CHAPTER 12
Writing the Benefits Section
I began this book with a kind of quiz as a way of introducing the concept of generic structure. I discussed how the generic structure of proposals has six slots, the last of which is BENEFITS. Let’s begin this chapter on the benefits section with another quiz, which comprises the three statements in Figure 12.1.
It’s eminently clear that benefits play an important part in selling, whether you’re hawking beer at the ballpark (or at a cricket or rugby match) or submitting a million-dollar proposal to a Fortune 100 firm.
Let’s consider the last major part of one of those proposals, a typical proposal, perhaps one of yours written to me and an organization like mine. Your document begins informally and maintains a friendly and informal “we can work together” tone. It conveys the right chemistry; it’s responsive to my needs and contains some benefits; and, yes, it even includes a few themes. But in the last section, call it “Timing and Costs,” the tone changes dramatically and becomes abrupt. Although the proposal began in a friendly way, now it seems distant. Although it began informally, even addressing me by my first name, now it seems official and formal, with phrases such as “Invoices are payable upon receipt,” and “We are also reimbursed for expenses,” and “It is our policy to. . . .”
Of course, you can and should try to change the tone so that your fees slot is more aligned in tone with what has preceded it. But information in that slot will always seem relatively distant and official, and sometimes it will have to be. So except for one or two perfunctory closing statements (“Thanks for the opportunity, please call to clarify, blah, blah, blah”), I am left at the end of your proposal with the distant, the formal, and the official. Your proposal not only ends with straight information (on costs and terms of payment), it concludes with the most distasteful information (unless, of course, you happen to be the low bidder).
FIGURE 12.1 A true/false quiz about benefits
A good many proposals don’t end with timing and costs; they conclude with a section often titled “Why [Your Firm].” These are really qualifications sections, and, like sections on timing and costs, they are also problematic (see Figure 12.2).
What’s most strategic is not to end with “Timing and Costs” by telling me how many pounds of flesh you will extract or to end with “Why [My Firm],” which also focuses on you instead of on me. Focus instead on the benefits, the value I am going to get for the money you’re asking me to spend. Your proposal’s last major element can be much more persuasive by discussing the expected benefits of your efforts and, as I will show you, much more.
FIGURE 12.2 The advantages of ending with a benefits section
The Kinds of Benefits
You have already done most, if not all, of the groundwork necessary to think about benefits and value. As Figure 12.3 reminds us, we’ve discussed and you’ve identified in the work sessions four kinds of benefits:
baseline logic benefits (Logics Worksheet, Cell 6, discussed in Chapter 3)
individual buyer’s benefits (Psychologics Worksheet, Cell 1, Chapter 6)
hot button benefits (Psychologics Worksheet, Cell 2, Chapter 7)
themes benefits (Themes Development Worksheet, Benefits column, Chapter 7)
FIGURE 12.3 The four kinds of benefits identified on the worksheets
You are now in a position to reap what you have sown, to summarize for me in a compelling, persuasive finale all the benefits from using your services.
The Function of the Benefits Slot
If you’re smart and strategic, you’ll discuss benefits throughout the proposal. I’ve already discussed how the elements of the baseline logic can be formed into a value proposition that can begin your proposal, and I’ve shown you how the background section’s closing component can end with briefly stated benefits (Figure 9.1). That section provides a logical and persuasive movement from a discussion of the current situation, a state of pain or uncertainty or opportunity, to a discussion, however brief, of another outcome, one that is more pleasurable or certain or that has capitalized on the opportunity. And don’t forget about the closing P-slots at various levels throughout your document or presentation. They all contain outcomes like deliverables and benefits. (See Figure 12.4.)
You can integrate benefits into other slots as well by considering, for example, the benefits of your methods and of the deliverables accruing from them and the benefits of your staff’s abilities and your firm’s capabilities. Your Themes Development Worksheet can help you here. If, for example, one of my hot buttons is urgency, your approach will be beneficial if it will deliver results quickly and your qualifications slot will be persuasive if it argues that you’re capable of and experienced in doing so.
