Given the choice of reading 10 pages, 40 pages, or a 200 page proposal, which would you choose to read first? For most of us, it’s not a hard decision to read to the short document first.

Which raises a question we’re often asked: “what should we include in our proposal?”

Many are tempted to throw everything in, hoping something strikes a chord with their prospective client. So what to include and what to leave out?

To make it easy, ask yourself if your content addresses one of these four key questions that your client will be asking.

• Is this the right solution?
• Can they really do it?
• Is it a fair price?
• Will it deliver a good return on our investment?

These questions will help you determine what to include in your presentations or proposal by deciding what matters to your client and what doesn’t. If an item doesn’t compellingly address one of the four key questions, leave it out.

You need to include the following kinds of content:

• A clear restatement of your client’s needs, issues, challenges or objectives. For example, a short set of bullet points in the Executive Summary. The more specific your restatement, the more helpful it will be. Restating your client’s needs lowers decisionmaker anxiety about wasting money, wasting time, and losing reputation.
• A recommendation for a solution that will eliminate their problems or meet their objectives. Strangely, many proposals do not recommend anything - they merely describe products or services. Tie the features of your solution to your client’s needs, showing why each is important or relevant to them.
• Evidence to support your claim that you will deliver the solution on time, and on budget. Good evidence includes references, testimonials, case studies, third-party evaluations, certifications or accreditations, and reviews. It may also be appropriate to include project plans, methodologies, team resumes, details of facilities and resources, and summaries of experience.
• A reason to proceed with your recommendation. Without some kind of value proposition - ROI, payback, total cost of solution - the buying decision may come down to price. Base your value on your differentiators, or your competitors will be able to say “me too”.

When deciding whether to include specific content, ask yourself whether it fits clearly into one of these four categories. If not, leave it out.

• Your team leader, his/her credentials for the role, and how s/he will relate to the client
• What you plan to contribute to the relationship, besides technical expertise
• Where you can add distinct value to the client’s organisation: the network of useful contacts to whom you will facilitate introductions and related services which the client will access through you
• “Feel good” aspects of being a client of your firm - and how that differs from the alternatives
• Value-added services you will offer - and deliver
• Techniques you propose to obtain client feedback
• How you’ll evaluate you client’s satisfaction - measures or indicators you will use
• How the client satisfaction feeds into your internal appraisal, recognition, and reward systems
• How you will deal with problems and issues which arise
• What action you promise if your client is dissatisfied
• What else you’ll do to establish a relationship with the client which ensures they derive maximum value
• Examples of other clients with whom you’ve developed similar relationships and evidence of the benefits to these clients of your relationship - testimonials, references, case studies
• What this relationship means to you and the “price” you’re prepared to pay for it - how important the client will be to you
• How far you’ll go to protect and advance your client’s interests
• The difference they’ll notice in dealing with you and your firm.

Be clearly and convincingly painting a picture of the working relationship you have in mind, demonstrating that you’ll constructively engage problems, and showing downstream benefits your client will derive, you will vastly improve your prospects of success.

Previous eTips have suggested possible selling points which will help you to positively differentiate your proposal in a crowded market. Increasingly, astute clients value law firms and other expert professional services providers who show that they are both fully aware of and respond appropriately to concerns about commercial sensitivities and conflicting interests.

This quick checklist will help you to develop the key selling arguments you will use to position your proposal.

• Your understanding of this client’s sensitivities to commercial confidentiality issues and conflicts
• Protocols to maintain confidentiality (no, don’t just treat this as a “given”)
• Systems and processes you use to recognise potential conflicting interests
• Due diligence you have conducted to establish that there is “no conflict”
• Real life examples of commercial sensitivities you have recognised and your response to these
• Examples of actual and possible conflicts - and what you would propose to do about them
• On-going input and collaboration from your client on these areas, and how you propose to obtain it
• What work/other clients you would be prepared to relinquish in order to establish and maintain a long-term relationship with this client - that is, how much this relationship does/will mean to you and what “price” you’re prepared to pay for it
• How far you’ll go to protect and advance your client’s interest.

By proactively and constructively dealing with your client’s commercial sensitivities, and any possible conflicts, you will advance your prospects by reducing perceptions of risk in accepting your proposal and establishing a business relationship with you.

