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7 Tips for Nailing Your RFP Response (And Winning the Project)

Make sure your RFP response is the best it can be. (Photo: Kirill Kedrinski)

Requests for proposals (RFPs) are common in the corporate and nonprofit worlds. When organizations need help with a project, they often write RFPs and send them out to get a wide range of proposals and bids.

Winning the project can be very competitive, which can make responding to an RFP a little intimidating—especially if you’ve never written a response to one before.

Here are seven tips to help you through the process. Continue reading “7 Tips for Nailing Your RFP Response (And Winning the Project)”

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7 Steps to Writing an RFP That Gets High-Quality Responses

A request for proposal (RFP) is exactly what it sounds like—you submit an RFP to vendors and ask them to submit a bid and detailed proposal before you decide which one wins your project.

The competitive nature of the process helps ensure you’re working with qualified vendors who aren’t overcharging.

Even though the concept of RFPs is simple, they can be challenging to write. Read the following tips to make sure you’re going through the right process. Continue reading “7 Steps to Writing an RFP That Gets High-Quality Responses”

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5 Techniques to Help You Get Over Writer’s Block

Sometimes the best way to beat writer’s block is to take off for a while. (Photo: Sevak Aramyan)

If you’ve written anything, and we all have, then you’ve surely had the experience of struggling to get your words down on paper.

Whether it was a professional assignment last week or an essay for homework back in fifth grade, it can be daunting to stare at a blank page and try to get your ideas down.

Writer’s block is universal, but the good news is that there are several effective strategies for getting over it.

If you’re struggling with writer’s block, try any of the following techniques and see what works best for you. Continue reading “5 Techniques to Help You Get Over Writer’s Block”

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5 Tips for Writing a Marketing Brochure

Marketing brochures are everywhere. Photo: vfsdigitaldesign

When most people think of marketing, they think of TV commercials, online banner ads, and other highly visible marketing methods. Brochures tend to slip under the radar for most people.

Yet, when you think about it, marketing brochures are everywhere.

  • At the dentist’s office, you might see a brochure near the counter advertising financing for dental work. The financing company asked the dentist to put that there.
  • Or if you recently ordered something online, the shipping box might have had a brochure inside. Many companies slip a brochure into their packaging to try to get repeat business from their customers.

Not all companies can afford to advertise on billboards and TV commercials. But brochures are economical, so companies of all sizes use them—from small startups to Fortune 500 corporations.

They’re also commonly used for both B2C (business to consumer) and B2B (business to business) marketing. You’ll find brochures at almost every booth at conferences, trade shows, and many other events.

If you’re writing a marketing brochure, here are a few tips to help you with the project. Continue reading “5 Tips for Writing a Marketing Brochure”

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Why Style Guides Matter in Business Writing

Pick a style guide, any style guide.

You have a sense of style with your wardrobe. You have a sense of style with your home furnishings. You may have even created a sense of style with your car.

But what about with your writing?

Do you use the first person in some articles and third person in others? Do you spell out state names sometimes and other times abbreviate them?

To be an effective business writer, you need to have a consistent style.

The best way to achieve consistency is by following a style guide or a style manual.

Two of the best-known style guides are The Associated Press Stylebook and The Chicago Manual of Style. Many publishers use one of these books as a guide for language use, such as spelling, abbreviations, and punctuation. They’ll then add their own style preferences that are particular to their own organization.

Copy editors are tasked with reading and editing copy that is in keeping with that house style. Continue reading “Why Style Guides Matter in Business Writing”