5 Secrets to Winning Proposals
It is that “make-or-break” time of year for federal contractors. There are bunches of RFPs in my inbox and I got to get going! But before you crank out as many proposals as possible before the fiscal clock runs out on September 30, ask yourself what makes for a winning proposal, and where are you falling short?
Consistent winners are not the ones with the snappiest writers or the best graphics (though those help). Nope, the winners are those who have a well-thought out capture and proposal process that positions them above the rest for intelligence gathering and being the most efficient in getting the product out the door. Based on my 20+ years of doing this proposal thang, here are my 5 “Top Tips” for making the "W" happen.
Tip #1: A data-based bid decision
Friends, do not make a bid decision based on anything other than hard, verified data. Do not accept rumors about the performance of the incumbent based on hearsay. Make sure you know who else is in the competition mix. Make sure you know something about the client agency and that they know something about you. Sure, you can win occasionally when you are brand-new to an agency and they know nothing about you. But that is rare. Carry out the advance work to let a potential client get to know you, and for you to get to know them and what they genuinely want from a contractor.
Tip #2: Provide a detailed and cross-referenced outline
Many of your writers are working on your proposal on top of their full-time jobs. They have other things on their mind than your proposal and how to put it together. That’s why the capture manager and proposal manager should have a clear vision for how the submission will be structured and what it will take to win based on the pre-RFP research. This overall vision must be clearly and succinctly communicated to the writing team in a detailed outline. Do not make them sift through all the background information and the RFP to figure out how to respond. Don't make them dig through past performance references to find content to re-purpose. Be a pal, and merge Sections C, L and M from the RFP into one document with everything writers need to respond to. The proposal manager should have this all in his or her head and they should take the time to get it on paper. That way you get a better first draft that needs less re-writes, and you won’t have to de-motivate your writers with a heavy-handed re-write at Pink Team.
A rule of thumb is that you should be using 10-15% of your response time prepping for the writing. So, if you have 4 weeks (28 days) to respond to an RFP, you should use the first 3 or 4 days getting things ready for the writing team. I know you want to get started the day after the RFP drops, but you and your leadership team should take a few days to organize your information, think through your solution and figure out how you will explain it to your team before writing commences.
Tip #3. A planned out and detailed kick-off meeting
Once you have that detailed outline written, you will need to communicate the proposal plan to EVERYONE at the SAME time. Why? Because maybe – just maybe – you are not as smart as you think you are! Everyone on the team will have questions and suggestions about how to make it better. And that suggestion to change how we approach Task 1, might affect the Past Performance section. It also may have implications for pricing of one of the subcontractors. Everyone needs to be at your Kickoff meeting at the same time to go through the proposal in as much detail as possible. This takes time. It is time well invested, because it gives you an edge in coming to a coherent and compliant first draft. Leaving this planning one-off meetings and chance gets you what—a first draft that is incoherent and needs a great deal of work.
Tip #4. A helpful proposal manager
I have been that proposal manager who is happy and relieved to have so many clever people on the team, and I’m really looking forward to seeing their great first draft. So, I tell the writers “Here’s the outline; start writing and call me if you have any questions.” While they are writing, I can go pay attention to other jobs on my plate, right? Then the deadline for the first draft passes and one writer says s/he just need another 4 hours. 4 hours passes. Then it’s “I'll have it in the morning for you.” The cock crows, and what you find in your in-box is one big, fat, hot mess. Fingers start pointing (mostly at you).
All of this could be avoided if the Prop manager had reached out to the writers well before the deadline to ask "How is it going? How far have we gotten? DO YOU NEED HELP? Did what I wrote about how to connect with the win themes make sense?” etc. This gives the writer the feeling that you have their back and that they can ask questions. If you get vague answers, it might also mean that they are putting the writing off to the last minute. Try to encourage them to engage NOW so that they don't find that they are totally baffled by your directions when there is little time left for adjustments.
Tip #5. Well organized color team reviews
Does your company have this approach to color teams: “Here is the RFP, here is the draft proposal, and I’ll be back at 5pm to get your comments.” No, no, NO – Bad idea! If you don't give direction on what sections are to be reviewed and by whom, you will get back all sorts of crazy responses.
For example, what is the purpose of the initial Pink Team review of the first draft? Basically, it is a compliance review to ensure 1) that you’re competitive and eligible to win, and 2) that with compliance assured, writers can spend some time on the “selling” aspects of the proposal and cross-checking to be sure the proposal tells a coherent story. Always have an editor available to review the late drafts so that engineers don’t waste time copy-editing their way through serial drafts. Always give reviewers ample time to read through the draft as well. 24 hours before the review is a good benchmark. In addition to the RFP, you also should provide reviewers the proposal outline and compliance matrix, so they can see everything that your writers were given in order to write the thing.
Each one of these tips takes extra effort. Each one of these tips has proven over the years across the federal market to increase win percentages. If you want to win more, then please find a way to work more of these tips into your proposal process.
You can see my webinar on this topic here.