Copyright 2001 Julian Midwinter & Associates Pty Ltd

We’ve all had the experience of watching a TV commercial and wondering “what was that all about?” … or reading a sales promotion letter and thinking “so what? why should I care?”

Or even worse, receiving a proposal and groaning at the thought of reading the whole document …

Persuasive messages can be characterised by the four Cs:

Clear
Compelling
Concise
Convincing

Next time you are writing a proposal, preparing a presentation, or pitching for business, test your key messages against these four Cs to be certain you will persuade your audience.

Copyright 2001 Julian Midwinter & Associates Pty Ltd

Sorting through what’s important to your prospective client and determining what will differentiate you from your competitors can be a daunting task. In hard-fought competitions, how we deal with even minor issues can make the critical difference between winning, and losing.

This list is a useful starting point in determining how best to position your proposal to maximise your probability of success.

• Credentials and evidence of your experience in each area or field required
• Evidence of successfully handling routine matters in each are of interest
• Evidence or examples of successfully handling unusual or high-risk matters in each field
• Depth of your team
• Specialisations of your firm or practice group
• Participation, representation, and profile of your firm in each service area required and the client’s industry or markets
• Any special techniques or strategies used/developed by your firm
• Evidence of the effectiveness of your recommended strategies and approaches
• How can you best demonstrate your track record of success?
• How many files will each lawyer handle?
• What is the right number of files for this type of work?
• Geographical coverage - appropriateness of the location/s at which you offer service
• How you’ll handle regional matters and work outside your normal home patch
• How you” manage the account
• Who will be your key liaison point?
• What service or client satisfaction guarantees will you offer?

This checklist will help you work through issues of fees, pricing, and billing when developing your proposal.

• Structure of fees: hourly rates, day rates, fixed fees, event costs, capped fees, fee estimates, volume discounts, project budgets, success or “at risk” components, retainers, client satisfaction components, other fee alternatives and hybrids
• Predictability and certainty of fees - for the client
• Controllability of fees - for the client
• Protocols for managing time spent (in the interests of the client)
• Reporting on fees and progress on project budgets
• Reporting on services availed under retainer arrangements
• Disbursements: what is classified as a disbursement?
• Overhead (e.g. photocopying, faxes) disbursements: no charge, charged at notional cost, charge rate, outsourcing arrangements
• Other disbursements: at cost, at cost plus mark-up
• Disbursements control mechanisms and reporting
• Billing frequency
• Billing styles and options: level of detail, management summary, electronic billing
• Payment terms: within x days of billing, deferred payment, pre-payment of disbursements, hybrids
• Discounts: on time payment, rebates on volume use of services, etcetera
• Pricing validity period
• Pricing/fee review frequency and mechanisms
• Value-added services: free value adds and chargeable add-ons
• How the pricing arrangements you propose serve to align your rewards with your client’s interests.

Sophisticated clients buying behaviour increasingly reflects the value they place on expert professional services providers who can deftly manage relationships and who are sensitive to personal and organisational dynamics.

This short checklist will help you to work up selling arguments centred on relationship dynamics.

• Your team leader, his/her credentials for the role, and how s/he will relate to the client
• What you plan to contribute to the relationship, besides technical expertise
• Where you can add distinct value to the client’s organisation: the network of useful contacts to whom you will facilitate introductions and related services which the client will access through you
• “Feel good” aspects of being a client of your firm - and how that differs from the alternatives
• Value-added services you will offer - and deliver
• Techniques you propose to obtain client feedback
• How you’ll evaluate you client’s satisfaction - measures or indicators you will use
• How the client satisfaction feeds into your internal appraisal, recognition, and reward systems
• How you will deal with problems and issues which arise
• What action you promise if your client is dissatisfied
• What else you’ll do to establish a relationship with the client which ensures they derive maximum value
• Examples of other clients with whom you’ve developed similar relationships and evidence of the benefits to these clients of your relationship - testimonials, references, case studies
• What this relationship means to you and the “price” you’re prepared to pay for it - how important the client will be to you
• How far you’ll go to protect and advance your client’s interests
• The difference they’ll notice in dealing with you and your firm.

