One of the biggest problems with written proposals is the lack of common perception of tools or features. When a proposal is written, it is usually at such a high-level that concepts and features are understood differently. Whenever I write a proposal I can pretty much see what the feature or system might look like. From the client’s point of view, they probably cannot. For this reason it is just as important to list what is not included along with the features or services that will be included. You’ll be surprised by the dialogue it starts and clarity it provides.
For instance, most social applications have internal messaging. We usually recommend against it, because the effort to create a messaging system is pretty intense and most social tools should encourage public interaction. If we wrote a simple proposal that mentioned member profiles most people would assume that messaging is included. By listing this as a feature not included, we can be up front and avoid confusion later on.
Proposals: Explain what is NOT included ← Go back
2 Comments
How have you decided to implement a “not included” section of your proposal without appearing to be negative and restrictive? We have begun using a discovery period (as an actual product) in order to really nail down functionality before we develop a full spec. It seems to be working, but it doesn’t have the buy in I’d like :)
Matthew Smith — September 29, 2008, 10:46 am
We create one-page proposals (sort of) in most cases. This way the client can agree on a snap shot of goals, not an itemized list. One you get into outlines and detailed features, there is too much to decided to get the damn thing closed.
The “not included” list contains items that we discussed, but we put it in writing to it is mutually understood. It’s not really negative, it just means these things will be included in a future phase when the budget or timeframe allows.
I can’t tell you how important one-pagers have been. It really takes out the confusion. The reason it works is because most projects are just ideas in the beginning anyway. The client needs to choose you based on your team and previous work, not the words in the proposal.
The proposal is there to make sure everyone has the same expectations, not to convince them you are the right choice.
Chris Nagele — September 29, 2008, 10:59 am
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