Persuasive

Social Media
Proposals
How to Write Persuasive
Social Media Proposals

How to Write Persuasive

Social Media Proposals
!
You got started in social media because you wanted to
connect with people not send them proposals. While you
might equate writing and submitting proposals with unpleasant
tasks like organizing your entire schedule, they are too important
to skip. Writing a proposal isnt fun, but no matter what you do in
social media, its the only real way to get high-end clients. As a
social media expert, your pitch is your chance to get a potential
clients attention, and turn it into a job.
While some social media marketers will just send a portfolio,
resume, or cost estimate, theyre not going to stand out. A wellwritten proposal is crucial for telling the client what you can do
for them, how it will benefit them, and what they have to pay for
it. Plus, if you do it right, youve already sold your skills in several
ways, because thats what a proposal is all about.
As a social media manager, proposals probably arent your forte.
Even if you absolutely suck at writing proposals, you still need
them to land the big clients that everyone wants. Many larger
companies wont even consider hiring you without a proposal.
The better your proposal, the better your chances of getting the
high-end clients with the best pay, the most reach, and the

biggest marketing budget. You have to learn to write killer

proposals.
While you cant escape from proposals if you want great clients,
you can take steps to make writing them easier. Taking a basic
proposal structure and using it to create a proposal writing
system will help you by cutting out a lot of the manual steps
involved. Youll get better and faster at writing proposals, and
youll land more of the high-end clients you want.
Take a few minutes to go over the process and youll be
glad you did! By using a template system, youll save half
the time or more on future proposals.
Lets get started.

The Anatomy of a
Persuasive Proposal
5 Essential Elements Every Proposal
Should Have
Writing a proposal isnt as complex as creating a social
marketing strategy, and it shouldnt have to be. While each of
your proposals will vary in length and style depending on the

client and the scope of the project, you can typically leverage the
same basic proposal structure.
These five basic elements make up the structure of any
social media proposal, no matter how complex or simple the
project.

1. The Problem Statement

Your proposal should start off with a problem statement, which is
exactly what it sounds like. You have to tell the client that you
understand the project, its scope, and the issues behind it.
Use your problem statement to point out the root problems
behind the social media project at hand. A good problem
statement doesnt state just the obvious facts, but digs
deeper to tell the client about their actual issues.
You will, of course, have to research these issues for most
clients.
For example, if you were writing a proposal for someone looking
for a social media marketer to create a Facebook and Twitter
campaign, you could deduce the actual issue by looking at the
root of the campaign. Both you and the client already know that
theyre looking for someone to manage their marketing.
So instead of telling them that they need a media marketer, you
should talk about the actual issues. Lets say that you were

making the hire and not the client. What would be your main
goal? As a company, that goal would probably be to make a
profit (Unless its a charity). Anyone can manage social media,
so why do they want a professional?
Your problem statement follows this line of thoughts. Tell the
client why theyre hiring you, not what theyre hiring you to
do.
Addressing this issue at the front of your proposal will grab their
attention, and let them know that you understand their needs.
Heres an example:
ABC Company is looking to hire someone
to manage their social media marketing
campaign on Twitter & Facebook. The
campaign should include increasing
engagement, social ads, and incentive
programs.
Here, the social manager lists what ABC Company would have
offered in a job advertisement. Its nothing really special, doesnt
explain the actual issue, and would most likely be passed over
fairly quickly. Its not a good problem statement.
In fact, the majority of readers might not even continue to read
past this problem statement. If they did, they wouldnt be
impressed.

This problem statement doesnt tell the clients what they

really need.
If the social manager who wrote the problem statement above
had written it more like this, the reaction might be a bit different:
ABC Company has recently launched a
new store branch and they need to push
awareness and sales in the area. While
relatively well known in other areas, the
new branch needs hype and increased
interest to take off.
For that reason, ABC Company is hiring a
social media marketer to launch a
campaign on Twitter and Facebook.
The campaign should include a new
Facebook local page for the new branch,
as well as twitter profile management, a
photo sharing campaign on Twitter and
Facebook to build reach, and a direct
incentive program should also be
introduced to increase sales after the
pages grow to 500 followers.
See the difference? This problem statement lists causes and
results not just skills. So an incentive program stops being just
an incentive program and instead becomes something that
increases sales. A Facebook page stops being a page and

becomes something that increases hype and local awareness.

