Questions to ask before Writing a Proposal

Both client-managers exchange glances, and nod to each other.

“Can you send us a proposal for that?”, says one. “With pleasure”, says the adviser enthusiastically. “We can let you have it by Friday, is that OK?” And he leaves the meeting, jubilant at a 50% chance of success … at least.

The adviser will now spend several hours putting together a convincing document: summarising the background and scope, clarifying assumptions and constraints, making recommendations and suggesting a course of action. He will estimate a price, add a margin for error and hope for the best. All this may cost him many working hours, perhaps even an evening with his kids.

All based on a nod. The nod may well have meant that one of the managers has heard enough and needs to leave now. Even if it were more favourable, a key moment for furthering a relationship has still been permanently lost.

Let’s rewind. What should have happened next? Here are a few responses that would have deepened the relationship, or at least saved our consultant a lot of work.


Client Manager: “Can you send us a proposal for that?”

This may be a signal …
a) that you have passed the initial credibility test, and they are seriously listening …or
b) that they are bringing the meeting politely to an end

Our next task is to find out which of these domains we are in:

• “Sure. To do so, we will need some further information about x and y; who can help us with that?”
• “Whose budget will be supporting this initiative?”
• “Who else has a key stake in its success?”
• “What other approaches are you considering?”
• “When would you want this to start? What other factors are critical for the timing of the project?”
• “Who would be involved in the kick-off meeting / initial briefing?”

The last question in particular can be very indicative: if they answer it specifically, e.g. with dates, you are on the home stretch.

There is no rule-book that can be written to interpret the replies. But in general, there are five conditions that have to be met, in order for a sale to result.

a) they have decided that company can add value, (otherwise we have Uncertainty),
b) they are willing to spend at least some time with you to put together a solution; and/or put you in touch with those who can, (otherwise we have Distance),
c) there is a budget to support the project – either explicit or implicit (otherwise we have Unwillingness),
d) the timing is right, and fits with other priorities, (otherwise we have Delay),
e) there are serious consequences if the client does nothing, (otherwise we have Procrastination).

The presence or absence of competitors is almost secondary! Most consultancy business is lost not to another firm … but to the five competitors of Uncertainty, Distance, Unwillingness, Delay or Procrastination.

Q. Are there any other conditions applicable to your sector or market?
Q. Is there a pecking-order to the above list with your customers?
Q. Which of the “above competitors” might be “winning” business from you? Any others?

Lets look at each of these five factors, and propose some questions that might help us determine if the conditions were met?


Client Manager: “Can you send us a proposal for that?”

“Yes. May I first ask for some feedback from you?”

“Of all the aspects of our services discussed today, what prompts you to ask us to tender?”

“Why is that important”?

“What are the key areas that our proposal would need to address? Apart from people here today, who else will be reading it?”

“We will need some more information about x and y; who can help us with that?”

If there is some hesitancy at this stage, it is reasonable to ask what this hesitancy is about.


“We will need some more information about x and y; who can help us with that?”

“Who else has a key stake in the success of this project? Can we get their input?”

We all want magical solutions, with minimum involvement. (So do I, when I’m buying services!) But most of us are realists, and as long as the request for input is reasonable and explained, most senior people will consider at least making time for a phone call. Even a short call is massively better than nothing; when they come to read your proposal you will not be a totally anonymous stranger.

More importantly, you will hear how they see the world, which will help enormously when it comes to the proposal-writing. You will probably learn something you didn’t know. And they will respect you for asking.

The hesitancy at this stage again needs to be explored. You will encounter clients who are afraid of consultant’s ability to cross-sell or go over their heads, so you may tactfully explain why you need to do it.

“Many of our best clients today were initially reluctant to allow us to talk to [HR / the
Board / the team] For understandable reasons, too. What we have found in practice is that this is more than offset by the [morale boost / accurate analysis / consensus] that results.” In other words, this is an objection you can anticipate … and one that you can even use to establish something of your uniqueness.

It’s not so much what is the budget … but who has it!

One of the biggest wastes of consultancy time is the hours spent cultivating the wrong person. Some of this is unavoidable, if only because managers sometimes don’t divulge their signoff limitations. In fairness, we are often not very diligent in asking them.

“Whose budget will be supporting this initiative?”

“Who else has a key stake in its success?”

When we reach the decision-maker, our first priority is to explore how they see value. See www.success121.com for ebook “Hidden Value”, available end of April 2008). Then we want to explicitly explore budget constraints.

“There are three levels at which organisations choose to tackle this problem. One is A and typically costs X; one is B and costs Y, and one is C and costs Z. The pros and cons can be summed up as follows. What is your preference?”

“How important is the timing?”
“Lets try to estimate the opportunities and risks”

It’s galling to get through all the discussions, only to have the project go into “a long loop” at the last hurdle.

The “solution” (insofar as one exists) is to attach consequences to the delay. See next section.

This is particularly important if your domain is strategy or development. Operational issues come with their own imperatives. IT reliability needs to be fixed, compliance needs to be achieved and recruitment never goes away. But e-commerce development, business coaching and many CRM initiatives will always wait another month.

As consultants, some of us are often better at estimating potential than we are at estimating risk. And the reality is that they are more likely to give you a speedy answer on a proposal that diminishes risk, than on a proposal that maximises opportunity.


“Looking at both the opportunities and the risks, it is obvious that delay could cost £x per month. Apart from that, what other consequences would there be?”

“Who would be affected?”

“Where would that show up?”

Again, it is vital to know this before we start writing the proposal. By the time the proposal is written and emailed, the opportunities to ask questions are minimised. We are then reduced the “Any news?” call, a game of which both parties quickly get tired. It might even be better if they were chasing you for the final document.












































































Questions to ask before Writing a Proposal - To learn more about this author, visit John Niland's Website.

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