How to Make Your Proposals and Quotes Pop

David Svigel
Jan 6, 2015

3 mins

Presentation is everything, especially when it comes to sales proposals and quotes. Getting it right can make the difference between fully engaging with prospects and closing the deal or boring them with lackluster proposals that read like white papers. Yes, it’s that important.

Follow these tips to create and implement winning sales proposals that pop and inspire your prospects.

Streamline Your Layout and Presentation

Executives and decision makers in all industries expect professionalism, and when it comes to proposals, appearance and readability are just as important as content. If your proposal is disorganized, boring, or unattractive, it will be tossed aside with all the other proposals that look the same. Help your proposals stand out by making them clean, easy to read, and engaging.

Focus Content on Prospects, Not Your Organization

The most effective sales proposals are straightforward and get right to the point. As hard as it may be to accept, prospects are more interested in the value of your offering than your business philosophies, latest awards, or other self-focused information. You can selectively mention a relevant award or testimonial but overall, your proposal must be client-centric.

Buyers expect to see three main things without a lot of unnecessary fluff:

Proposed solution, which should demonstrate that you know what you’re doing and that your solution will eliminate risk
Price
Timeframe in which the project will be completed

Create Appropriate Visual Appeal

Even the best content benefits from looking good. Use these tips to develop a professional document template that’s easy to read and reinforces the value of your offering.

Use headings and table of contents. Prospects have limited time and short attention spans. Make your proposal easy to read and comprehend by making it easy to find specific information.
Stick to one or two classic typefaces. Any more than that looks unprofessional and overdone. Use fonts that are clean and easy to read, avoiding those that are too heavy or overly fancy. Use one font for headings (typically sans serif) and one for content (serif). Use bold, italics, and a slightly larger point size as modifiers if you need to draw attention to select content.
Use no more than two or three colors. Just because your PC can produce millions of colors doesn’t mean you have to use them! Stick to your brand colors or those that may be prevalent in your industry. If your prospects are global, avoid colors and color combinations that may be negatively perceived by specific audiences.
Design for accessibility. Whether digital or printed, your proposal should be easy to read for anyone needing visual accommodations. Avoid using small fonts to cram content onto a single page. Except for callouts or to highlight a key point, avoid using white text on dark backgrounds, which impacts those with astigmatism. Check out these guidelines from Princeton University for more information.
Keep it brief and edit ruthlessly. Clients dislike reading long-winded proposals as much as you dislike writing them, and it can be visually overwhelming. Use short sentences and simple language. Eliminate unnecessary jargon and superfluous words. If you can’t explain your solution and its value in simple terms, you risk losing a good opportunity because of poor communication.

Use these strategies to create professional proposals that wow clients and win bids.

This post was updated on January 29, 2025 to reflect the latest industry trends.