Planning writing Proposal for website project-Blogger Matre

Thursday, 15 October 2009 15:56

Most people learn about proposals and business development on the job. A big part of the problem is it is difficult to put into writing all the details and possibilities of a Website project before you have a good idea of what you need and how it is all going to come together. Also Web development is fairly new so it should be no surprise that most clients have little experience writing the kind of Request for Proposals (RFP) needed for Internet development projects.

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A website design proposal is a fancy way of saying quote. Often a potential client will come to you asking, “What will this kind of site cost me?” You should do some discovery, using a client questionnaire before giving the client a quote. Otherwise, you may find yourself under-quoting a project without getting all the information up-front.

So what's to be done? I suggest a two-stage proposal process with plentiful; scoping time built in. The first stage would be designed to glean through the crowd and select a short list of companies to bid on the RFP after you have produced it. The idea is to find 3 or 4 development companies you feel good about even though they haven't cranked out a proposal with numbers yet. To do this you need to prepare a scoping document that the greater mass of interested developers can use as a starting point to talk with you.

The proposal is the first thing you produce for your potential client so it should be done thoroughly, informatively and with a touch of class. ;)

The basic outline I use is as follows:

Company Info - tell your potential client a little about your company, about your skills, your qualifications. In a nutshell, give them an introduction that invites them to want to work with you.
Project Overview - In a paragraph or two, explain your understanding of the project, their product or services, the target audience, their marketing goals… and most importantly, how you plan to meet these requirements.
Design Notes - describe how you envision the site’s look and feel, keeping demographics and target audience in mind. Give them a few visions to run with while they read the rest of your proposal.
Target Market Notes - who? where? show that you’ve done your research on their target audience. Emphasize how you plan to create a site suited for their demographics.
Flow Chart - show how the site will flow from page to page. There are many flowchart diagraming apps out there, or you can even use Photoshop/Illustrator if you really want to get crafty with it.
Development Timeline - break the project into task-oriented bite size chunks, along with estimated dates of completion, project checkpoints, client deadlines, etc. This is where you can tally up the estimated hours, show your in-depth understanding of the required features and suggest additional features that may work well within the project.
Project Cost - this is the price breakdown, hourly rate x estimated hours, domain name registration, hosting fees, 3rd party applications and any additional fees. Also be sure to include a little time for revisions, consultations, the final walkthrough of the site, demonstrating the admin panel features, etc.
Terms & Conditions - your potential client knows what they want from you, but you also have to define what you expect from them, ie: content, graphic assets, data, prompt feedback, etc. This is also where you can define your payment terms, deposits, non-disclosure and privacy notes, intellectual property notes.
Example designs - it’s always a good idea to send a few applicable samples of work you’ve done in the past. You can also summarize how these projects relate to theirs: features, UI styles, similar industries. Give them only a few selections but offer more upon request.
Ongoing Maintenance - just because the site is done, doesn’t mean the project is over! Offer a retainer fee or hourly rate for general website maintenance.

It’s a good idea to let the client know your first proposal is merely a draft. This allows room for fine tuning the requirements, and possibly finding a few new features they can’t live without.

It’s important to be informative and show you’ve done your research, but don’t be TOO detailed… sometimes clients use the proposal process as a way to have their requirements logically mapped out. That’s a huge part of any project, so you want to save the technical details for later in the courting phase… once the client has shown particular interest in working with you and your company.

Use your company letterhead, or a customized Word template. Include a cover letter. And be creative! Even business documents can have a splash of color and creativity!

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