ELSAC Workout: Business Proposals 2: Proposals to Buyers or Clients

ELSAC Workout: Business Proposals 2: Proposals to Buyers or Clients

Get Writing Fit!

Tips for writing Proposals to potential buyers/clients
Understand the basic structure of a business proposal for buyers/clients
2 practice activities included

Level: Advanced
Time: approx. 1 hour
Suggested next workout: Internal Proposal

Extra support:

Work through the practice activities in order by clicking on the tabs at the top of the next page. After completing all practice activities, the Result tab will summarize your workout. Record your results as proof of independent learning and as motivation to repeat the workout and beat your score. A sample Business Proposal for Buyers or Clients is included at the end of the worksheet. Practice makes you fitter!

Material developed by Hebe Wong, Charlotte T H Chiu.

*** All ELSAC Workouts ***

Overview General Structure Writing up the Subsections Our Strengths Result Sample

Overview

Introduction
General Structure
Writing up the Subsections
Conclusion

Introduction

A Business Proposal for Buyers or Clients is a document to facilitate the presentation of your business idea to potential buyers or clients. The Business Proposal for Buyers or Clients is different from the Internal Proposal as it contains general information about your company. Information such as, "who we are", "what we do", and "our past achievements" could be added to the Business Proposal for Buyers/Clients to provide an overview of your company to the clients.

General Structure

Similar to the Internal Proposal (put down the link to the Internal proposal here as there may be two separate worksheets), the Proposal for Buyers or Clients is separated into subsections with subtitles indicating the content of each subsection.

Task 1

Match the description with the subsections in the following chart by typing in the respect letters. One has been completed as an example.

Title
Executive Summary	⁽¹⁾
Our Company (Who We Are)	⁽²⁾
Our Strengths	⁽³⁾
How We'll Work	⁽⁴⁾
What We'll Accomplish	⁽⁵⁾
Fees/Budget	⁽⁶⁾
Proposed Timeline	⁽⁷⁾
Conclusion	⁽⁸⁾

a.	A conclusion sums up the important messages of the proposal. The amount of information and data presented in the previous subsections may be overwhelming for the buyer or the client. Therefore, a conclusion is essential to wrap up and reinforce the main points of the proposal. Begin with a statement reiterating what the collaboration is about and how it would enable both companies to achieve relevant goals and missions. Then, state why you believe the buyer or client is the appropriate candidate for the collaboration. Finally, restate the most important date, which could be the next meeting date or the date of signing the agreement. Finish with a statement showing your gratitude toward the buyer or client for their time and consideration.
b.	Start the Proposal with a title. The title of the Proposal should indicate the proposed collaboration between your company and the buyer or the client's company. For example, "A Collaboration Between YY Yoga Company and Lotus Therapy Centre".
c.	This section introduces your company to the buyer or the client. Assume that the readers do not have knowledge about your company. The values, visions, and missions of the company should be outlined. Past achievements may also be presented. Describe your company as detailed as you can in this subsection
d.	This subsection should outline the budget your company has assigned for the collaboration. One of the major purposes of collaborations is to cut down costs by coming into an agreement with another company and dispersing financial responsibilities to the collaborating company. Therefore, this subsection should outline how cost would be cut down if the two companies collaborate. For example, YY Yoga Company would be able to save on the cost for hiring and training new therapists. On the other hand, Lotus Therapy Centre could save on renting new studios.
e.	The key word of this subsection is "proposed" - meaning that this timeline is subject to further discussions with the collaborating company. Do not come off as too rigid and use softer tones in the writing for this subsection. For example, to illustrate the expected deadline for the signing of the collaboration agreement, the statement could be written as, "the proposed date for signing of agreement is the 15th of May, 2019. However, this is subject to further discussion." A diagram may be used to depict a clear image of the proposed timeline. For examples, refer to the Sample.
f.	This subsection sets out the collaboration plan between the proposing company to its buyer or client. The detailed stipulations would be included in the official contract, so this subsection should briefly highlight the areas each company would be responsible for. For example, YY Yoga Company would be responsible for providing the yoga studios and consultation rooms, while Lotus Therapy Centre would be responsible for providing Human Resources and professional therapists.
g.	As a collaboration between companies is proposed, the strength of the proposing company should be highlighted to serve as the selling point of the proposal. For example, YY Yoga Company may say that the company's strength is strong customer relations. Use numbers and graphs as evidence to support the claims made in this subsection. Then, justify why and how the strength is beneficial to the collaboration.
h.	The executive summary, a briefest summary of the proposal, acts as an overview showing your readers the coverage of your proposal immediately, and telling them what to expect. The executive summary could be written in point form, highlighting the main points included in the Proposal. The first point should state the objective of the proposal. For example, the objective for the collaboration between a yoga studio and a psychology therapy centre could be, "The objective of this proposal is to suggest a collaboration between YY Yoga Company and Lotus Therapy Centre to make provision for clients an all-rounded experience of both physical and mental well-being".
i.	Exhibit projected numerical data to show how your proposal could promote a positive result. The title of this subsection could be, "What We'll Accomplish". Use graphs to show your findings and expectations.

