Do you offer design, planning, and coordination services only, or do you make extra income by providing additional services or products to your clients? If this is the case, I have great information for you today 🙂

Many planners offer a variety of products from invitations to favors, flowers, and more (in my specific case, candy station and dessert table styling). Or, maybe you have a great sense of style and you create marvelous visions for your clients.

You can offer your design skills or extra services and products as a complete package or just offer different options that the client will choose based on the budget. The best way to present all this is with a comprehensive proposal. When you put together all the elements in a proposal you have to make sure that your client understands them, and you need to protect your ideas (or intellectual property) so that your creativity will not be used by another professional should the client hire someone else for their event or wedding. Let’s take a look at what should be included.

Cover letter

This is where your logo/branding will be very visible. The cover letter is your first introduction.

In the cover letter, you will thank the client for considering you and you will assure him/her that you and your team will do an excellent job in accommodating the needs and budget. You have to keep in mind that your proposal is a sales document and it’s supposed to persuade the client to hire you instead of a competitor. The proposal should outline your company’s strengths and skills.

Always include your contact information so that your client can get in touch with you should he/she have any questions before making a decision. You will most likely send this proposal via e-mail but the client might print it and have it on his / her desk so always make sure that the cover letter (and the actual proposal) has your name, your company, and your contact information.

Front page

Here you will list who prepared the proposal, who it is for, and the objective/goal of the event or wedding. This shows that you clearly understand what the client wants to achieve and you can provide the right solutions.

On this page, you can also provide a quick summary of the services that you will provide.

Descriptions page(s)

Here you will list all the products or services to be offered – including yours – with a detailed description for each. Point out all the benefits that the client will receive by hiring you / your company. Listing a couple of different options for each service/product/area is always a great idea, clients want options. If necessary, price each option individually so the client can have a good idea about costs.

Make sure you add inspirational pictures that show your vision (the more the better), and you can also create an inspiration board with the elements that should be incorporated into the event or wedding. Pictures are worth a thousand words, use them to describe the experience, and get your client excited about it!

You should add the following in regards to the inspirational pictures: the images are only used as an inspiration, not the actual representation of what the event will look like (some images might contain certain details that will not be provided, or a particular display that will not be done in the same way, for instance).

If you want, you can also include “add-ons” options – These will be out of the client’s budget but if you think they might be the perfect finishing touch then go ahead! It will just depend on how flexible the client is with the budget – or how good you are to convince the client and sell them! Always focus on the experience that guests will have: it’s all about the results that you can provide, the wow factor that your client is looking for.

Footnotes

Here comes the most important part: protecting your intellectual property. Of course, the client can do whatever he/she wants after reading your proposal, however, by having a paragraph that is intended to protect your work he/she will be warned not to copy your ideas. The wording should specify that all ideas, inspiration, and/or images in the proposal are proprietary of your business, and no part of the proposal can be copied, reproduced, or shared with anyone – unless they have your permission. In this case, you should be compensated. All unauthorized use will constitute infringement therefore, it will be a violation of your copyrights.

Please note: Always consult with your lawyer before creating the proposal yourself. An improperly worded proposal may leave you at a disadvantage should a legal dispute arise between you and the client.

Be very clear about the purpose of the proposal: this document is supposed to be a quote, it doesn’t guarantee the availability of the services or products listed until the client confirms them with a signed agreement and/or a retainer.

The last piece of information you want to include in your proposal is:

• A deadline (give your client a week to review the proposal and make a decision or contact you to discuss and ask for an extension if he / she is still undecided)
• Number of expected guests or attendees – This will be very important if you are charging your fee based on the attendance, or if you are providing products

Sending your proposal

Don’t forget to proofread the proposal before sending it to your client to catch spelling and grammatical errors. If you are mailing the proposal, print it on quality paper. Otherwise, send it via e-mail with a short message and invite the client to contact you for any questions or to discuss further.

By presenting a detailed and organized proposal to a potential client shows professionalism, knowledge, and organizational skills. Your client needs to hire someone with these qualities and you might be the right one!

TAKE ACTION

Create a proposal template for your services and/or products that you can use anytime a client asks for it.

BUY

Purchase my proposal template and use it for your own business. Just click on the link below and it will be all yours!

Sabrina Cadini

Holistic Precision Life Coach, Brain Wellness Coach, and Life-Work Balance Strategist helping busy professionals and high achievers live and work better by prioritizing themselves. I use different modalities (epigenetics, neuroscience, chronobiology, and positive psychology) to implement effective lifestyle changes.