Winning New Business:
Preparing Proposals 101©
Judith M. Herr
Well Chosen Words
herrj@comcast.net
August 2003
About the Speaker
Judith Herr brings 20+ years accumulated expertise
to managing, contributing, and providing consultative
support to large and small proposal efforts as well as
for technical/business communication contracts. After
10+ years as a Director of Communications for a
very large, high-tech consulting firm, she formed Well
Chosen Words.
Judith’s experience ranges across disciplines including information
technology; management; occupational/public health; medical,
biological, and environmental sciences; adult education; fundraising for nonprofit organizations; and community development.
Her understanding of international efforts stems from her
experiences accumulated from living three years in Belgium,
three years in Malaysia, and traveling extensively in Europe and
Asia. .
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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You have a brain my friend, all you need is a
certificate
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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In this presentation we will cover…
 My “Top 10 Lessons Learned”
 A good fit – proposals and communicators
 Talking the talk – mastering proposal
language
 Proposal team organization – help wanted!
 Proposal preparation process
 Parsing government-issued requests for
proposals (RFPs); designing responses
 Reprise: My “Top 10 Lessons Learned”
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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My Top 10 List of “Lessons Learned”
1. Follow all RFP instructions exactly; continuously
update compliance matrix (1,then throughout)
2. When preparing schedule, inflate time required for
production - yes, lie, you’ll be glad you did! (2,3)
3. Keep proposal team comfortable; reward and
publicly recognize contributors (throughout)
4. Collect 24X7 contact info for team; anyone else
potentially needed (2, 3, 4)
5. Match identified key positions with potential
proposed personnel as soon as possible (early3)
Note: Numbers in parenthesis are proposal phases.
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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My Top 10 List of “Lessons Learned”
(cont.)
6. Keep technical experts/managers focused (3, 4)
7.
Early in process, draft cover letter; design concept,
cover, tabs, spine, CD labels, etc. (early 3)
8. Edit continuously, but accept substantial content
changes graciously -- or at least tactfully (3, 4)
9. Invite a very senior manager to recruit reviewers
and lead the Red Team Review (3, 4)
10. Know when to give up perfection for “good
enough” (3, 4, 5)
Note: Numbers in parenthesis are proposal phases
.
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Assuring good fit – proposal efforts and
technical communicators
 Help Wanted:
Immediate. Requires stamina;
ability to read, write, spell, correct;
organize/coordinate/manage communicationrelated project. Detail-oriented; retain
equanimity/enthusiasm in panic atmosphere; may
require occasional ‘odd’ hours
 And… knack for quickly mastering new technical
material and comprehending technical experts -- and
adopting the lingo
 Attachment 1: Exercise – “Matching proposal
requirements to capabilities”. Additional material –
“Selected Terms, Acronyms, References”
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Talking the talk – mastering proposal team
language and behavior
 Bid/no bid; requirements driven outline; “show




stoppers?”
FedBizOpps; OCI, FOCI, DCAA, GSA
T&M, CPFF, FFP, Reps & Certs, etc.
Gold, Green, Blue, and Red Teams
“War Room”; win themes; “answer the mail”; “breadth
and depth,” business drivers. Food? Sleep?
Selected Reading List; Terms and Acronyms from
herrj@comcast.net or web
(http://home.comcast.net/~m.herr/)
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Proposal Team Organization
Acquisition Manager
Project
Planning
Technical
Volume Leaders
Proposal Manager
Management
Volume Leader
Proposal Writers
Cost
Volume Leader
Review
Team
Proposal
Coordinator
Proposal Writers
Proposal Writers
Production Staff
Production Staff
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The Proposal Process
Phase 1: Before the RFP
 Phase 2: Proposal planning; kickoff
 Phase 3: Proposal preparation process
 Phase 4: Internal and adversarial review
process
 Phase 5: Production/delivery; post
proposal activities

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Flow Chart of the Proposal Process
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Phase 1 – Before the RFP
 Track announcements and release date
 Visit/market potential client, if possible
 Collect resumes of potential key personnel;
update capabilities statements
 Assess available proposal team resources;
review business strategic plan; available
project manager?
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Phase 2 – Proposal Planning/Kickoff
 Study RFP for unanticipated requirements or
“show-stoppers”
 Make bid/no bid decision.
 Prepare/submit questions for RFP clarification
 Prepare requirements-driven proposal outline
 Draft schedule; form core proposal team
 Contact list; version/file control, team
communication vehicles
 “Win themes”; competitor strengths/
weaknesses?
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Phase 2 – Proposal Planning, Kickoff
(cont.)
 Recruit core proposal team
 Draft compliance matrix
 Coordinate with financial/costing staff
 Storyboard; design elements, cover, format
 Review production and delivery requirements
 Hold kickoff meeting – make writing
assignments– ‘cast of 1,000s’
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Phase 3 –Proposal Preparation Process
 Emphasize firm deadlines for completion
 Refine graphics, tables, design elements to
illustrate text, re-enforce win themes
 Monitor/ enforce version control system
 Develop proposed contract organization/
management structure
 Draft profiles/resumes for proposed project
manager/ key personnel
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Phase 3 –Proposal Preparation Process
(cont.)
 Conduct substantive
edit; consist across all
sections/cost proposal?
 Continuously check
details, refine tables
 Design final deliverable
 Update compliance
matrix
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Proposal Team at Work
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Phase 4 – Review Process
 Internal reviews of preliminary drafts - Blue
 Review costing strategy - Green
 Freeze draft; conduct peer review of technical/
management proposals
 Conduct editorial review in parallel
 Review draft cover letter
 Convene formal review by ‘Red Team’ that
model client’s ‘Evaluators’
 Incorporate reviewer comments
 Prepare (and hide) final draft
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Phase 5 – Production/Delivery
 Arrange for independent edit of final text
 Recheck final against RFP requirements
 Include compliance matrix in submittal?
 Prepare cover letter for signature
 Refine final graphics
 Test print final version (even if delivering
electronically)
 Arrange for delivery per RFP instructions
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Parsing a Sample Government-Issued RFP
 Relevant sections of the RFP
Summary page
 Cover form
 Section L: Proposal Preparation Instructions
 Section M: Evaluation Criteria
 Statement of Work/Scope of Work
 See Attachment 2 for example sections of current
RFP

Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Typical Proposal High Level Outline in
Response to Government RFP
Executive summary/introduction
Corporate infrastructure,
Personnel – Attachment 3
Corporate experience
Past performance
Technical understanding or case study (if
required)
7. Response to Questions/contract negotiation.
Oral presentation (if required following
submittal)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Reprise: My Top 10 List of “Lessons
Learned”
1. Follow all RFP instructions exactly; continuously
update compliance matrix (1,then throughout)
2. When preparing schedule, inflate time required for
production - yes, lie, you’ll be glad you did! (2,3)
3. Keep proposal team comfortable; reward and
publicly recognize contributors (throughout)
4. Collect 24X7 contact info for team; anyone else
potentially needed (2, 3, 4)
5. Match identified key positions with potential
proposed personnel as soon as possible (early3)
Note: Numbers in parenthesis are proposal phases.
.
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Reprise: My Top 10 List of “Lessons
Learned” (cont.)
6. Keep technical experts/managers focused (3, 4)
7. Early in process, draft cover letter; design concept,
cover, tabs, spine, CD labels, etc. (early 3)
8. Edit continuously, but accept substantial content
changes graciously -- or at least tactfully (3, 4)
9. Invite a very senior manager to recruit reviewers
and lead the Red Team Review (3, 4)
10. Know when to give up perfection for “good
enough” (3, 4, 5)
Note: Numbers in parenthesis are proposal phases.
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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End of the Brick Road: All you need is
energy, enthusiasm, and the ability to…
 Analyze project requirements; understand audiences
 Multi-task
 Interview subject matter experts
 Conduct reviews
 Coordinate all stages of documentation projects
 Design information to satisfy requirements
 Write, edit, coordinate, produce/distribute
 See the humor in the ironic
 Market – the certificate is attached!
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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This Certificate of Excellence
is hereby granted to:
you
for diligently applying what you’ve gained from the STC-sponsored
Telephone Seminar Winning New
Business: Preparing Proposals 101©
Granted 20August 2003
_______________________
Judith M. Herr, Presenter
Attachments
1. Proposal requirements match technical
communicator capabilities
2. Sample Sections from government RFP
3. Sample pages from proposals including…
-- resumes tailored to “answer the mail”
-- compliance matrix
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Additional Materials*
* Available at http://home.comcast.net/~m.herr/
or email request to herrj@comcast.net
 Selected Terms,
Acronyms, References
 Fable: Sleep
Deprivation
Study
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Selected Web Sites and References


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
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

Association of Proposal Management Professionals,
http://www.apmp.org/home.html
Federal Business Opportunities (FedbizOpps) , http://www2.eps.gov/
Common Abbreviations in FedBizOpps/Commerce Business Daily,
http://cbd.cos.com/docs/abbreviations.shtml
Government Services Administration, www.gsa.gov.
DiGiacomo, John & James Kleckner, James (2000), Win Government Contracts
for Your Small Business, CCH, Inc., Chicago, IL
Kantin, Bob (2001), Sales Proposals Kit for Dummies (with CD-ROM), Hungry
Man Minds, NY, NY.
Newman, Larry (2001), Proposal Guide for Business Development
Professionals, Shipley Associates.
Pfeiffer,William & Charles Keller, Jr. (2000), Proposal Writing: The Art of
Friendly and Winning Persuasion, First Edition, Prentice Hall, N.Y., N.Y.
Reeds, Kitta (2002), The Zen of Proposal Writing: An Expert’s Stress Free Path
to Winning Proposals, Three Rivers Press, NY, NY.
Sant, Tom (1992), Persuasive Business Proposals: Writing to Win Customers,
Clients, and Contracts, Amer. Mgmt. Assoc., NY, NY.
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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Comments, suggestions, follow-up
questions?
Contact me at…
Judith M. Herr
herrj@comcast.net
Well Chosen Words
925-292-1519 (Message)
Web Site: http://home.comcast.net/~m.herr/
Judith Herr, Well Chosen Words, © 2003
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