And the opening line doesnt just say you need a page. This
problem statement tells the client that you understand the real
issues that are leading them to make the hire.
Any good problem statement is going to require research.
Take a few minutes to find out why they want to hire you
instead of just accepting that they have to. While some
clients will communicate this information on their own, many of
them wont, so it is up to you to do the research.
Identifying the actual problems facing the client will help you
create a winning proposal. And by communicating that youre on
the same page as they are at the beginning of your proposal,
you automatically grab their attention.
Why does this company need a social media expert?
Tell them why they need you at the start of your proposal, and
youre already well on your way to landing the client.
Lets move on.

2. Your Proposed Solution

Youve taken the time to research and find the issue at hand, and
now its time to solve it. Your proposed solution tells your client
how you can solve their problems.

Where do your skills come in for your client? How can you
help them?
They dont need to know that youre a social media manager or
marketer; they get that. You wouldnt even be sending the
proposal if you werent. If they just wanted someone to post stuff
on Facebook, they could just do it themselves. Theyre hiring you
for results, and thats what you have to talk about.
Your qualifications for the job are less important then the
results you provide.
This client doesnt need someone to manage their social media
profile. Anyone can do that. They need someone who can do it
well enough to solve their problems. Just describing skills or
tasks isnt enough because they dont need a to-do list. What do
your skills solve for the client?
Heres an example:
We recommend starting a new localized
Facebook page and matching Twitter
account. Each profile would then launch
unique marketing campaigns for each
profile.
Here the media manager is mentioning exactly what they will do
once hired. This is good, but the statement is a list and not a
solution. Youre not actually helping yourself with this sort of
solution because it isnt one.

This proposal doesnt work because it doesnt sell

solutions.
If you want to catch the clients attention and have them thinking
This person can make me money, then you have to connect
the dots, tell them how your solution works and what it does.
What will the client get from hiring you for their social media?
Take this new example:
In order to improve sales for their new
branch, ABC Company has to start a
localized Facebook Page and Twitter
account.
Each profile would then launch its own
marketing campaign to drive unique traffic
and sales to the branch. This would include
direct incentives designed to increase
sales, incentives to review and share
product photos to increase hype, and direct
consumer interaction for better customer
satisfaction.
The campaign would also include
promotion to build followers and fans on
each social platform, as well as hash tag
and share campaigns designed to increase
reach. The result would be more in-store

visits over the period in hopes of creating a

solid customer base for the branch.
See what happened there? This proposal offers solutions to
the issues presented in the problem statement.
Like your problem statement, your solution requires research.
You also have to be confident in your results if you plan to sell
them. You cant just promise 500 new sales; you have to make
them happen. For that reason, it is almost always better not to
list specific figures unless prompted to do so. A good solution
statement doesnt say This is what you need to do, it says This
is what you need to do and this is how it will effect you.
Make connections for your clients and tell them how your
services can provide solutions to their problems. Taking the
time to explain how your services solve their issues puts you a
lot further ahead of the game then just telling them what you will
do.

3. Benefits
Youve told them what their problem is and how you plan to solve
it but what is their motivation to hire you? Lets say that youre
not the only person to send a proposal. In fact, you could be one
of dozens! The fact that youve offered a solution isnt going to
be enough to convince them to hire you.
You have to tell them how you can benefit them as a company.

Yes youve already put a lot of work into the proposal, but now is
the time to upsell your services and tell the client how you will
change their company for the better. Why are your social
services better than those of your competitors?
While you might think that the benefits of your services are
obvious, the client probably wont think so. Youre the social
media expert. Most clients will be too busy, too ignorant, or both,
and wont understand how your services can help them. And
none of them will have the time to research and find out.
While you know what your services offer in terms of
benefits, your clients quite possibly know nothing about
them.
You wouldnt approach a stranger on the street and ask them to
understand social marketing, and you cant with your clients
either. You have to tell them what you can do for them.
The benefits section in your proposal does just this. You get the
opportunity to create a convincing outline of why and how your
services will improve the clients business.
How do you make your clients money?
Heres an example:
Well begin by setting up a localized page
on Facebook, as well as a Twitter account

and market to local customers. From there,

well research your target demographic to
create a marketing plan that targets people
most likely to purchase from ABC
Company.
Well integrate sharing, reviews, and hash
tags to try to get customers to share their
experiences and increase hype to increase
fans.
Well also get started on a full incentive
program for fans to start direct sales
conversion with the intent of building longterm customers.
Notice the difference? Instead of just saying what youre offering,
youre taking the time to say why it helps. Here, youre offering
not just building fans, but building targeted fans. Youre offering a
localized page that appeals to people looking for stores in their
area, and youre offering direct conversion to sales, which means
money. By outlining the results that separate you from your
competitors youll make you pitch more appealing, and the client
more likely to hire you.
Tell your clients the direct benefits of hiring you.

