Content marketing; it’s a hot-topic buzzword and luckily for you, everyone wants a piece of it.
Focused on strategically creating valuable, relevant and consistent content, it’s a key tactic to attract and engage a clearly defined audience....and make a profit as a result.
The crux of it is, the higher the demand the more competitive the marketplace becomes, which is why nailing your content marketing proposal is crucial.
But where do you start? What do you include? How in-depth do you go?
Glad you asked! Let us untangle the content marketing proposal web for you…
In a nutshell; a content marketing proposal template is going to simplify your life. Content marketing is multi-faceted with a potentially intimidating amount of ground to cover.
Your template will be your go-to so you can quickly pull together a professional, comprehensive proposal to put you firmly in the spotlight. It has one main aim: to persuade your client that you are the company for the job. It also sets the stage for expectations so you’re on the exact same page before kicking off the project.
Not every proposal warrants the same length, size and input. Depending on the client’s potential value, you’re going to want a couple of templates to choose from.
This is going to be for the short and sweet clients. The ones who are worth the pitch, but not worth bending your mind trying to impress with your wonderful words.
This is your crowd-pleaser. Your intro is going to wow them. Bowl them over with your personality. You need to stand out from the competition right from the get-go, highlight what makes good content marketing (this is important) and pique their interest.
Use enticing language, with resonating words like ‘you’, ‘yours’ and ‘ours’. You need to establish the relationship in the first page:
“Hi [insert client name],
We’re over the moon you’ve asked us to show you how we can help boost your bottom line with our content marketing."
Big yourself up:
"No one gets content marketing like us. It’s an ever-evolving entity that you have to have a firm grip on make it work for you. And that’s exactly what we do."
Set the scene:
"Imagine a year from now. You’re sitting at your desk thinking Wow. Look at all this online engagement. Look at our increased leads. Can you believe the turnover content marketing has generated? We just couldn’t have a stronger brand presence."
Talk about what the proposal is for/about - what you’re going to address in the proposal.
“This proposal is going to outline exactly how we’re going to achieve that for you. With proven content marketing strategy to deliver effective, sales-driven results right to your digital doorstep.”
Talk about what makes successful content marketing, it’s a great opportunity to show off your knowledge from the get-go.
“The secret to content marketing is to create value-packed posts that create a loyal readership. They need to be relevant, timely, useful and engaging. If you can nail this, you’ll see leads rolling in - and we can help."
TIP TO AVOID: Don’t be boring. Let your brand personality shine through; after all, you’re setting the stage for creative content marketing!
This section is all about managing your client’s expectations and showing that you understand their needs are and how you can help them.
Content marketing is such a buzzword that clients simply just jump on the wagon without entirely knowing why or what they’ll get out of it.
Your job here is to clear that up.
Follow the SMART objective setup:
Here’s an example for a software company proposal:
You can see this is very specific, the client knows exactly what they can expect and they can see that you understand their needs better than they do.
TIP TO AVOID: Don’t be too broad with objectives! "Raise profile with increased content marketing activities" just won’t cut it I’m afraid!
Here is your chance to analyze the current efforts of your client’s current content marketing (if they have any) and give reasons why it’s not working for them.
For example:
“You are averaging 1 piece of lead generated new content every two months. Your current strategy isn’t working because your posts are too inward-facing and not frequent enough.”
Give more examples of where they aren’t quite getting it right, but make sure you’re being tactful and practical.
TOP TIP: The intention is to showcase your knowledge, not pick them apart. Try and use language like ‘although the copy works well, the topic isn’t enticing enough to be effective’. Use simple language when mentioning buyer personas, target audience, and content strategy.
When it comes to strategy, you need to outline your primary areas of focus, including:
This section has one goal; to persuade the client that your offering has good value without focusing too much on the money.
Include the following sections:
Here’s an example:
|
Activity |
Time-span |
Cost |
|
|
Option 1 |
Content marketing (no social) 30 hrs per month |
3 months |
$5000 |
|
Option 2 |
Content marketing (inc social media) |
6 months |
$7000 |
|
Option 3 |
Content marketing (inc social media) |
12 months |
$13000 |
TOP TIP: Don’t make it all about the money. This is about value. Highlight what the customer will get under each pricing option (and you must give 2-3 options!) and make that the focus point.
This bit is just a simple page showing them exactly what they need to do to give you the big thumbs up.
A simple “LET’S TALK” or “READY TO GO?” could be completely sufficient. Remember contact details and names for the sake of ease.
Now, this is reserved for your all-singing, all-dancing proposal where you want to pull out all the stops.
It’s the same as the small proposal, but you’re going to pepper it with the following spicy additions:
Detailed info on the channels you’re going to use within your strategy. Lay it all on the line. Talk about:
TOP TIP: Shine like a star! This is a perfect chance to really show off what you can do. You’re the expert, after all.
Nothing puts your money where your mouth is quite like a good old fashioned case study. Big names are impressive, but so are results - include both where you can.
TOP TIP: Try and keep them as relevant as possible to the client’s industry.
When do you expect to see the outcomes? Give the client a rough timeline of when you’re going to expect seeing some actual results.
It will really help them to visualize their success in their mind.
TOP TIP: No one likes an empty promise, so being clear will give them much-appreciated extra assurance - concentrate on clear visuals too!
This serves a number of very important purposes.