2) Writing up the Subsections

"Who We Are"

The first subsection is a basic biography of your company. It could be titled as, "Who We Are". In the "Who We Are" subsection, the topic sentence is usually a mission statement. For example, a company that sells cosmetics may write, "At The Red, we strive to bring confidence out of our customers and we pride on the diversity in our range of products." Then, go on to write about the culture of the company. For example, "Diversity was not only manifested in our product range. It is also acted out by our team members who upholds the value of inclusivity within our corporate culture." After explaining the company culture, relate the company's values and missions to the reader. An example would be, "We believe that our insights in diversity would inspire our clients, which would allow us to work together and create synergy as we continue to bring changes to the cosmetic world." The company's logo, most famous products, and pictures of the team may be presented in this subsection as well.

Task 2

Drag and drop the statements below into the correct order for the "Who We Are" subsection:

Company: YY Yoga Company's proposal to Lotus Therapy Centre

Subsection: "Who We Are"

Mission Statement	⁽¹⁾
Company Culture	⁽²⁾
Relate to Buyer or Client Company	⁽³⁾

We believe that our visions in promoting self-care, mental health awareness, and meditation align with your company's mission to provide professional psychology therapy to clients who would like to nourish the mind and soul. Together we can promote an all-rounded well-being to our clients by encouraging physical growth while strengthening the mind.

Our instructor team is comprised of professionals who have had many years of experience in professions such as banking and finance, law, education, and e-commerce. They fully empathize with the stress that our clients face daily at work and strives to enhance our clients' well-beings by designing the most suitable yoga routines for each class. For example, we have a series called "Back and Lower Body Stretch For Office Workers", which is designed for those who work at the desk for many hours.

At YY Yoga Company, we raise awareness of mental health and provide a wide range of instructed yoga activities

"Our Strengths"

The "Our Strengths" subsection is the most powerful section of the proposal because it serves as the selling point of the proposing company. The strength should be unique to the proposing company. Provide specific examples of the strength. Use data and specific incidents in the past to support the claim. For example, if the strength of the proposing company is "good customer relations", provide a record of positive customer feedback . Common strengths that are not unique to the proposing company should be avoided, such as, "strong team members who are capable of their individual roles". This statement is weak because "strong team members" is immeasurable and cannot be substantially proven with examples.

Task 3

In the following list, find out the problematic "strength" statement by clicking on the circle:

Our company's strength is customer service. We have developed strong customer relations in the past and have received positive feedbacks from our customers. In a survey conducted last year, 80% of participants state that the reason for choosing YY Yoga Company over competitors is due to the comprehensive customer service. We believe that the most important factor in retaining clientele is to provide the best assistance and bring the most enjoyable experience to every customer.	^a
We have a strong team. Every employee at YY Yoga Company is an expert in what they do. For example, our social media manager has a degree in Marketing and her social media posts have garnered over 1000 likes.	^b
We pride on the hygiene of our studios. We are a 3-year consecutive winner of "The Most Hygienic Gym Facility of Hong Kong" awarded by the Recreational Sports Institute of Hong Kong. We aim to continue to uphold our strict internal policies on maintaining hygiene of our studios. To achieve this, our financial department have approved a 50 thousand HKD budget for procuring new air purifiers for our studios across Hong Kong.	^c

CONGRATULATIONS! You have completed this workout and improved your Business Proposals. Your results are below. Record your results as proof of independent learning. Take a rest, then repeat this workout to beat your personal best, or try a different one.

Suggested next workout: Internal Proposal

Student's Name (Type in):

Final Result of Business Proposals 2: Proposals to Buyers or Clients

Date:

Activity	Correct	Maximum	Percentage
Task 1	0		0%
Task 2	0		0%
Task 3	0		0%
Total Score	0		0%

Time Taken:

Sample Business Proposal for Buyer/Clients

Proposing A Collaboration Between YY Yoga Company and Lotus Therapy Centre

Executive Summary

The objective of this proposal is to suggest a collaboration between YY Yoga Company and Lotus Therapy Centre to provide an all-rounded experience for clients that caters to both physical and mental well-being.
YY Yoga Company would be responsible for providing Yoga studios and classes; Lotus Therapy Centre would be responsible for providing professional therapy services.
We will combine our clientele and launch programs of both physical and psychological therapies.
We aim to close the contract by the 15th of May. The proposed dates are subject to further discussion.

