There are two (2) letters in this section, both less than 400 words. The first is more legalistic, restrictive, and closed. The second, more open and friendly. To give them more power, both proposals were sent through the mail on company letterhead.
Here's the story: A prospective client met with us to discuss our services, and agreed to begin a clearly-defined consulting program. Understanding the potential for buyer's remorse, and understanding the difficulty of committing to change, I called him a couple days later to reassure him and begin the process. He expressed reluctance, wasn't sure what the program included, and was trying to determine our hourly rate. He thought the first payment of $3500 included three months of consulting, rather than the deliverables specified. These words don't communicate the difficulty he presented. It's not what he asked, but how he asked it. Although I didn't say it, I felt, "This is going to be a difficult person to deal with."
I explained the process again, told him our fees were not negotiable and that they were not based on hourly rates. When the call concluded, he seemed pleased, and agreed to go forward. I asked if it would help him to have something in writing, and he thought it would. Based on these events, I decided to write a specific, measurable, and limited proposal that would put us in charge and allow no gray areas for disagreement. The letter to Winston Applegate, is below. After he received the letter, he called our salesperson to ask if I was "mad at him," and when he was told that there was no problem, he signed the letter and became a client.
Later that month, I got a referral from a close friend for similar services and re-tooled the proposal. This time the prospective client, Randolph B. Becker, was easygoing-and also a friend of a friend. Therefore, I softened the proposal. (The price is less because fewer services are included.) Notice that I added a credit card section to allow him to pay quickly and easily. He also became a client.
May 5, 20—
Winston Applegate
1000 17th Avenue
Union City, TX 75703
Dear Winston,
This is the letter of agreement for our services that you requested.
[Here, I spelled out four deliverables in one paragraph each.]
These four phases require engagement, effort, and considerable input from you. The non-refundable fee is $3500, payable in advance. Given the difficulty of your situation, we could have, or perhaps should have, raised the fee. The fee is not based on time, i.e., the number of consulting hours; it is based on the deliverables itemized above.
Once this assignment is completed, if you are happy with the process and if we agree that we are working well together, we will present a second proposal for the next phase of our engagement.
Our schedule is busy and we have only two startup slots in December with several others wanting to begin. If you are at all unsure about going ahead, we can postpone your start date to January or February to give you adequate time to assess your options. In order to begin on December 13 at 1:00 p.m. as scheduled, we need your commitment and payment by Friday, December 3, 20--.
Let me know how you'd like to proceed,
William S. Frank
President/CEO
_____________________________________________
Accepted and Agreed to: DATE
[CareerLab letterhead]
May 29, 20—
Randolph B. Becker
17732 Broadway
Denver, CO 80230
Dear Randy,
It's been fun getting to know you. This is the letter of agreement for our services that we discussed.
[Here, I spelled out three deliverables in one paragraph each.]
These three phases require engagement, effort, and input from you. The non-refundable fee is $1900, payable in advance.
Randy, as soon as I receive your signed agreement I'll contact you with some assignments and a link for the Birkman assessment. Call me if you have any questions.
With best wishes,
William S. Frank
President/CEO
_______________________________
Accepted and Agreed to: DATE
AMX? M/C? Visa? Discover? EXP: ________
___________________________________________
Please print your name as it appears on your credit card
C/C Number:_________________________________
FAX to: 303-790-0606 or enclose check and mail