Statement of Work and Proposal Best Practices

Proposals can be pretty, but don't substitute flash for substance. If the choice is between having another conversation with your client and adding a pretty graphic, have the conversation instead.

Start with a problem statement. Your proposal is proposing a solution - a solution to what? Many a deal has been lost because the proposed solution doesn't address the client's problem.

Ask before you send a proposal, and clarify the problem you're sending the proposal for. You should be able to turn around a proposal in 24 hours from that ask, because you should already have a good understanding of the problem and the solution.

Stay high level. Don't get into technical details or into detailed pricing. Include a timeline (in number of weeks), cost, and expected start date. Use the proposal to get a gut check on the direction of the deal, and to create conversations that make sure you're solving the right problem in a way they can afford and on a timeline they can accept.

Ask who else is proposing solutions. Find out how they heard about your competitors and where they are in the process. This will help you understand what other proposals they may have received and how they compare to yours. It's common for bigger companies to have a preferred vendor and bring in other companies just to meet procurement requirements of having multiple offers. Don't waste your time on prettying up a proposal if you're just going to be filler.

Go through the proposal with your client. They may want you to send it over ahead of time, but get a meeting on the books to discuss it. Even if you don't win the deal, you still want the feedback from this conversation.

Statements of work are NOT pretty, they are a dry legal document. You get no points for fonts, colors or images - and in fact, many procurement teams at larger companies will ask you to remove any visual elements from the document.

Provide key billings terms. Define when each invoice will be sent and how much it will be. If billing Time and Materials, provide an estimate for each invoice and define the billable roles and their rates that will be used to calculate the invoice amount. Specify when an invoice is due (a.k.a. net terms like Net 30) and what happens if it's not paid on time (usually you'll stop work until outstanding invoices are paid). Larger companies use Accounts Payable solutions that require agreements to have these terms.

Provide a definition of the work to be done. Define an overall scope of work (the purpose of the work), the deliverables, and the expected start and end dates. Break up the work into deliverables or milestones that enable you to communicate progress to your client.

Prepare for change. Describe the process for a Change Request and how pricing will be determined for those changes (i.e. applying your billable rates to the new work). Be clear that timelines for completing work are estimates and can impact the overall project timeline.

SoWs are often under a Master Services Agreement. Most large companies will have a Master Services Agreement (MSA) that they use for all of their contracts, and your statement of work will be governed by this agreement. Push to have an MSA signed well before you write the SoW, as it can be helpful indicate how serious they are about working with you.