There are a few things we pride ourselves in at Theme Strategic Proposals. For starters, we have followed the Association of Proposal Management Professionals (APMP) standards since our inception. And throughout the years, we have worked each day to refine, develop, and solidify templates and tools for the good of our client’s proposal process. We are adamant about clear, consistent communication and scheduling. We send surveys to gauge customer satisfaction, implement a bid/no-bid process, and follow-up with questions for customers after the proposal is awarded—whether you win or lose.
We pride ourselves in flexibility and adaptability. For example, some clients want us to handle every single detail of the proposal response, while others would prefer Theme to steer them in the right direction and provide design, editing and strategy services while their SMEs take a first pass at the technical writing. We’re happy to help using either method.
If creating sales proposals deters you from running your business, we’d love to begin a conversation—Theme exists to come alongside your team to explore and win new opportunities.
How We’ve Grown in Our Process
A few years ago, we made a subtle shift in the way we work—we mirror our clients. And that has made all the difference. For example, we used to create our proposal management tools and first drafts of proposals in Microsoft Word exclusively. But we found it hard to keep the documents living/breathing if they had to be downloaded, saved as a new version, and uploaded. We eventually migrated all our proposal documents and templates to Google Docs to improve collaboration between our team(s) and the client.
We’ve found when working on 100-page proposals with 5+ subject matter experts, this allows multiple people to review, comment and edit our responses simultaneously. From Dropbox to Sharepoint to Zoom to Google Meet to Microsoft Teams, we migrate from platform to platform to fit each client’s preferred style.
When to Outsource Proposal Help
Business models like ours alleviate the headache from managing, planning, writing, designing, reviewing, and submitting a proposal. Small businesses typically rely on C-suite executives to complete proposals. With a proposal consultant, those leadership teams can lead in other areas instead of getting bogged down by proposal response details.
When clients ask about our service, we usually lead with three key factors that sets Theme apart from other methods of tackling the RFP process.
1. Accredited Professionals.
Every one of our proposal managers is accredited by APMP—the gold standard organization for bids and proposals professionals. We have more than fifty combined years of proposal management, industry knowledge, and content/template curation.
2. We Work Alongside You.
We build relationships in order to know your strengths, challenges, people, customers, and approaches. The goal is to provide specific solutions and pricing options that work best for you. You pay only for the services you need, whether it is á la carte pricing, flat fee pricing, or a success-based model.
3. Giving You Time Back.
With Theme in charge of proposals, the days of late-night reading, writing, reviewing, and designing are over. Our team will manage, design, and write proposals so you can focus on running your business and serving your customers.
What’s Your Next Step?
If you or someone you know is interested in an introductory phone call, please let us know! You can schedule an introductory call with Theme using this Calendly link.
We’ll go over some initial questions and get to know you and your needs. Then we’ll explain a little about Theme’s proven process. Scan over the following bullet points—we’d be happy to go over any of the steps during our call. We live and breathe the proposal process!
- RFP Reviews
- Bid Decisions
- RFP Kickoffs
- Win Strategies
- Drafts and Reviews
- Designing Documents
- Finalizing and Submitting Proposals
- Shortlist Presentations
- Debriefs
We understand each proposal is different, and each of our clients can handle proposals differently. Therefore, each proposal process is tailored to meet your needs to ensure you submit a winning proposal. Although we can’t guarantee victory in the end, we can promise we’ll give it everything we have—together.