4. Pricing Information
If youve pitched your services right then your prospective client
should have just one question left.
How much is this going to cost?
A higher budget isnt going to mean automatic denial, unless
youre researching for a university or other budget industry, but
not outlining your costs effectively will. At this point you have to
set a budget that benefits both you and the client. A higher
budget wont turn them off so long as they get a decent ROI out
of it. What will turn them off is a pricing list that they cant
understand.
Make your pricing schedule easy to understand. Organizing
your pricing, breaking prices down at a high level, and keeping
things as simple as possible are key elements to creating a
persuasive proposal. If you make them work to see what you
cost, you make it harder for them to hire you.
A typography grid format is the easiest way to create a simple
pricing section.

Social Media Marketing Campaign

$2,470 Per Month

Initial Meeting Well meet with you to create an initial

marketing strategy tailored to your company and your goals.

Well research your customer demographic, and well get a

feel for how you like to do business.
Facebook Well set up a localized Facebook page to
market to local consumers. Well also initiate a growth
campaign to increase followers and likes, as well as reach
via share campaigns and viral promotion.
Twitter Well build a following for you on Twitter and then
use hashtags and viral content to create hype, build sales,
and increase traffic to your web based sales funnels.
Direct Social Marketing Well utilize direct marketing
tactics using incentives like fan-only coupons to drive sales
from your social.
Project Total

$2,470 Per Month

The first things youll notice is that youre giving one price for the
entire project. However, this sort of pricing doesnt always work,
because some clients are going to prefer to pay you per hour,
and some will pay you per month, or even per 6-month period. In
either case, youll have to set up milestone payments for when
you actually receive the money.
Most importantly, remember to keep your budget breakdown at a
high level to avoid confusion. That means dont individually price
items unless specifically requested by the client.

It is important that you price yourself according to your value and

the return on investment that you can offer. Psychological price
hacks are a great resource for looking at how pricing higher
sometimes means adding perceived value. Present yourself as
more valuable, and you become more valuable.
The pricing information section is usually known as a Budget
Summary, but can also be called Budget or Bid Summary,
depending on your preferences. .
A budget schedule is the most appropriate type of budget for
social media projects, because most are ongoing. These projects
list per month payments, milestones, or other payment options
rather than a single bulk payment.

5. Call to Action
Finally, you have to add in a call to action at the end of each
proposal you write.
Your call to action takes a minute to ask the client to contact you
and get the project started. It doesnt presume that the client will
act, it asks for something to happen.
While you could just leave it out of your proposal and assume
the client will get back to you, this can be a disastrous mistake.
Even if the client is impressed with your proposal, they might not
get back to you. Chances are that theyre just as busy or busier
than you are, and theyll go about their day intending to get back

to you. Things happen, problems crop up, and new proposals

arrive, and yours might be forgotten.
A call to action does something that most of your
competitors wont. It asks them to get in touch with you.
Not everyone needs a call to action, but you should always use
one. And while a call to action is a bit of an obvious include for
many people, youd be surprised by how many people forget it.
Because you cant expect clients to have the time to go out of
their way to contact you, you have to include a call to action.
Most importantly, business owners are busy, stressed, and often
wont have the energy to hunt down your contact information.
Make it easy for them to contact you.
The best call to action tells the client how to move forward with
the project, what happens next, and how to contact you.
Like this:
To get started with the social media
campaign, ABC Company should do the
following:

1.Call us at (xxx-xxx-xxxx) or email

(info@info.com) to accept the proposal as is
or discuss desired changes or specific
terms.
2.Finalize and sign contract.

3.Submit initial payment of first monthly

payment towards the total project budget.
Once these steps have been completed we
will begin the project with a kick off meeting
to discuss the social media strategy, and
then get started setting up your accounts.
This call to action is a great example because it starts off telling
the client how to proceed with the project and where to contact. It
then moves on to discuss important contract information, talks
about payments to ensure that the client is on the same page,
and then closes with a quick look at what they will get
immediately after signing the contract.
This call to action makes it easy for the client to hire you.
Plus, it encourages them to take the final step and actually hire
you. A call to action is a crucial part of your proposal and you
should never write one without it.

