Writing Proposals That Get Noticed

I looked at over 100 proposals worth over $500K as a B2B buyer. I only remember a few. Here are 4 ways you can set yourself apart (and why most proposals never get looked at): 1. Built for the buying committee - not just the champion Most proposals assume one person makes the decision. That’s rarely true. The best ones were written with execs in mind. Mobile-friendly, easy to skim, and structured like a story, not a spec sheet. The kind of doc I could forward without rewriting a single thing. (like Qwilr!) 2. Helped me sell internally The proposals that stood out made me look good. They included visual slides I could screenshot into a board deck. Framed the problem. Showed the cost of inaction. Made the ROI feel obvious. They gave me language to use with my CFO, not just the vendor’s pitch. 3. AEs tracked engagement and followed up with a purpose Great sellers didn’t “check in.” They followed up based on what I actually did. They knew when I viewed the proposal, which sections got read, and what was skipped. Every email felt relevant—because it was. They weren’t guessing what mattered. They had data. 4. AEs pre-empted objections I hadn’t even voiced yet Before legal asked for terms, I had a friendly breakdown of the key clauses. Before procurement jumped in, I had a clear explanation of how pricing scaled. It felt like the AE knew my internal process better than I did - and helped me get ahead of it. TAKEAWAY: Most proposals are written to present. The best proposals are built to sell. Qwilr turns your proposal into a selling tool—one that’s interactive, trackable, mobile-ready, and designed for the whole buying committee. It helps your champion make the case. And it helps you win deals - even when you’re not in the room. If you want to stand out, build proposals that do more than inform. Build proposals that close.

Let's talk about the psychology of what actually makes proposals win. Research shows decision makers rely heavily on the 'affect heuristic' - they make choices based on emotional reactions, then justify with logic. Yet most proposals skip straight to specifications, ignoring how the human brain actually processes information: →First impressions form in milliseconds →Initial gut reactions influence final decisions →Emotional engagement determines attention span This is why template proposals fail. When all technical responses look identical, decision makers rely on emotional differentiation. What does this mean for your 2025 proposals? Your executive summary needs to: →Tell a compelling story →Create an emotional connection →Paint a clear vision Your technical responses should: →Demonstrate understanding beyond specs →Show personality while maintaining professionalism →Make complex information accessible Because while checking all the boxes gets you considered, emotional engagement gets you remembered. And when responding to RFPs riddled with requirements? Being memorable is what wins contracts. Do you always customize response executive summaries or go with templates?

Why Most Validation Proposals Miss the Mark — and How to Win Every Time 🥊 In pharma procurement, I’ve seen it time and again: validation proposals fall flat because they don’t speak the client’s language. As a validation lead, I made sure my proposals did more than just list services — they directly addressed the client’s biggest challenges. Here’s the secret: 1. Start with their pain points. Understand what keeps them up at night — compliance risks, tight timelines, costly delays. 2. Offer clear solutions. Show how your approach solves those problems efficiently and reliably. 3. Back it up with data, outcomes, and realistic timelines. Clients need proof they can trust you to deliver. This approach doesn’t just win projects — it builds lasting partnerships. If you want your proposals to stand out, stop selling services. Start solving problems.

Most companies treat government proposals like a check-the-box exercise: write to the requirements, follow the compliance matrix, and hope past performance carries the weight. But the companies that consistently win? They do more than just respond. They challenge. In the commercial world, the Challenger Sale methodology is about leading with insight… teaching the customer something new, reframing their problems, and showing them a better way. And guess what? That same approach works in GovCon. Here’s how: Teach, don’t just tell. Most proposals regurgitate requirements. A Challenger approach educates evaluators by reframing the problem and introducing a fresh perspective. Show them risks they haven’t considered. Tailor the solution. Agencies want a partner who understands their unique mission, constraints, and goals. Generic, boilerplate responses won’t cut it. A Challenger-style proposal connects the dots between the agency’s mission and your approach in a way that feels tailor-made. Take control of the narrative. The best proposals shape the conversation. A Challenger proposal positions your company as the lowest-risk, highest-value choice… not just another compliant bidder. It proactively addresses potential concerns, sets the evaluation criteria in your favor, and builds a compelling case that others can’t match. Too many companies play it safe in GovCon proposals. But the ones who win? They challenge the status quo, differentiate with insight, and make the evaluator’s decision easy. Are you just responding, or are you challenging?

You can spend weeks writing a grant proposal—but if it doesn’t align with the funder’s priorities, the chances of it being approved are very slim! I see this mistake over and over again. 🚨 Organizations pour hours, even months into writing grant proposals, only to get rejected—not because their project wasn’t important, but because they never researched what the funder actually wanted to fund.  So, before you sit down to write your next grant, here’s what you need to know:  → Funders don’t fund what YOU need. They fund YOUR impact.They fund what aligns with THEIR mission. Many people approach grants thinking, "I need money for my project—who can give it to me?"  But successful grant seekers flip the script. They look for alignment first. ✅ Research past grantees. What kind of projects has this funder supported before? Do you fit into that pattern?  ✅ Read their funding priorities. If they say they fund education initiatives, do they mean general education, STEM programs, early childhood learning? Dig deeper. ✅ Mirror their language. If they emphasize “economic mobility,” don’t just say your program helps job seekers—show how it advances economic mobility. → Vague proposals don’t get funded. Specificity wins. I see a lot of proposals that say things like: We aim to reduce food insecurity in our community.  That sounds nice, but it’s not compelling. A funder is going to ask: How many people will you serve? What’s your timeline for achieving results? What metrics will you track? Instead, try something like: ✅ We will support 150 families by providing bi-weekly meal kits containing fresh, nutritious produce. Over the course of 12 months, we will track participants' progress through annual surveys to measure the impact of this program. We anticipate achieving a 20% reduction in food insecurity among participants, demonstrating the program's effectiveness in promoting health in the community. See the difference? The more specific you are, the easier it is for funders to see your impact. When you write a proposal, don’t just explain why you need the money. Show them the transformation their funding will create. 🛑 Instead of: We need $50,000 to expand our mentoring program. ✅ Try this: With $50,000, we will expand our mentoring program to serve 300 additional students, increasing graduation rates by 25% over the next two years. The more you frame your proposal around the funder’s impact, the better your chances of winning. Have you ever spent weeks on a proposal only to get rejected? What did you learn from the experience? Let’s talk in the comments.  #GrantWriting #NonprofitFunding #FundingOpportunities