Next step

Send us a recent proposal with any confidential details removed. We will show you which sections could be drafted from a library and how much time that would save.