| Avoid the 'seven deadly sins' of sales proposals |
| Written by Dr. Tom Sant | |||
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Low win rates, long sales cycles, heavy use of generic content, executive summaries that are all about you, and proposal text that is too technical or even obsolete are the symptoms of proposals team and sales organisation that commit the ‘seven deadly sins’ ... and don’t even know it. As a result, they’re not nearly as successful as they should be. This is the opinion of Dr Tom Sant, who has been identified as one of the top ten sales trainers in the world by US-based Selling Power Magazine. Sant will visit South Africa this year to deliver the keynote address at the second annual conference convened in Gauteng on 28 July by the Association of Proposal Management Professionals in South Africa (APMP). Last year’s conference attracted 64 delegates - from entrepreneurs to sales and new business development managers, as well as proposal and bid managers who make up the membership of the association. 90% of delegates rated the experience as ‘very good to excellent’. One delegate said ‘I wanted this conference to give me the skills to improve my win rate with proposals; I wanted to share ideas with my peers and listen to what the experts had to say; I wanted to learn how to put together really high-quality proposals. All my wants were satisfied and I am now highly motivated to get back to the office and put heart and soul into preparing the next bid!’ In this presentation titled ‘7 Deadly Sins of the Complex Proposal’, Sant will identify the seven sins of proposal writing and, more importantly, will show delegates how to eliminate them. He will provide simple, practical methods to make sure proposals are focused on what matters to the decision maker, structured in the most persuasive way possible, and built on a strong combination of compelling value and effective differentiation. The topic of the one-day conference is ‘The Art of Winning’. Victory goes to the prepared, and wins do not occur by chance. Other speakers and topics for the conference include: • Storytelling...The Ancient Art of Persuasion - 5 x SA Public Speaking Champion and author of three books, Douglas Kruger has spent a decade learning to persuade with stories.• Behind the Scenes in Government Tender Departments - Millie Rasekoala, as the head of tender division at SETA, will share with us her insights into what happens when government departments compile tenders. • Get Creative - The Pen is Mightier than the Sword - Festus Masekwameng, MotherRussia Design 360 • You’re shortlisted, how to knock their socks off with your presentation - Penquin • Bid Managers’ Panel Discussion – EOH, Deloitte, Aurecon, Vodacom, Standard Bank • 2011 Salary Survey Results – Sandy Pullinger, MD of proposal consultancy nFold • CIPS & APMP – how bidders and buyers can work together “We’re delighted that Tom has agreed to visit South Africa to pass on his knowledge, this is a once in a life-time experience for both sales and proposal professionals” said Sandy Pullinger, chairperson of APMP SA and MD of proposal consultancy nFold, the company that represents Sant’s best practice in South Africa. nFold will also be hosting a breakfast session with Tom Sant on 2 August, titled ‘The Secrets of Persuasion’. A former college professor, standup comic, and founder of two successful firms, Dr. Tom Sant has had a revolutionary impact on the way business people communicate. Named the world's foremost authority on winning sales proposals by the American Management Association, he is the author of the best-selling Persuasive Business Proposals, The Giants of Sales, and The Language of Success. He was named the first ever Fellow of the Association of Proposal Management Professionals in recognition of his contributions to the field. For further information about Dr Sant’s visit, go to the Association of Proposal Management Professionals website or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Share this article 
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