Writing A Web Design Proposal That Doesn’t Suck

Face it, all you want to write in a web proposal is this: I know you want it.

Unfortunately, we can’t all use lines better sung by Robin Thicke. Web proposals typically need a little meat on their bones so that potential clients know exactly what it is that you can give them.

While it’s possible to spend hours writing up a web design proposal, you’ll soon go broke if you spend all day making one proposal. So, with that in mind, realize that a great proposal includes the following three things:

1. State the problem
2. Describe your proposed solution
3. The price

Those three things provide all the meat and bones your proposal could ever need. Don’t waste time with erroneous details potential clients will most likely skim over anyway. Get the point across succinctly and you’ll stop dreading the creation of proposals.

What’s the Problem?

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When stating the problem, a client wants to know you understand their needs and can fix or address whatever those needs may be. Don’t just say that you can make a new web design that is fresh and exciting. State what a new web design is needed.

Remember that clients won’t necessarily come right out and say what the problem is. You might have to sniff around some to figure it out. If you see something that can be better, point it out and address how your services will fix it.

Be the Solution

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Forget being generic here and saying something like “a complete redesign will wow your audience and be the start of a new beginning for your company.” Statements like that don’t say anything about what you can actually do.

Try saying something along the lines of what you will actually do. Will you analyze and/or test what is currently on the web page? Will you do a SWOT analysis of the site and/or business behind the website you hope to design?

Even if what you will do sounds like it is a little bit costly, it is still more likely to land you the job because it shows that you’ll do more than fiddle with a mouse and slap some clip-art on the page.

The Cost

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Including a fee summary or a fee schedule (if the project is going to be a long one dependent upon reaching milestones) will help the customer understand what he or she is getting for the money.

Don’t be afraid to state what you’re worth.

Get ready to write your proposal

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Now that you know the elements of a great proposal, you’ll be able to churn them out quickly. Remember that you don’t want to spend a lot of time on proposals; after all, you’ll want to spend more time on the actual job you’re trying to land. However, it’s important to make sure that the proposal contains the three necessary ingredients to help you land the job.