Persuasive Business Proposals: Writing to Win More Customers, Clients, and Contracts

A Few Tips on Writing Winning Letter Proposals

Here are a few suggestions to improve the effectiveness of your letter proposals:

1. Don’t let the tone become too stuffy. For some reason, people lapse into a pompous tone when writing business letters and proposals. You’ll sound more sincere, maintain a level of rapport, and produce more readable proposals if you simplify the tone. Avoid long sentences and inflated language. Use the customer’s name throughout the letter. Refer to the customer as “you,” not “it” or “they.”

2. Similarly, don’t let your legal department include language that will alarm or offend your customer. The corporate attorneys have the mission of keeping your company out of trouble. Unfortunately, that sometimes leads them to do ...