Be clearly and convincingly painting a picture of the working relationship you have in mind, demonstrating that you’ll constructively engage problems, and showing downstream benefits your client will derive, you will vastly improve your prospects of success.

Previous eTips have suggested possible selling points which will help you to positively differentiate your proposal in a crowded market. Increasingly, astute clients value law firms and other expert professional services providers who show that they are both fully aware of and respond appropriately to concerns about commercial sensitivities and conflicting interests.

This quick checklist will help you to develop the key selling arguments you will use to position your proposal.

• Your understanding of this client’s sensitivities to commercial confidentiality issues and conflicts
• Protocols to maintain confidentiality (no, don’t just treat this as a “given”)
• Systems and processes you use to recognise potential conflicting interests
• Due diligence you have conducted to establish that there is “no conflict”
• Real life examples of commercial sensitivities you have recognised and your response to these
• Examples of actual and possible conflicts - and what you would propose to do about them
• On-going input and collaboration from your client on these areas, and how you propose to obtain it
• What work/other clients you would be prepared to relinquish in order to establish and maintain a long-term relationship with this client - that is, how much this relationship does/will mean to you and what “price” you’re prepared to pay for it
• How far you’ll go to protect and advance your client’s interest.

By proactively and constructively dealing with your client’s commercial sensitivities, and any possible conflicts, you will advance your prospects by reducing perceptions of risk in accepting your proposal and establishing a business relationship with you.

Copyright 2001 Julian Midwinter & Associates Pty Ltd

One of the first things you must remember is that to market to tech, you need to be part of the community. However, simply not wearing a tie does not make you part of that community!If you want to reach tech clients, follow a few of these rules and notice a few of the trends …

• They think they are every bit as smart or smarter than some of your best professionals. A lot of them can battle you for pedigrees anytime: do not place too much emphasis on this beyond necessary demonstration of experience and quality.
• They love ot see that you have done this for other tech companies. Know their names and their products - not just “we did IPO for…”
• They cluster. A lot. Their culture almost encourages cooperation more than most industries. Want to talk about a “boys club”? This is one of them. Referrals are huge, but they want professional advisers who have a big presence. This is where marketing comes in: they like to brag about the great lawyer or adviser they have. They also like to see a press article, an ad or airport display and say, “that’s OUR firm!”
• Paint a picture. Guess how many firms in this area can do patent work? A whole bunch. The winner is the one that can paint a picture for a tech CEO of how your firm can put him/her on the beach due to the incredible success of his patent.
• They like one stop shops. The less they have to worry about like screening and hiring ten different law firms, the better.
• They like revolutionary thought. Stand out. Be creative. Emphasize personality. Remember, many of these folks started their companies to change the world. Don’t look too much like a part of that old world they left behind.
• Realise that a lot of emerging tech firms view hiring a law firm as a necessary evil. If they could do without, they probably would. The main thing they worry about is that a firm will slow them down. While we know these things take time, you need to be able to communicate a constant state of movement towards the end goal.
• They are very worried right now. Help them see the light at the end of the tunnel, not just the long road to get there.

This eTip has come to you by courtesy of Daryl Cross of DFW TechBiz in Dallas For Worth, Texas.

Direct mail remains an important element of marketing communications strategies. Getting it right is the subject of books rather than just quick eTips. But we’re happy to share a few highlights from lessons we’ve learned through lots of research plus plenty of first-hand experience!

• personally addressed letters are far more likely to reach the right desk
• wherever possible, keep your letter to a single page - brevity increases readership
• keep line lengths, sentences, and paragraphs short - plenty of white space on the page will make your mail piece look easier to deal with
• carefully proofread your mailshot letter - enlist the help of a colleague who’s never seen it before
• hand signatures (preferably in blue ink) improve effectiveness
• a personalised, hand-written P.S. substantially increases impact
• avoid huge risks inherent in marrying up letter with personalised envelopes by using window faced envelopes - especially important when doing large mailshots
• if you choose to print personalised envelopes, have someone randomly sample enveloped letters to check for any mismatches before mailing
• avoid frustration and cost by test printing a few letters before sending the whole job through
• despatch your mailshot to reach readers desks early in the week - Mondays or Tuesdays - rather than near the weekend when it’s less likely to get attention.