Firstly, putting a face to a name adds an extra personal touch that helps cement your fledgling relationship.
Secondly, show your team off! There’s nothing to stop your client conducting a rapid LinkedIn search to get the impressive team lowdown.
TOP TIP: Get creative with some team pics that really show your brand off.
Delve into the nitty gritty and create them a content calendar. It might seem a little premature, but it shows innate initiative and understanding. It’s also a best practice recommended by the Content Marketing Institute.
There’s something to be said for already working for them when you haven’t been hired. You’re going the extra mile. You’re showing them you understand what they need already. It will spark a conversation that gets them discussing where you were spot on and where you missed the mark. And hey presto, you’re talking shop!
TOP TIP: Lay it out on an editable sheet like Google Docs, that way it’s a work in progress that they might just start editing themselves!
Before you crack on, make sure you glean these little nuggets of info.
They will save you time in the long run!
That’s a wrap; happy proposing! Remember to be persuasive. This is your area, your knowledge and your sale. You’ve got this!
{Client_name} needs to improve its stature as an authoritative industry voice, both to improve search engine rankings so that customers and prospects can more easily find {client_name} as well as engage a growing audience. High-quality content, created and added to your website on a consistent basis will give you the traffic you need to build a following of interested prospects, and convert these leads into more sales. Content marketing services will help {client_name}:
Without a schedule of high-quality content and a strategy to market it, {client_name} risks losing its prospects’ attention to more engaging competitors.
Here’s what {my_company}’s content marketing team will deliver to help {client_name} build a thriving online following:
Working with {my_company} will allow {client_name} to obtain the quality content and strategy it needs to overcome the challenges described above. If hired, we’ll break the project down into the following content creation services:
Development of a Long-Term Content Marketing Strategy and Schedule
We’ll start by analyzing your current content marketing and SEO approach, including your website, blog, and email campaigns. Then, with your unique needs in mind, we’ll create a detailed, long-term schedule and strategy to give your prospects a stream of fresh, relevant content so you can gradually build authority in your niche. We will show you how to tie online content to your email marketing efforts for optimal results. We will also show you how to spur up engagement on social media around your posts, and repurpose the content from your blog across every social channel that is relevant to your vertical.
Launching an Email Marketing Campaign to Build a List of Prospects
We’ll craft a series of messages to send to your email subscribers. Each email we write will be designed to build your prospects’ trust and gradually persuade them to do business with you over time. We will ensure your email campaign includes high-quality content that draws the reader to your website and show how best to obtain contact information for qualified leads.
Ongoing Content Creation
We will move from the planning stage to putting your long-term content marketing strategy into action. Our writers will create top-quality content for you that will then be optimized and launched, according to your publishing schedule. Then, after we review and optimize each piece of new content, we’ll publish it on your website, on an authoritative industry website, or use it in an email campaign so you can engage customers and prospects.
Building Visitor Engagement Through Optimized, Relevant Content
| $16,700 |
{client_name} needs to establish itself as an authoritative voice in the industry in order to build long-term relationships with its customers, generate consistent revenue and allow for long-term growth. {my_company}’s content marketing experts create the relevant content you need to build those valuable relationships and they distribute, and optimize it strategically to make the most impact on your target audience.
Here’s why we can help you achieve your goals better than any other content marketing group could:
If {client_name} hires {my_company} to create the content it needs to build long-term relationships with its customers, our timeline would proceed as follows:
| Phase | Activities | Completion |
| Development of Long-Term Content Marketing Plan | {my_company} will analyze {client_name}’s content strategies and create a long-term plan to engage customers with relevant content. | XX/XX/XX |
| Launch of Email Marketing Campaign, Social Optimization, & Article Outreach | {my_company} will create and send a series of messages to {my_company}’s email leads to build credibility and persuade them to become customers. We will begin optimizing your social profiles, and social posting to ensure maximum success. We will begin creating relationships with relevant web publishers in the industry to unlock guest-publishing opportunities. | XX/XX/XX |
| Ongoing Content Creation and Distribution | {my_company} will create and publish compelling content to {client_name}’s website for 12 months in order to build a following there and establish {client_name}’s authority in its niche. | XX/XX/XX |
To take advantage of this proposal and proceed with the project as outlined, {client_name}’s next steps must be to:
Once completed, {my_company} will contact {client_name} to schedule a project launch meeting to make introductions and gather information before beginning the work.
We’re happy to make changes to the project scope at {client_name}’s request at any time, but extensive or costly changes may be subject to additional billing.
Once the project fee is paid in full to {my_company}, any elements of text, graphics, photos, trademarks, or other content furnished to {client_name} for inclusion in the content marketing program, whether online or in an email campaign, are owned by {client_name}.
{my_company} assumes {client_name} has permission from the rightful owner to use any code, scripts, data, and reports are provided by {client_name} for inclusion in its content schedule or campaign, and will hold harmless, protect, and defend {my_company} from any claim or suit arising from the use of such work.
{my_company} retains the right to display graphics and other web content elements as examples of their work in their portfolio and as content features in other projects.
This agreement becomes effective only when signed by agents of {client_name} and {my_company}. Regardless of the place of signing of this agreement, {client_name} agrees that for purposes of venue, this contract was entered into in [STATE] and any dispute will be litigated or arbitrated in [STATE].
The agreement contained in this contract constitutes the sole agreement between {client_name} and the {my_company} regarding all items included in this agreement.