---
name: proposal-builder
description: Turn discovery-call notes into a one-page proposal with one specific scope, price, timeline, and a yes/no next step. Use when the user says "write the proposal", "turn these call notes into a proposal", or after any discovery call. Not for contract terms and legal language: use contract-and-proposal-writer. Not for decks and battle cards: use sales-enablement. Not for designing what you sell: use offers.
license: MIT
metadata:
  author: TechTide AI (Alex Cinovoj)
  provenance: original
  category: Sales & RevOps
---

# Proposal Builder

The proposal's job is to make the decision easy. One specific paid next step with a clear outcome, timeline, and price. A menu of services is a request for the buyer to do your thinking; they will do it by not replying.

## Workflow

1. **Collect the call notes.** Required: the problem in the prospect's words, company name, budget range, timeline, and who decides. Missing any of these: ask once before drafting, a proposal aimed at the wrong decision-maker or budget tier is wasted work.
2. **Pick the smallest credible scope.** Match the engagement to certainty, not to revenue hope:
   - **Diagnostic** (fixed small fee): they need a risk map, an assessment, or a prioritized fix list before committing bigger. Also the default when budget, timeline, or authority is unclear.
   - **Fixed-scope project** (fixed fee, 1-3 weeks): one stuck workflow or system that can be stabilized fast.
   - **Retainer**: recurring operations, maintenance, reporting, enablement, or multiple workflows.
   When in doubt, propose the diagnostic. A small closed deal beats a large stalled one.
3. **Write the eight sections, one page total:**
   1. **Situation**: what they said is broken or at risk, in their words
   2. **Business cost**: time, missed revenue, support load, risk, delay
   3. **Scope**: 3-5 concrete deliverables, no vague "strategy"
   4. **Out of scope**: kills ambiguity before it kills the project
   5. **Timeline**: start date, milestones, decision deadline if one really exists
   6. **Price**: fixed fee or retainer amount, payment terms
   7. **Proof**: brief credibility tied to implementation, not hype
   8. **Next step**: one action that approves the work
4. **Run the quality bar** before sending: names the real failure mode, scope small enough to close now, buyer effort low, a concrete shipped artifact is promised, the CTA is a yes/no approval. Cut anything that sounds like a generic consultancy.
5. **Save it** as markdown in your pipeline folder, e.g. `$WORKDIR/pipeline/proposals/<company>-<date>.md`, and log the follow-up date.

## Verification

Read the finished proposal and answer from the buyer's chair: "Do I know exactly what I get, by when, for how much, and what I do to say yes?" Expect four crisp answers pulled straight from the page. If any answer requires inference, that section is vague: rewrite it before sending. Then check length. Expect one page. Over: cut proof and situation first, never scope clarity.

## Good vs Bad

**Bad:** "We offer AI strategy, implementation, training, and ongoing support. Packages start at $X/month. Let us know which offering interests you and we can schedule a call to discuss options."

**Good:** "Your order-sync automation fails silently about twice a week and ops spends Fridays reconciling (your estimate: 6 hrs/wk). Two-week stabilization: root-cause fix, retry-and-alert layer, runbook, handoff session. $<FIXED_FEE>, half on start. Starts Monday the <DATE> if approved by Thursday. Reply 'approved' and I'll send the invoice and kickoff invite."

## Completion checklist

- [ ] Problem, budget, timeline, decision-maker captured from the call
- [ ] One scope proposed, sized to certainty, not a menu
- [ ] All eight sections present, one page total
- [ ] Out-of-scope section included
- [ ] Deliverables concrete, each one a shippable artifact
- [ ] CTA is a single yes/no approval action
- [ ] Buyer-chair test passed

Any box unchecked: not done. Fix or say so.

## Footguns

- **The menu proposal.** Three options with feature grids feels generous, reads as indecision, and stalls the deal. Fix: one recommendation; mention at most one fallback in a single line.
- **Scope creep in the proposal itself.** Every extra deliverable adds a reason to say "let me think about it". Fix: 3-5 deliverables max, everything else goes to out-of-scope or a future phase.
- **Fake deadlines.** An invented "prices go up Friday" torches trust with exactly the buyers you want. Fix: use real constraints (calendar slots, project start windows) or state none.
- **Bio padding.** Long credentials sections signal insecurity. Fix: two or three proof lines tied to work like theirs, that is all.