Page 199 - Writing Winning Business Proposals

190 Writing Winning Business Proposals

We are the best-
We are the best-
qualified firm
qualified firm
Why?

Our relatively small
Our relatively small
size allows us to
size allows us to
provide the close
provide the close
personal service you
personal service you
need in this
need in this
engagement.
engagement.
FIGURE 11.3 The lower-level box supports the claim of the upper box.
FI GU R E 11 .3 T he lo w er-lev el bo x suppor ts the claim of the upper bo x.

one is there for a reason, because it supplies a good reason that answers my question:
“Why should I select you?”

CHAPTER 11 REVIEW
Writing the Qualifications Slot

1. The qualifications slot explicitly discusses abilities and capabilities as they intersect
with the buyers’ needs.
◉ Abilities are qualities of people, such as experience, kind and level of expertise, and
personal characteristics.
◉ Capabilities are qualities of things, such as your firm’s proprietary methodologies,
databases, models, and other intellectual capital.
◉ Abilities and capabilities are often discussed in résumés and your project’s staffing.
This qualifications slot material is often not part of the qualifications section.
2. The qualifications section is an argument that provides evidence for the claim “We are
the best-qualified firm.”
◉ That claim forms the top box in a logic tree that can be used to organize the section.
◉ A “how” logic tree organizes the actions in the methodology; a “why” logic tree
organizes the qualifications section to demonstrate why yours is the best-qualified
firm for this situation.
3. The content for some if not most of your argument can be gathered from the
Qualifications column of your Themes Development Worksheet.