Putting It All Together

Structuring a Persuasive Proposal
Now that you know what goes into a persuasive proposal, its
time to put everything together into a whole unit. Each element
fits together in the order discussed to create a basic structure.
When you put it together, you have a proposal template.
That structure goes like this:

1.Problem Statement
2.Proposed Solution
3.Benefits
4.Pricing Information
5.Call to Action
You can also go with a few alternative name options. Depending
on the size of your client, the type of project, and the length of
the project, you may want to go with one of the following:
Problem Statement can also go by Client Needs, Client
Goals, Client Objectives, or Goals and Objectives.

Proposed Solution can also go by Recommended Solution,

Recommended Strategy, or Recommended Action
Pricing Information can also go by Budget Summary (for
shorter projects), Budget Schedule (for longer projects), or
Project Budget.

Making Proposal Writing

a Repeatable Process
Turning It into a System
Yes, you may hate writing proposals. But skipping them would be
foolish. Most large clients, especially those looking for social
media services, are going to expect a decent proposal. Plus,
even if they dont expect a proposal, sending one puts you
ahead of your competitors and singles you out as a true
professional.
A proposal is your chance to win your client from the first
impression. The right proposal tells the client that youre the
right person for the job. You can make them money.

Because you cant avoid writing proposals entirely without

loosing money, you have to improve your proposal writing skills.
Work smarter not harder.
By leveraging the proposal structure into a template, you can
skip many of the manual tasks to save time and effort.
Proposal software is the easiest way to do this. Software creates
a system for you so that you can simply fill in data. Youll also get
professional templates and designs from software, which you
would otherwise have to design or purchase yourself.
If you cant use the Bidsketch proposal software, then you can
consider making your own proposal templates.

Creating Your Own

Proposal Templates
A Manual Alternative to Proposal
Software
Templates arent as easy as software, but they are a great deal
faster than doing everything from scratch. By creating a
template, you can streamline your proposal writing process so

that you can fill in the basic proposal structure rather than
starting at a blank page.
Microsoft Office is the best option for writing proposals, but
OpenOffice is a popular alternative. To get started, you will want
at least one template for short term or low budget proposals and
one for long-term social projects.
Ready?

Small Proposal Templates

Creating a small template gives you an ideal start for short term
or very small social projects. These are best for shorter-term
options that do not require a lot of price breakdown. While you
wont use them every day, they are useful to have around,
especially if you bid on social projects for small businesses.
This template shouldnt be more than 2 pages in length because
this about perfect for listing your services, solutions, and prices.
You want to be as informative as possible without making it too
long.
If you dont know how to create a template, Microsoft Office
offers basic instructions for creating one in Microsoft Word.
OpenOffice users can find instructions here.
Heres a basic structure for the small proposal template:

Client Needs (problem statement)

Recommended Solution (proposed solution)

Benefits

Fee Summary (pricing information)

Next Steps (call to action)

Large Proposal Templates

Many social media projects are going to require a longer
proposal. In this case, you can create a longer template to suit
these projects. This is perfect for most projects that extend for
over a month, or that require multiple milestone payments.
This template is perfect for the majority of your projects.
Heres a basic structure for the large proposal template:

Goals and Objectives (problem statement)

Recommended Solution (proposed solution)

Benefits

Fee Summary (pricing information)

Fee Schedule: outlines different points where youll receive

partial payments or milestones of the total project cost for
completed work

Estimated Project Schedule: gives prospective clients an

estimated timeline for reports, estimated results, etc. You dont
want to offer any concrete data delivery, just reports and
updates.

Check out the project timeline from this free web design proposal
template:

Next Steps (call to action)

Terms and Conditions: these are important to ensure you

get paid and to set client expectations. Its also important to
have in case legal issues arise.

Here is a sample Terms and Conditions section from the sample

web design proposal template:

Note: You have to create your own personalized terms and

conditions based on the specific conditions of each project.
However, most will follow the same basic structure. If its an
especially large project, consider consulting a lawyer for advice
on the phrasing.

The long template should naturally turn into a proposal that

is around 4-5 pages long. This is perfect for most social
projects. Youll want to set client expectations and give them the
information they need without talking too much.

