Submit your proposals early

A way to set your proposals apart from the rest:

Submit your proposals and quotes to your customers significantly before they are due.

It says “We know what we are doing and we can execute well”. 👍

To the customer, it is a data point and glimpse of what your service will be like after the award. "If they can prepare a detailed proposal significantly faster than anyone else, they must know their stuff."

If the proposal lands in the customer's inbox on the day it’s due, or worse, within the hour of being due, it can send a signal that a company is not prepared or cannot execute well. It can signal mediocrity.

Not all customers may pick up on this signal, and not all customers may care, but wouldn’t you want to increase your chances of success for customers that may?

Picture yourself receiving a detailed proposal on week two of a three-week RFP process. My first thought would be “Wow!” and wondering "what else can they do with this execution speed?"

This doesn’t mean any sacrifice on the proposal quality. A high-quality proposal on the due date is better than an incomplete a week before.

BuT mY vEnDoRs tAkE 3 weeKs tO gEt ME a QuoTe!

There will always be 100s of reasons that you won't be able to submit early. One can choose to overcome these and differentiate themselves, or regress to the mean and run with the rest of the pack.

So, for a potential advantage to set your company apart, consider trying out a mindset change next proposal. Disregard the due date and see how fast you can submit a high-quality proposal.

Think “How much do I want their business?"

Then execute quickly and deliver early to show it.