Writing Proposals with Claude

A proposal is not a document that proves how good you are. It is a document that makes it easy to say yes.

The prospect already met you. They already told you their problem. They already know roughly what you do. The proposal's job is to remove the remaining uncertainty: exactly what will be delivered, exactly what it will cost, and exactly what happens when they say yes.

This lesson gives you the five-section proposal structure and the Claude prompts to produce a finished proposal in 20 minutes from your discovery call notes.

The Five-Section Proposal

Section 1: The Situation (Theirs, Not Yours)

Summarise what they told you on the discovery call. The problem, the cost of leaving it unsolved, and what success looks like on the other side.

This section has one job: make the prospect feel understood. If they read this and think "yes, this person got exactly what I am dealing with" they are already halfway to yes before they have even seen the price.

Do not start with "I am pleased to submit this proposal." That is about you. Start with them.

Section 2: What I Will Deliver

A specific, enumerated list of deliverables. Not vibes, not promises but concrete outputs.

Good: "A complete five-page website covering homepage, about, services, contact, and one case study. Built in HTML and CSS with no CMS dependency. Mobile-responsive. Delivered as clean code files you own outright."

Bad: "A beautiful professional website that captures your brand and drives enquiries."

The first version tells them exactly what they are getting. The second could describe anything.

Section 3: Timeline and Process

Week by week, what happens. What you do in each phase. When they need to provide input. When they review. When it is done.

This section manages expectations. It also shows that you have done this before and have a process, which builds confidence in ways that credentials alone do not.

Section 4: Investment

The price, clearly stated. Not buried, not hidden, not softened. A clear number or clear range.

If you offer options, list them as Package A, Package B, and Package C. If there is one fixed price, state it with a one-line justification of what they are getting for it.

Never describe the price as an "investment" if you would not naturally say the word "investment" in conversation. Call it the price, the cost, or the fee.

Section 5: Next Steps

One clear action: "To proceed, reply to this email confirming you want to go ahead and I will send an invoice for the deposit." Or link to a simple contract. Or specify a deadline such as "This proposal is valid until [DATE]."

Do not make them think about what to do. Tell them exactly what to do to say yes.

The Proposal Writing Prompt

After your discovery call with your call summary ready, run this:

I need to write a proposal for a prospect. Here is everything I know:

DISCOVERY CALL SUMMARY: [PASTE SUMMARY FROM THE DISCOVERY CALL LESSON]
MY OFFER from @SALES.MD: [PASTE YOUR RELEVANT OFFER DESCRIPTION]
PRICING: [YOUR PRICE OR OPTIONS FOR THIS SPECIFIC PROJECT]
TIMELINE: [HOW LONG THE PROJECT WILL TAKE]

Write a complete proposal with these five sections:

1. THE SITUATION

Summarise their problem, the cost of not solving it, and what success looks like

for them specifically. Use their language — the words they used and not my words.

Do not start with "I am pleased to submit this proposal." Start with their situation.

1. WHAT I WILL DELIVER

A specific numbered list of deliverables. Concrete outputs and not vague promises.

Each deliverable should be specific enough that we could both agree whether it

was delivered or not.

1. TIMELINE AND PROCESS

Week by week. What I do in each phase. When they provide input. When they review.

Keep it simple — two or three phases is enough for most projects.

1. INVESTMENT

State the price clearly. If I have options format as Package A, B, and C.

One sentence explaining what they get for that price.

1. NEXT STEPS

One clear action for them to take to proceed. A deadline for the proposal validity.

Voice: use @MARKETING.MD voice rules throughout.

Tone: professional but direct — no corporate filler and no excessive politeness.

Length: as short as it can be while being complete. Most good proposals are 400 to 700 words.

Proposal Length

Most proposals are too long. Pages of background on your company, testimonials, methodology overviews, and case studies are all padding between the prospect and the yes.

For projects under $5,000 your proposal should be readable in five minutes at 400 to 600 words.

For projects between $5,000 and $15,000 you can go longer but the structure stays the same. Add relevant case studies as a separate attached section so the main document stays clean.

For anything larger you are likely in a tendering process with formal requirements. That is a different situation with different rules.

Sending the Proposal

Send by email rather than only attaching a PDF. Or send both: the text in the email body with a PDF attached for them to share with anyone else who needs to approve it.

Subject line options where something simple and direct is better than something clever: "Proposal: [Project Name] — [Company]" or "Your [website or app or system] — next steps."

In the email body include one short paragraph before the proposal: "As discussed — here is the proposal for [PROJECT]. I have included [SOMETHING SPECIFIC THEY MENTIONED WANTING]. Let me know if you have any questions, otherwise the next step is at the bottom."

The Proposal Follow-Up

If you send a proposal and hear nothing for three business days, follow up:

Write a short follow-up email for a proposal that has received no response.

Proposal was sent [DATE] for [PROJECT DESCRIPTION].
Prospect: [NAME AND COMPANY]

Write a follow-up that:

• Does not apologise for following up
• Is 2 to 3 sentences maximum
• Offers to jump on a 15-minute call to answer any questions
• Does not lower the price or change any terms
• Sounds like a human following up and not a drip campaign sequence

One follow-up after three days. A second follow-up after another five days. Then use the long-term follow-up sequence from the follow-up lesson.

Adding to SALES.md

## Proposal Template

Five sections: Situation, Deliverables, Timeline, Investment, Next Steps

Post-call workflow:

1. Run discovery call summary prompt
2. Run proposal writing prompt with summary as input
3. Read out loud — does it sound like I understood them?
4. Send within 24 hours of the discovery call
5. Follow up on day 3 if no response

Your Action Right Now

Take any discovery call you have had recently or create a fictional but realistic prospect scenario. Run the proposal writing prompt with real or realistic details. Read the output. Is the Situation section written in their language or yours? Does the Deliverables section say something concrete? Is the price clearly stated?

Edit anything that sounds vague or corporate. Send it.