Making It Look
Professional
First Impression Is Everything
The design, template, and layout of your proposal set the
standard for how the client will view you as a professional. Think
about it like a social media page. You wouldnt present a
Facebook page without a header. You also wouldnt want to
present a proposal without design.
You wan to establish yourself as a professional with an eye for
detail, style, and appearances. Your proposal will do that for
you.
Your proposal is also your only chance to make a good first
impression.

If your proposal doesnt look as good as your pitch sounds, its

going to turn the client off. Who wants a sloppy social media
manager? Design is an important element, so make sure you
utilize it.
If youve chosen to use software then you can just use one of the
many free themes available. Otherwise, youll have to design
your template manually.

1. Elegant Design
Elegance is the key to professional luxury and it always makes a
good impression. The right design will tell the client that you are
a professional and that you present nothing less than the best.
Unless youre a graphic designer in addition to your day job then
you probably want to purchase a theme. Your best bet is to go
with something thats understated and subtle.
Draw attention to the content, not to the design.

2. Helper Text
While the Bidsketch proposal software will provide helper text for
you, you might not be using it. In this case, youll want to create
your own placeholders to copy into your proposal structure. This
ensures that you fill in the right information at each section.

Eventually you wont have to use placeholders because you will

have a natural idea of what should go in each section. For now, it
works as a creative guide that will help you write a better
proposal.
Sample text will save you time because it lets you know what to
write in each section.
If you dont want to write your own helper text, try copying
examples from the Anatomy of a Persuasive Proposal
section.
Proofread after writing! While helper text is great for you,
leaving it in can prove to be a disaster. No one is going to hire
you if youve left your placeholder text in. Make sure you remove
all of it before sending the proposal or you will lose the bid.
Another thing to watch out for is generalized text. It may sound
fancy, and it may sound professional, but if it doesnt directly
apply to the clients situation, then it is not necessary. Taking out
general text allows you to target your proposal directly towards
the clients needs.
If its not about your client, dont include it.
Once youve removed generalized text, you have a shorter, more
focused, and more unique proposal. The result, it sounds like
you wrote it from scratch instead of using a template. Its also
100% relevant to the reader, which is sure to increase your
chances.

3. Should I Say Something about My Company?

Most social media managers think that including an about
section, or a list of previous accomplishments and clients is
helping their chances. In fact the vast majority of your
competitors probably include this sort of section in their
proposals.
Unfortunately, they couldnt be more wrong. Most clients dont
want to read about you or your clients. They want to read about
how you can help them. Including too much information about
yourself can literally ruin your proposal.
Your proposal structure adds enough incentive to hire. (I.E.
your problem statement, proposed solution, pricing information,
etc.)
If you have a website or portfolio designed to attract clients, then
by all means include it. This sort of personal information allows
interested clients to pursue you further and interact with you on
that platform. It also allows anyone who isnt interested to skip it
entirely.
If you feel that a Company Info section is a must, then
insert it after your pricing section. Placement is the key
element to creating a successful pitch with company information.

While talking about yourself at the beginning or in the middle of

your proposal is a sure way to turn clients off, you can place it at
the end with a better effect. Putting your about section at the end
of the proposal allows clients to read about you without
interrupting the flow of your pitch. Plus, anyone not interested
can just skip it.

Tools, Resources, and

Next Steps
Hopefully you have a better understanding by now of: 1) what a
compelling social media proposal looks like; 2) how to create one
that will separate you from your competitors; and 3) how to make
proposal writing as painless and efficient as possible by turning it
into a system.
Youll have to keep writing and submitting proposalsthats
just the name of the gamebut you can make it easy to get
them out to clients quickly and save you time and trouble.
The easiest way to do this is to use Bidsketch proposal software.
This gives you the structure and presentation you need to get
your proposals out quickly and effectively.
You could also follow the directions above to create your own
proposal templates manually. Itll take a time investment, but

youll set yourself up for more free time to focus on clients going
forward.
If you are going the template route and dont quite know where to
get started, we offer a number of free example proposal
templates. You can model one of them for a little inspiration to
get started.
Another thing you can do to help grow your contract research
business is to check out the Bidsketch blog. Theres a ton of
free, actionable content availablewhether its about negotiating
higher rates with clients, being more productive, or marketing
your research or laband we update it often.
Finally, if you havent done so already, hop on to the Bidsketch
email list. Youll receive a free eBook about marketing strategies
to get more clients, along with fresh new content delivered
straight to your inbox as soon as its released.
Best of luck in creating winning Social Media proposals!