sales and business proposales

Solicited proposals, obviously, mean that the client has already decided to make a purchase. Only the selection of a vendor remains to be
done. An unsolicited proposal, by contrast, is often a sales presentation dressed in another cloak—but the proposal is specifically aimed at a well-defined and limited activity.
An example of an unsolicited proposal is the submission of the outline of a book to a publisher arguing the popularity of the subject, the novelty of the approach, and the merits of the author.Business proposals must be distinguished from estimates.
In many fields where small business is active, estimates serve the same purpose as a proposal. They are the document that clinches the sale of a roofing or a paving job or a monthly house-cleaning service. But where estimates are used, the qualifications of the seller and his or her method of accomplishing the job are also established, but by other means—typically by an interview or sales call. Sometimes the seller is assumed to fit
the job because the business already enjoys a good reputation. Proposals, on the other hand, usually involve
complex or unusual one-time services like landscaping a park, surveying a market, or building a refinery. In these cases the approach to the job, the design, the implementation, the schedule, and even the aesthetics require more than simply a dollar estimate.
Many service businesses operate entirely on the basis of proposal. In other cases a proposal is sometimes required, sometimes not. In highly technical fields, the proposal may be filled with dry listings of engineering specifications and/ or process details. But it is vital to remember that proposals
are always first and foremost sales documents.

Before meeting customers

Before meeting customer:

Step 1: No Blanks (salesperson sees what measurable purchasing data is missing and determines strategy to find them out)
Step 2: Benchmarks (salesperson connects features of products and services to the measurable benefits of customer's goal[s])
Step 3: Oops! (salesperson determines what measurable benefits cannot be achieved and develops strategies to address them)

At the customer meeting:

Step 4: Purpose Summary (salesperson reinforces that meeting is to present how selected solutions achieve customer's goals and recaps measurable benefits)
Step 5: Connect the Dots (The marketing expert connects measurable benefits of customer's goals to features of selected solutions)
Step 6: Conditions Met (salesperson demonstrates how all requirements of customer's purchasing decision are satisfied)

MPC 3: Solution Confirmed (customer agrees that solution achieves goals)
MP 4: Implement Agreement (salesperson inks the deal)

Step 1: Deal (salesperson confidently asks customer to purchase agreed-upon solutions offered for sale)
Step 2: Logistics (salesperson goes over details needed to start business relationship)

MPC 4: Agreement Confirmed (customer agrees to enter into a contract and inks the deal)
Exhibit I-5: The four phases of MeasureMax. (Note— MP stands for Measurable Phases, while MPC stands for Measurable Phase Changes.)

Cut out from the science of sales success book.

Before Making Sales Calls

In sales, like most professions, success is 90 percent planning the work, and 10 percent working the plan. You need to make sure that you understand who the ideal customers are—and who are not. You need to ensure that you select your customers, not settle on them, if you are going to sell compensated value—that is, provide more measurable dollar benefits than competitors or the cost of doing nothing (status quo is often a salesperson's biggest competitor)—and receive your expected profit margins for doing so. The five perspectives, or viewpoints, from which a salesperson views opportunities are illustrated in Exhibit I-4.
Exhibit I-4: The five viewpoints of the MeasureMax selling system.
An overview of the four selling phases of the MeasureMax system used to sell compensated value is illustrated in Exhibit I-5 on page 8.

MP 1: Spark Interest ( sales person viewed as a customer expert on initial contact)
Step 1: Research and Membership (salesperson confirms valid business reasons exist for contacting customer)
Step 2: Take Your Pick (customer selects a potential goal[s] he or she is interested in achieving from the ones you suggested)
Step 3: Track Record (salesperson documents success from same industry on goods that were for sale previously)
MPC 1: Interest Confirmed (customer agrees to meet to determine ability to achieve goals)
MP 2: Measure Potential (salesperson helps customer gauge ability to achieve his or her stated goal[s])
Step 1: Market Focus (salesperson reinforces industry expertise and knowledge)
Step 2: Purpose and Goals (salesperson reinforces that meeting is to help customer determine ability to achieve stated goals)

Step 3: Eliminate Unknowns (salesperson's questioning helps customer provide measurable purchasing information)
Step 4: Yellow Light (salesperson summarizes the measurable purchasing criteria required to achieve the customer's stated goal[s])

MPC 2: Potential Confirmed (customer agrees goals are worth pursuing)
MP 3: Cement Solution: (salesperson connects solution to customer's goals)


Taken from the science of sales success book.