FIGURE 12.4 The benefits slot exists throughout the proposal.
But you might not want to leave all the separate strands of benefits scattered throughout the document or presentation, especially since they can make a powerful conclusion to your proposal if you bring them together in one final section or series of summary paragraphs. The overall movement of your proposal will be like this: It will begin by discussing my organization’s current situation; it will end by describing how we will benefit from your helping us to achieve our desired result and by summarizing how and why your methods and your qualifications for performing them will best achieve that result. Therefore, you should consider this part of your proposal, whether it’s a separate section or not, a persuasive summary—a strategically presented conclusion of your proposal’s major selling points. It will be a persuasive summary if you summarize the most important elements to us in some of the preceding generic structure slots (e.g., METHODS and QUALIFICATIONS). It will be a persuasive summary if you summarize the benefits you have articulated throughout.
CHAPTER 12 REVIEW
Writing the Benefits Section
To structure your benefits section:
You can generate persuasive content by using the Logics, Psychologics, and Themes Development Worksheets.
Benefits can exist throughout the proposal (for example, in the closing component of your background section, in the closing P-slots of METHODS, and in QUALIFICATIONS).
Although they can exist throughout the proposal, benefits can be gathered at the end to form a persuasive summary, a value-laden conclusion to your document or presentation.
WORK SESSION 10: The Content of the Benefits Section
To show you how to compose a persuasive summary of your written or oral proposal, I will complete the last work session of this book.
To organize the large number of benefits captured on the three worksheets, I sorted them into three categories:
1. Benefits that would accrue during the project: For this category, I looked especially for benefits related to hot buttons, since by definition hot buttons are desires or concerns that must be addressed during the project. These benefits tend to be expressed in the part of the Psychologics Worksheet related to hot buttons (Cell 2) and in those themes on the Themes Development Worksheet derived from hot buttons. I also examined the Methodology and Qualifications columns of the latter worksheet to try to identify additional benefits related to Paramount’s methods and qualifications. Finally, since the benefits section is a persuasive summary, I identified additional content (for example, deliverables) that bore repeating in this last major element of the proposal.
2. Planning benefits that would accrue after the project has been completed but before implementation: For this category, I used the planning benefits categorized as such on the Logics Worksheet (Cell 6) and the Psychologics Worksheet (Cell 2).
3. Implementation benefits that would accrue subsequent to the project: For this category, I used the same two worksheet cells, focusing instead on the items classified as implementation benefits. As a result, I used a measurable-results orientation.
After sorting the benefits, I identified a claim or proposition for each category so that the entire section would read like a solid argument. I’ll state these propositions as if you were talking to me, your potential client:
You will receive important benefits because of how we will conduct the study to move you from your current situation to your desired result.
As a result of that transition, these are the benefits you will receive and the value you will be provided related to the plan we will develop.
As a result of that plan, these are the benefits that can be expected to accrue if or when you choose to implement that plan.
In elaborating on the last proposition/claim, I made certain that I qualified the subclaims, not only using the word expected above but also by using other expressions like if.
With these three propositions in mind, I spent less than 30 minutes writing the following draft of a benefits section for the proposal to ABC. The writing was quick and relatively easy because I had previously invested the time to organize my thoughts logically and completely on the various worksheets. I hope you’ll agree that the section provides a powerful conclusion to, and a powerful persuasive summary of, the proposal. The section begins by addressing Anil Gupta, ABC’s vice president of operations, to whom Gilmore directed the proposal.
Benefits
I would like to summarize for you, Anil, some of the most important points we’ve made to you and to your team in our previous discussions and in this proposal. Then I will describe the benefits we believe you will receive from our developing a capacity plan for meeting ABC’s forecasted demand and from that plan’s subsequent implementation by ABC (quite possibly with our support).
The Benefits of Leveraging Our Efforts
By forming a joint ABC/Paramount team, with ABC managers playing an integral part, we will be able to leverage the substantial knowledge, expertise, and tools both ABC and Paramount will bring to this project and to develop, sell, and implement the plan as quickly as possible.
