Writing Winning Business Proposals, Third Edition

by Joseph D. Romano, Shervin Freed, Richard C. Freed

Book Overview

Winning proposals that turn prospects into clients

Based on the proposal-writing system used at A.T. Kearney and KPMG Peat Marwick, Writing Winning Business Proposals features proven strategies, along with worksheets and other tools that clearly show clients what they want and will easily seal the deal.

Thoroughly updated, the third edition offers general guidelines that apply to all business proposals making this the...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0071742328
• ISBN13: 9780071742320
• Release Date: November 2010
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Companies
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 1.23 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 7.4" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Excellent book

I had no idea how to write a business proposal. I followed this book to the tee...I now write major proposals for my company and my proposal kicked the ass of a couple of MBA's. There were a lot of red faces when I showed up my with version of a proposal. I essentially went from having no idea how to write a proposal to setting the bar on how to write a proposal, thanks to this excellent book.

An Author Responds

Since my book is mentioned in a couple of these reviews, I thought I would respond.I used Rich Freed's book for years in my consulting practice and MBA classes. It's a great book, and I *highly* recommend it. It's clearly one of the best treatments on writing business proposals available. But comparing my book on proposals to Freed's is like comparing apples and oranges. My book is aimed at people who work in scientific and technical disciplines. Freed's book is written toward business applications. These two books are designed to work in two completely different arenas.Buy this book. As an experienced proposal writer and consultant, I believe it's the best book on writing business proposals. It's truly innovative, and it offers wonderful strategies for winning contracts in highly competitive business environments.

The 2nd Edition Rocks

The first edition of this books is, as the former editor of Consultants' News remarks, "The most comprehensive treatment we've seen," and the second edition is even better, including (for example) important discussions on fees and collaboration. Most important, this book is about far more than writing business proposals. David Maister-like in spirit, it's a superior treatment about how to sell professional services. Although it addresses business proposals, most of the content is important for writing other proposals as well, but like most successful books on proposal writing, it focuses on one of the sub-genres, unlike more general treatments (Johnson-Sheehan's comes to mind) that in their attempts to focus on all proposals, do a poor job of treating specific kinds.

Best Business Book I've Read

This is an outstanding instructional on how to create effective communications, particularly with clients/customers. It is aimed at consultants, but really applies to communications broadly--whether you're presenting a proposal to a prospective client, or trying to convince your boss to give you a raise.It takes the essence of Barbara Minto's "pyramid principle" of organization and adds to it audience evaluations, audience perspectives, and general guidance on how to make your communication well-received. It highlights common assumptions and errors on the part of any author, and truly makes a writer put him/herself in the shoes of the audience. It's an easy read at a bargain price, and I've recommended it to everyone with whom I work. Well worth the price!

Decent & Recommended Book

The book takes you through a step-by-step methodology for creating a business proposal. It focuses on meeting the clients needs to create a winning proposal. It lacks a convincing example that could go with the current market requirements.The templates for creating the proposal are a good help and I would recommend this book to new and seasoned proposal writers.