Proposal Writing

Sales Cycle

The sales cycle is a cyclic 7 stage process to succesfully convert leads into customers. It outlines he key steps that should be taken in rder to nuture a lead and close the deal, offering a road map fr all sales people in the company.

Stages

1. Propscting - look at your target custoer profiles nd identify potential clients for contact.
   • An Ideal Customer Pofile(ICP) needs to be created. The ICP will be a fictional company that represents a company who both offer and receive great value.
   • Identifyng Potential Leads
   • Initial Qualification - Look for Need, Budget, Autthority and Timing of Need
2. Make Contact
   • Identify the best method of making contact.(Cold emails)
   • Execute
3. Qualify your prospect
   • Learn about their goals and challenges
4. Nurture your prospect
5. Present your offer
6. Overcome Objections
7. Close the sale

Stages in TCS

There are 2 acivities demand creation, demand capture activites. Sales funnel - a funnel comprising of identified targets, engaged targets, shortlisted targets, converted targets

1. Suspecting and Prospecting
2. Expression of Interest(EOI)/Request for Information(RFI) submission
3. Request for Proposals - CapEx and OpEx
4. Proposal Submission
5. Formal contract ngotiation - new customers, we draft a master service agreement(MSA), existing we prepare statement of work(SoW)
6. Start of engagement via Contract Negotiation and implementation

This is run as a separate program.

Bid Process

Phases of a bid process :

1. Deal Qualification
   • sign NDA if required
   • Prepare Deal brief
   • Assign Bid Manager
   • Identify core resources for bid
   • conduct deal kickoff call
   • decision on deal qualification
2. Define
   • Publish bid plan
   • Publish response doc template
   • reserve tiings for Senior Management & BFM review
   • Submit deal quesons to customer
   • Identify complete bid team
   • Initiate discussion for visa, travel, profiles, contractual document review
3. Build Deliverables
   • Response Document
   • Executive Summary Document
   • References & Case Studies
   • PProfiles
   • Estimation, Resource Loading, Ratte Card & Pricing
4. Review & Refine
   • Team SMEs reiew deliverables
   • Senior Management review
   • Pricing review with BFM
   • Review feedback incorporation
5. Response Finalization
   • Complete TechCom Review
   • Complete stduio PPT team updatte
   • other suppor team review as needed
6. Package and Delivery
   • Create hard and soft copies off deliverales as per RFP
   • Requiiremen deliver soft and hard copies of responses

Bid Management

1. Deal brief
   • Timelines
   • Key asks
   • Win themes
2. Bid plan
   • Identify section owners and reviewers
   • Identify and maange risks
   • Escalate and flag probles on time and get support
   • Track and report
3. Response template and executtive summary template
4. Pricing template(client supplied and internal; Stride)
5. References
6. Presentation template

Proposals

It is a way of communicating, so that customers have a way to :

1. go to market, to get the best value for money service or product.
2. Reach out to various services providers or product vendors who can help solve the business problem
3. Vendors document the approach hey will take o solve the problem and include price as well
4. Comparative view created before finalizing the buyer

Anatomy of a proposal

1. It is a formal offer of services to a potential client
2. Questions to be addressed :
   • Why is the proposal submitted?
   • Why the client should select TCS?
   • What is the proposal in erms of it's technical work content?
   • How will the technical work be completed?
   • How the work will be secured?
   • Who will carry out the work?

The proposal must have a marketing impactt on thhe potential client suchh that it tpersuades the about the superiority of TCS' proposal over other competitors. In case where the clientt has prescribed the format and structure of the proposal, TCS must conform to those requirements.