This team will hold frequent progress reviews so that various constituencies within the Division (as well as, if appropriate, within Consolidated) will be aware of preliminary conclusions and direction quickly. We plan for these reviews to include strategy sessions, during which we can gain consensus on answers to the wide variety of questions posed in this project and get agreement across various interest areas on the appropriate criteria to be used to select the most effective expansion option. Finally, the team will prepare a final report, which we plan to be a proposal and capital-expenditure request to Consolidated. This strategy will eliminate an entire and possibly time-consuming step in the approval process.
This teaming strategy will work exceptionally well because Paramount’s professionals have extensive expertise in building effective client/consultant teams, transferring knowledge, and managing and implementing change. We also understand the range of evaluation criteria important in this analysis and are adept at facilitating discussions to gain consensus on these criteria. We will commit our broad-based team quickly to begin the project immediately after your approval to proceed. Using this team’s exceptional expertise in marketing, manufacturing strategy, facilities planning, logistics, financial analysis, and human resources, we will provide ABC with the right “road map” for increasing capacity.
Your Benefits at the End of This Project
Our final report, which we will design as your proposal to Consolidated, will be thorough, comprehensive, and well documented, providing ABC with the basis for making a sound expansion decision that considers and balances all the quantitative and qualitative factors. And because that decision will be based on agreed-to criteria, it will be well accepted by ABC management with different agendas. Just as important, the report will convince Consolidated of the expansion decision’s correctness and desirability and answer its “what-if” questions.
In addition to our recommended expansion option, the report will contain:
a confirmed market forecast as well as market share and product-mix projections
specified current equipment and space utilization as well as opportunities to better utilize current equipment and space, as well as new technology
specified make-versus-buy options as well as potential factory roles and locations for increasing capacity
an implementation plan
Our jointly developed implementation plan will specify the tasks, resources, requirements, and timing necessary to bring additional capacity on line over time in a controlled yet expeditious manner.
Your Benefits Beyond This Project
We are confident that, once implemented, our jointly developed plan will significantly improve ABC’s processes; lead to more cost-effective operations, improved service levels, and product quality; and allow you to maintain, if not enhance, your market share. Your productivity should increase, your compensation levels should be protected, and you should realize greater flexibility in implementing your business and marketing strategies. Most important, after subsequent implementation, you should improve your competitive position and maintain your excellent reputation with Consolidated.
Quite obviously, Anil, we believe that Paramount is the right consulting firm for conducting this engagement. We have a comprehensive understanding of your situation and a logical and robust methodology for capitalizing on what we consider ABC’s substantial opportunity to continue your growth in the marketplace and solidify your position within Consolidated Industries. Just as soon as possible, we would like to discuss that methodology and how we can best work together with you, President Armstrong, and others so that we can all agree on the proper magnitude of effort, the specific roles ABC and Paramount personnel should play, and the cost of the engagement. This is a critically important study for ABC, and we look forward to supporting you as you develop the manufacturing base for continued competitive success.
I, as a potential client, want to achieve a result and the benefits associated with that result. Because benefits, real or imagined, imply value, they are one of the most important elements in my decision-making process. And one of the biggest deficiencies I find in most of your proposals is the lack of in-depth discussion about how I, my colleagues, and my organization will benefit from using your services both during and after your proposed project. Never again should you be unable to provide that in-depth discussion. I’ve given you three tools—the three worksheets—that will help you generate persuasive content.
Now you know that you can distribute benefits throughout the proposal, and you can gather them in a persuasive summary that ends your document or presentation by focusing not on your qualifications or your fees but on the value we will receive. This orientation toward value should certainly get you a portion of the additional two to five points you need to win. If you sweep me off my feet with persuasive benefits from using your services, I’ll be less inclined to go with the lowest bidder, unless, of course, it demonstrates that it can provide similar benefits.
What a delightful situation this would be for me: comparing consultants based on their perception of benefits to my organization. How different from my usual experience: reading or listening to a battle of wits between two unarmed opponents. By generating, incorporating, and elaborating on benefits, you will have the arms to win many more battles and to set clearer expectations for the project after your victory.