Who We Are

At YY Yoga Company, we raise awareness of mental health and provides a range of instructed yoga activities. Our instructor team is comprised of professionals who have had many years of experience in professions such as banking and finance, law, education, and e-commerce. They fully empathize with the stress that our clients face daily at work and strives to enhance our clients' well-beings by designing the most suitable yoga routines for each class. For example, we have series called "Back and Lower Body Stretch For Office Workers", which is designed for those who work at the desk for many hours. We believe that our visions in promoting self-care, mental health awareness, and meditation align with your company's mission in providing professional psychology therapy to clients who would like to nourish the mind and soul. Together, we can promote an all-rounded well-being to our clients by growing the physique while strengthening the mind.

Our Strengths

Our company's strength is customer service. We have developed strong customer relations in the past and have received positive feedbacks from our customers. In a survey conducted last year, 80% of participants state that the reason for choosing YY Yoga Company over competitors is due to the comprehensive customer service. We believe that the most important factor in retaining clientele is to provide the best assistance and bring the most enjoyable experience to every customer. Moreover, we pride on the hygiene of our studios. We are a 3-year consecutive winner of "The Most Hygienic Gym Facility of Hong Kong" awarded by the Recreational Sports Institute of Hong Kong. We aim to continue to uphold our strict internal policies on maintaining hygiene of our studios. To achieve this, our financial department have approved a 50 thousand HKD budget for procuring new air purifiers for our studios across Hong Kong.

How We'll Work

YY Yoga Company would be responsible for providing the yoga studios and consultation rooms, while Lotus Therapy Centre would be responsible for providing Human Resources and supplying therapists. The two companies would design programs together which provides both Yoga practices and therapy. Customers would be able to enjoy an all-rounded retreat to revitalize physical and psychological health. We would propose to conduct the activities at our studios and encourage Lotus Therapy Centre to set up stations at our facilities. Therapists are welcome to set up offices at our branches and Lotus Therapy Centre may take up a counter at our reception. Together, we can combine our resources to provide services that were unprecedented in the Hong Kong health and wellness industry.

What We'll Accomplish

Since both YY and Lotus have huge client-bases, combining the two company's clientele could achieve several benefits:

Marketing at a low cost;
Lotus is welcome put up posters at our branches to advertise for the Centre. At no cost, Lotus would be able to promote and expand the clientele by advertising Lotus' services to our clients. YY would appreciate the same opportunity to advertise our yoga classes at Lotus' centers.
Minimal cost for far-reaching benefits;
According to a study conducted by the Hong Kong Therapy Institute, only 24% out of 300 interviewees have heard of therapy before. Only 9% out of the 24% have tried therapy before. The collaboration between YY and Lotus could encourage people to try therapy through discounts and packages, thus increasing the popularity of therapy in Hong Kong.
Build mutual trust for future projects.
We hope to develop a long-standing business relationship with Lotus. This collaboration would allow us to create synergy and mutual trust for future projects.

Fees/Budget

YY Yoga Company would be able to save on the cost for hiring and training new therapists. On the other hand, Lotus Therapy Centre could save on renting new studios. We propose a 60% : 40% division of profits and expenses. YY would take up 60% of the expenses required for the collaboration. As a result, YY would also be entitled 60% of the profits. However, this arrangement is open to further discussion.

Proposed Timeline

The proposed date for signing of the agreement is the 15^th of May, 2019. However, this is subject to further discussion. We have prepared a preview of the proposed timeline for your reference:

March 15^th
YY's proposal presentation to Lotus

March 30^th
Lotus and YY's first meeting

April 5^th
Lotus's trial yoga classes at YY

April 15^th
Lotus and YY's second meeting on details about the collaboration

May 15^th
Signing of contract between YY and Lotus.

Fig 1.1: Proposed Timeline

Conclusion

We choose Lotus Therapy Centre because we believe that our values align. Together, we could provide a comprehensive program for our customers who are looking to revitalize physical and mental health. YY is excited to work with Lotus and we hope to hear back from your esteemed company before March 30th, which is the proposed first meeting between YY and Lotus. Thank you very much for your time and consideration of our proposal.