Here are a few more pitfalls to avoid and ideas to increase impact.

• busy people are less likely to bin a personalised letter presented on high-quality stationery than an email - the “delete” button is far too tempting!
• signing the letter should be a quick quality-assurance step: check addressee, salutation, formatting
• chances are your intended readers already get lots of correspondence - improve focus on what you have to say by making your mail piece really easy and quick to read
• choose a serif font - a font like Times, Century Schoolbook, Garamond, or Footlight is better for most readers than a sans serif (no caps and tails on letters) font like Arial, Universe, or other “kindergarten printing”
• use an attention-getting heading - e.g. what’s important about news or the key benefit to the client
• bulleted lists are easier to comprehend than dense paragraphs
• keep language clear and simple - the reading age of the average Australian is around 10 years to 12 years
• end your letter by suggesting the next step or action: “please call” or “we’ll be calling you to discuss this” or “please return the survey enclosed” - don’t leave the recipient in doubt about what to do next!

Copyright 2001 Julian Midwinter & Associates Pty Ltd

We’re often asked how many PowerPoint slides should be included in a presentation and how much time a presenter should spend on each. 

Of course, the answer varies according to slide content, presentation format (proposal or tender highlights as opposed to small group discussions or full-scale lecture presentation topic, audience size, your objectives, and other media or presentation aids which you may use in conjunction with PowerPoint.

Presenters may appropriately spend up to twenty minutes on s single slide, but wisely spend just a few seconds on others.

Slide which contain pictures, graphs, charts or diagrams, animations - and even video - are usually better subjects for long-stay slides than mere bulleted lists.

Too often we see overly-dense text material which presenters design as talking points and mistakenly think are great as full text notes.

Remember, on of your key objectives is to keep your audience interested and engaged in your presentation: very difficult to achieve if they are bored to death!

But, interested and engaged does not mean “Dazzled” by exotic special effects which detract from your message.

Copyright 2001 Julian Midwinter & Associates Pty Ltd

Often, too little time is spent working out what you want them - your prospective clients and clients - to say after the meeting. Mostly, the work goes into what you want to say at the meeting, presentation, or interview.

By turning it around, you’ll put the emphasis where it belongs:
• on what you want your clients or prospective clients to take away
• on the messages you want them to carry with them
• on how you want them to see who you are
• on what you offer which matters to them
• and, on how you fit.

Plan your meeting or presentation by getting the end firmly into mind.

Some call it the “barbeque statement”. It’s what you want your prospective client to say about you and what you offer and why they want to take the next step with you to their colleagues and contacts back at their office - or at a barbeque.

It might go like one of these:
• “that team has done all this so often, and seem to understand all the intricacies - we’d be in safe hands”
• “they made me feel that they didn’t just know how to do our work, but they really cared about doing a great job for us”
• “they might not have the big brand and reputation of some of the alternatives, but they have all the essential skills and have structured their service proposal so we bear minimal risk”
• “there isn’t much to separate credentials of the contenders, but this proposal included valuable bonuses which would be great”.

Work out what you want them [the prospective client or client] to take away and craft your messages, proposals, and presentations accordingly.

Copyright 2006 Julian Midwinter & Associates Pty Ltd

Once you’ve decided that you’re going to tender for work, it’s important that production doesn’t become the drama that prevents you from submitting your high quality document, on time.Words are vital, but production no less important. Ideas, words, and pictures have to make it print in ways that make impact.

Logistics matter. Production matters.

Here’s a list to get you started.

Binding
• How will you bind the submission ?
• Would ring, thermal, or spiral binding be best ?
• Should the covers and spine be customised ?

Dividers
• Will you use dividers to separate document sections ?
• Should the dividers be plastic or paper ?
• And, how should they be labelled ?

Paper
• Do you have stationery stock on hand or do you need to order ?
• What quality of paper will you use ?
• Does it match your letterhead ? Do you want it to ?

Printing
• Are you printing the final document in-house or outsourcing ?
• When does printing need to begin to allow a good margin for any dramas that may arise ?
• When does the printing need to be completed to allow time for delivery?

