Over years, I had developed what I thought was a fairly slick proposal template for my search engine optimization business. But still document lacked an edge. I knew I had lost a couple of recent pitches to my competitors and I wondered if there was something about their proposals that I was missing in mine.

You know that a good proposal can make or break a sale. This is particularly case when your only communication with potential clients is via Internet. But how do you know you've covered all important aspects of your services? How can you be sure you've covered all project estimates? What if you need to include some legal contract information in your document but you can't afford to hire a lawyer? How do you make your proposal stand out from your competitors if you don't have any graphic design skills? Are you forgetting an important section in your proposal that your potential client was expecting? I found myself asking all these questions when preparing quotations for potential clients.

The banner ad from Proposal Kit (http://www.proposalkit.com/affdir/1914.htm) offered a solution to my problem. It advertised "Turn-key contract, estimating and proposal kits for today's Internet professional". That's exactly what I was looking for, so I clicked on banner ad, fully expecting to find some ultra-hyped, over-rated, disappointing backyard software. Boy was I wrong!

What I found was probably most cost-effective and useful tool for online business that I have EVER come across. Seriously!

Proposal Kit takes guesswork out of drafting a proposal or contract. It automates chore of putting together a complex business proposal. Basically, Proposal Kit provides a comprehensive range of templates to suit any business requirement and helps you build a framework for your proposal to match virtually any product or service offering. You then flesh out templates with your own data and contact details. Templates are particularly suited to online businesses and include documents for initial sales pitch, planning stage, estimating, contracting, project timelines, analysis and even invoicing.

Want to include a Cost/Benefits analysis in your proposal? How about a Production Schedule or a Web Site Design Storyboard? With Proposal Kit, you have a huge range of professional documents available within instant reach to make up your perfect Proposal, tailored specifically for each client. You can even choose a colour scheme or graphic design theme to match your corporate image or that of your client.

But Proposal Kit is not just about creating "knock 'em dead" proposals. Use included Contract Pack and you have access to legal binding contracts, sign off forms, copyright agreements and more. Find a web site stealing your content? Use Contract Pack's "Cease and Desist" letter template to draft your response. Want to provide users of your software with a easy way to report bugs? Use Contract Pack's Bug Report Template. Once I read Quick Start Guide, it took me less than 5 minutes using Proposal Kit Wizard to set up a sophisticated Master Proposal framework to suit my business, incorporating 31 different templates from recommended list.

Here's a summary of different products Proposal Kit offers:

Proposal Kit Pro and Proposal Kit Standard

Proposal Kit Pro and Proposal Kit Standard are bundles of several products, including most commonly used packages. Each collection (proposal, contact, estimate, planning, samples) can be purchased separately, or together in a bundle at a lower cost. These are designed specifically for web, CD-ROM, multimedia and tech professionals. Current retail price for Proposal Kit Pro is USD 197. A stripped down starter kit is available for USD 97. The starter kit is mainly designed for web developers doing small scale projects. The Pro version suits companies with larger projects and a wider range of specialized areas.

Proposal Packs

If you really want to find out, you need to answer following questions:

1. Is your business only one of its kind in town?

2. Do people consider your service first and price later?

3. How can prospective customers tell you apart from masses of businesses in similar fields?

4. Who are your target clients?

5. Who aren't your target clients?

6. Do you turn down certain kinds of business if it falls outside your niche?

7. What do clients think you stand for?

8. Is your niche in a constant state of evolution?

9. Does your niche offer what prospective customers want?

10. Do you have a plan and delivery system that effectively conveys need for your niche's services to right market?