Restate their goal
In one or two sentences, say what they want and why it matters. Use their words from the call.
Goal
Bring back patients who haven’t been for years, without sounding like every other dentist.
What to put in a copywriting proposal
You send a price and a paragraph, and hear nothing. A good proposal shows you understood the problem before it shows the price, and makes the scope so clear there’s nothing left to argue about.
You’ll recognise it
- Your proposals are a price in an email
- Clients ask “what exactly do I get?” after saying yes
- You’ve lost work to someone cheaper and less clear
Why it happens
Clients buy certainty. A proposal that restates their goal, spells out what’s included and what isn’t, and shows a timeline makes it easy to say yes, and hard for the job to grow later.
The approach
4 steps, in order
Each step gives the next one something to work with. The worksheet below follows the same order.
List the deliverables
Every piece of work, one per line. Be specific about length and format.
Deliverable
Homepage copy, up to 600 words
Deliverable
Three Google Ads, five headline variants each
Say what’s not included
The obvious things they might assume: design, uploading, extra pages, images.
Not included
Uploading to the website, or sourcing images
Timeline, rounds and price
When it starts, how many rounds of changes, and the fee.
Example
Starts 1 Dec · two rounds · £1,800
Worksheet
Build yours as you read
Fill in each step. Your proposal outline updates as you type. It stays in this browser until you choose to keep it.
More Proposals guides
Next problem?
I don’t know what to chargeHow to price a copywriting projectFrom day rate to a fee you can defendThe job keeps growingHow to write a scope that stops scope creepDefine a round, and say what happens afterThey’ve gone quiet since I sent itHow to follow up on a proposalThree short emails that don’t sound desperate
Questions
Good to know
How long should a proposal be?
As short as it can be while answering every question. Two pages is often plenty.
Should I show my day rate?
Usually not. Show the project fee. Day rates invite clients to count your days.
Do I need an account?
No. Your worksheet stays in this browser. Leave your email and we’ll send it as a PDF.
Who writes these guides?
ProCopywriters, the UK’s professional body for copywriters, with members who do this work every week.
Proposals, from Studio
Guides get you started. Proposals does the whole job.
Branded proposals with your services, prices and terms, sent as a link the client accepts online. Coming soon to Studio.