If you are an entrepreneur/freelancer, then setting up fancy website might be easy. But making more money by designing website needs another skill. That is the ability to express to prospective clients through a business proposal. A common scenario employed by employers looking for designers is to advertize on a website/newspaper or send out Request for proposal to prospective candidates. In such case, the best way you can respond is by writing a detailed business proposal.
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The Web site design proposals should highlight the competencies/experiences of the designer and also the differentiation factor i.e USP (Universal Selling Point) compared to other applicants. The simplest proposal answer the basic questions such as the cost, time to build, past design examples, testimonials etc. Depending on the expertise of prospective clients, it is possible that they might be looking for response in an email rather than a formalized document. Irrespective of the type of response, here are some basic information that should be part of each proposal
Company Name
This is an overview section that gives information about your company. You can mention your company mission, vision and core team. The major purpose of this section is to speak in few words positive points of the company that will remain in the mind of prospective client
Scope of Work and Deliverables
In this section you highlight your understanding of the clients requirements and the details of how you will achieve the design requested. You can also have separate sections such as Preliminary Research, Web Design, Database Design, Front End Programming, Quality Assurance etc to explain the detailed step in which the final product will be built. i.e Each Project phase can be highlighted. This section can be helpful in highlighting your expertise as well as any assumptions that you are making while detailing the steps.
Fees
Here you state the cost that the clients need to pay for the work that you will be doing. Payment can be either based on project phases or upfront fees etc. It is advisable to state it clearly.
Estimated Delivery Date
You should indicate the timeline for completing each phase of the project and the deliverables in each phase. It is possible that you might need some data from customer such as client company image etc. Any impact due to the missed deadline from the customer should be highlighted so that all stakeholders are clear on the impact.
Past Clients
In this section you can specify your experience with previous client. Testimonials or URL link to show your expertise will be helpful
Once you have put in the above information, you can highlight to clients the possible next steps and give him your contact information on which you can be reachable for any further queries. You can even schedule a meeting to discuss any further questions or clarifications after their initial review.
All the above sections, though look easy based on title, it might actually be not so. Before filling any of the above section, you need do your homework. Some of the points which can be considered for doing the pre-work are
Research the Client and their Requirements
You should be able to demonstrate that that you understand the client needs properly through your proposal. Research the Client and their business needs well. Most of this information should be available on client website or through net. Remember competitors will also be doing the same so if possible go an extra mile and brainstorm.
State the Capabilities in Clear and Concise Way
Be specific on how you can solve the client’s problem so that client will make fewer assumptions and feel more secure about the proposal.
Summarizing the above proposal writing steps in a single line - The purpose of your web solution proposal is to show the prospective client that you understand their needs and then convince them that you are the best choice for the job.
