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English 220: Proposals

Professional Business Communication Resources

Pricing Tips

As you come up with pricing in your proposal, remember that the first thing you'll want to do is make sure your costs are covered. This will include overhead operating costs (rent, employee salaries, office supplies, etc.) as well as the cost of supplies (for a pizzeria, this would include ingredients, dishwashing solution, etc.) You'll then want to determine how much to mark up your product/service to ensure you are making a profit. The tools on this page are meant to help you understand what sorts of costs your business may face. 

Understanding Your Competition

Your competition's prices are often a good, though not fail-safe, way to gauge how much you should charge for your service/product. You will want to make sure that your service/product is priced competitively to sell, but be careful to make sure that your price will cover all your costs. Look online and locally to find businesses similar to yours. Look at what they charge for the product/service and compare against what you would like to charge. 

Other Opportunities to Include Research

There are other opportunities to include research data in your proposal. For example, what are the standards surrounding providing surveys? Will your company meet those standards? How? Get creative about how to use research in your proposal! If you are struggling with ideas, stop by the library, we'd love to help you.

Helpful Databases

IBIS Worlds

Access industry reports for many industries. The reports are comprehensive and well organized, easy to read and give you what you need to know about nearly every industry you can imagine. 

Mintel 

Mintel is a market intelligence company with a vast database of useful data and insights on trends, industries, products, and consumers.

Helpful Websites