Colour scheme
• Will you brand the tender with your firm colours ?

Graphics
• Where are you going to include your firm logo - for example, header, footer, or watermark on every page, section headers ?
• Will you include other graphics ?
• Where will they be placed ?

Text
• What colours will you use for text ?
• Are headings differentiated by font, colour, size, case, bold ?
• Which font will you apply to response text ?
• What size will the text be ? Is the font size realistic for any page limitations which may be stipulated in the RFT ?
• Are you going to use a different font for tables and graphs ?
Tables, flowcharts, and organisation charts
• What level of detail do you want charts and tables to have ?
• What styles and formatting will you employ ?

Supporting documents
• How will you refer to supporting documentation - for example, appendices, attachments, supplements ?
• What styles and formatting will you use ?

Electronic submission
• Is electronic submission required ?
• Is the format specified - for example, .pdf, .doc, .ppt, .xls ?
• Would it be a good idea to include an electronic copy on CD ?
• Have you printed a label for the CD which has your logo, and the name of the RFT on it ?
• Have you expunged identifying details from the document properties ? This is especially important if your document is not created in-house.

Tender production can be a stressful time. Don’t leave things to the last minute - prepare what you can (binders, tab dividers, CD labels, submission letter) before the submission deadline. This will minimise frazzled nerves at the end of the tender process.

Copyright 2006 Julian Midwinter & Associates Pty Ltd

Whether you’re presenting, proposing, tendering, or just plain persuading, it matters to get the pitch right: spot on.  What you say [or write] matters - lots. How you say it matters just as much.

Once you’ve worked out what needs to be said, take a few moments to think about how messages should be packaged or delivered to be truly effective.

Avoid buzzwords, jargon, or “in” language - unless you’re absolutely sure that your audience will understand and use this language exactly as you would. Opt for widely understood, mainstream language to avoid alienating sections of your audience and creating chasms or disconnects.

Check that your language and expression isn’t downright dull. A dose of excitement, enthusiasm, and passion will help to fire imagination and stimulate action. If an issue doesn’t energise you much, just how much impact do you expect to have on your audience ?

If you have to make a formal speech or presentation, and you’re looking for inspiration to help you make the perfect pitch to your audience, take a few lessons from great modern speeches. Think back over the metaphors and impassioned style of orators like Martin Luther King, Winston Churchill, Billy Graham, Gough Whitlam, or some recent US Presidents:

• All founded their pitches on strong convictions.
• Each captured attention.
• Each was convincing and clear.
• None tortured the language or used little-understood jargon.
• They didn’t bore people into yielding to their proposition.
• All effectively called audiences to action on the path to a new and better way - much like where you want to take your clients.

You have a worthwhile proposal for your client. Pitch it perfectly and call your client to join you on the path to a better future together.

Copyright 2006 Julian Midwinter & Associates Pty Ltd

It’s a mistake to think of pictures as mere distractions. In fact, some studies show that the presence of an image can hugely impact how much time people spend reading accompanying copy.

Images - photos, clipart, drawings, diagrams, logos - can increase a reader’s engagement with the page, and influence their willingness to read more of your copy.

A reader may not spend a lot of time looking at the image itself. (This is especially true of familiar pictures: images which are frequently seen can register in peripheral attention mode. Think of a picture of Sydney Harbour Bridge, or a red rose.)

The presence of an image can increase propensity to spend time on the page and read accompanying text.

Choice and use of images must mesh with context.

For example, in a magazine or newspaper ad, people expect a dose of “excitement” as they interact with the page. Creativity, attractiveness, and high impact are rewarded accordingly. (Think about those gorgeous visual feast advertisements in fashion and lifestyle magazines.)

By contrast, in a tender submission, the evaluator is looking for answers, facts, and evidence. In this context, use of images is about creating a design that helps the reader focus on relevant information, overcomes boredom, and confirms you as the right choice. High design could interfere with that.

In a promotional email, the recipient will want to quickly get to a decision about what action they need to consider.

When next setting out to use printed material or email to present your credentials or persuade, remember that text-only won’t improve your number-of-words-read score.

Selective use of images will.

Copyright 2006 Julian Midwinter & Associates Pty Ltd