Lever 3 of 6 · Convincing offers
Give your decision-makers an offer they can defend internally.
Your expertise is not enough if the customer does not see what it changes for them. We build offers that explain your value, your differences and the concrete benefit of the investment.
Electrical engineer · Solvay Executive MBA · 5 years at AGC
You may recognise these situations in your offers
Technically solid proposals are met with silence.
The customer compares prices without seeing what justifies the difference.
Several people have to decide.
After sending, nobody knows who has to approve what.
Illustrative example
Here is what changes when an offer is designed for the decision.
Before: a page dominated by specifications. After: a decision summary that sets out the customer’s problem, the difference from the alternatives, the value and its assumptions, each party’s commitments and the decision expected. The technical appendices remain available.
Before
Upgrade of the line 2 control system
1. Scope of the offer
Supply, programming and commissioning of a control system compliant with the specification of 12 March, revision B.
2. Technical specifications
| Central unit | Modular controller, 3 MB memory |
| Inputs and outputs | 128 digital, 32 analogue |
| Network | Industrial Ethernet, redundant ring |
| Drives | 12 units, fieldbus control |
| Safety | Safety relays, category 3, PL d |
| Supervision | 2 stations, 15 overview screens |
| Cabinet | 2,000 × 800 × 600 mm, IP54 |
| Standards | EN 60204-1, EN ISO 13849-1 |
| Power supply | 24 V DC, redundant |
3. Bill of materials
42 lines, see appendix A.
4. Lead time
Delivery 14 weeks after receipt of the order and the deposit.
5. Warranty
12 months on parts, excluding labour and travel.
6. Exclusions
Field wiring, civil works, energy isolation, performance tests.
7. Terms
Total price: see page 14. Offer valid for 30 days.
After
Decision summary
The problem
Your controller is no longer supported: a failure would stop line 2 with no guaranteed repair time.
The difference
A replacement during the summer shutdown, reusing the existing wiring, rather than a full rebuild or the status quo.
The value and its assumptions
One day of unplanned downtime costs more than the price gap between the options. Assumption to confirm with your production manager.
The commitments
What we deliver, what remains your responsibility, and what could change the price: the condition of the wiring found on site.
The decision expected
Choose option A or B and confirm the shutdown date before the end of the month.
Technical appendices: specifications, bill of materials and drawings (pp. 3–14).
Free review
Your offer in 5 questions.
Take a recent offer that is not moving forward. Answer five questions, and I will send you free written feedback within one business day.
What the work on your technical offers covers
01
Value proposition and differentiation
Clarify what your solution brings and why it should be preferred to the alternatives, including the status quo.
02
Economic case and evidence
Give decision-makers a credible basis to assess the investment, with visible assumptions.
03
Readable offer and controlled scope
Decision summary, options, responsibilities, exclusions, technical appendices.
04
Presentation and decision progress
Prepare the meeting with the decision-makers and agree on a dated next step.
Deliverables
- Problem, benefit, difference and evidence matrix
- Simple economic model
- Reusable offer template applied to a real case
- Presentation guide
How to judge progress on your offers
We track how well the customer understands the offer, rework, preparation time and the next step obtained. A clearer offer does not guarantee a higher signature rate and does not fix poor targeting.
Frequently asked question
Do we need to redo the whole layout?
Substance comes first. A designer can then improve the presentation, under a separate brief.
A useful question
“What will your contact be able to explain to their management without you at their side?”
Free written feedback within one business day. You can also simply talk it through for 30 minutes.
Is your situation closer to one of these?
“The value is understood, but the terms are still hard to defend”
“We write detailed offers for requests that never go anywhere”