[Free Template] The Proven Chatbot Proposal: Real-World Marketing Agency Chatbot Proposal & RFP Response

A lot of marketing agencies today are selling Messenger chatbot services. Chatbots are the present and future of marketing, and they provide enormous value to clients. Because chatbot services are a bit new, however, some marketers and agencies aren’t clear on how to create a chatbot proposal.

We get this pretty regularly in the Customers.ai Island Facebook group. 

Chatbot proposals aren’t like normal proposals. As the question below indicates, there are certain details you need to consider, especially if you want to include a retainer. 

This article provides you with a clear outline for creating a chatbot proposal and RFP response. In situations where chatbot services are part of a larger proposal, the information here will help you understand how to integrate chatbots into your proposal.

Chatbot Proposal Template

What follows is a template that you can use for your agency’s chatbot proposal.

Before we dive in, a few points of clarity:

• This chatbot template does not provide all the copy for you to use. Instead, you’ll understand what you should write. We believe that writing the proposal copy is something that your agency should do in house in order to make it as personal and unique as your agency is.
• This chatbot template does not include pricing details. To get some insight on pricing your chatbot, check out the pricing discussion in this article.
• Throughout the template, I use the term “client” to refer to the potential client. Might as well be optimistic.
• You can customize and develop this template in a Google document. Access the document here, then click File → Make a copy to save it to your Google Drive and work on it yourself.

Here’s the template.

Welcome Letter | 1 Page

Your welcome letter is a personal note to an individual within the company. The objective of the welcome letter is to provide personalization, to warmly introduce the proposal, and to get them prepared for what they’re about to review — an outstanding proposal for your chatbot services.

[DATE]

To.: [NAME], [COMPANY NAME]

Dear [NAME]

Your letter should consist of three to five paragraphs.

Briefly discuss whatever interaction you’ve had with that person in order to make the letter personal.

Explain in a few sentences why and how your chatbot services can help achieve goals and get results.

Preview the proposal in a sentence or two so they understand what follows.

Invite them to reach out to you with any questions or comments.

Sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]

[YOUR POSITION AND COMPANY NAME]

Chatbot Strategy | 2-5 Pages

The chatbot strategy or blueprint is the heart of the proposal. That’s why it should come first. The objective of the chatbot strategy is to explain to the potential client exactly how you will help them achieve their goals. The chatbot strategy ties your services directly to the challenges that the business is facing.

Important note: You cannot create a chatbot strategy unless you have had a conversation with the potential client. The strategy section includes specific information that they’ve provided to you such as (for example) their average order value, primary traffic sources, highest-converting channels, etc.

Pro tip: Use bullet points in this section. They’re easier to read, and the proposal will have a high degree of forward momentum.

[CLIENT COMPANY] Key Points

In a few bullet points, summarize some key metrics about their business — their web traffic, primary marketing channel, and features that might differentiate them from the competition. Make this positive

• Example: Company’s Facebook Page has 1.3 million likes and high engagement.

[CLIENT COMPANY] Challenges

In a few bullet points, focus on the client’s pain points.

Why did they come to you? What is hurting the business? If possible, use real numbers to dial in on their problems so they can feel them.

• Example: ROAS is 1.95x, a 65% decrease from one year ago

Our Objectives

List, in bullet points, what your chatbot services will do. Paint this in terms of results, not deliverables. Use real numbers if possible, but don’t overpromise. If you think that you can improve something by 50%, then tell them 25%. Underpromise and overdeliver.

• Example: We will decrease Facebook Ad CPA (cost per acquisition) by 35%.

Action Plan | 2-5 Pages

In this section, you will discuss the deliverables that the client will receive with your chatbot services.

Tell your prospective client what they will receive and how it addresses their challenge. This is the longest section of your chatbot strategy discussion and will go into detail regarding your approach, plan, and solution.

A smart idea here is to include screenshots of your deliverable.

For example, if your action plan includes creating an appointment scheduler for a dentist’s office, then put an image of that chatbot right in the proposal. When the client visualizes their potential product, it increases their eagerness to accept your proposal.

• Example: Schedule Appointments: Customers will be able to schedule a cleaning or dental service automatically through Messenger.

Pricing | 1-2 Pages

Your pricing page should come right after your chatbot marketing strategy. From a psychological perspective, it makes sense.

Bullet out the price points with clarity. Make sure you list all the expenditures, including your monthly optimization and maintenance service, or any additional spend based on audience volume.

Introductory Statement (Optional)

Discuss your philosophy, perspective on chatbot investment, etc.

Prices

List the prices.

Example:

• $2,997 for building and deploying 1 Messenger appointment scheduler, 1 chatbot funnel (including Zapier integration to your CMS), and 1 website chatbot.
• $997 per month for chatbot management and optimization including 1 Facebook click-to-Messenger ad, unanswered questions review and programming new Q&As
• $45 per 20,000 subscribers per month

Total first-month expenditure: $3,994

Total second month expenditure: $997 (plus $45 per 20,000 subscribers, if subscriber count exceeds 20,000)

Final Notes

In this section, add in any special notes about refunds, intellectual property ownership, or other terms that should be an important part of the pricing consideration.

Pro Tips

• Instead of “pricing,” you could use a term like “Your Investment.” Sure, some clients might see this as gimmicky. We all know that it’s about spending money. At the same time, “investment” better connotes the fact that they will be profiting wildly from this expenditure.
• Use price anchoring. The first number that the client sees should be face-palming high. This is not the actual cost of your service. Why? Pure psychology. It’s called anchoring and is a cognitive bias that helps the client understand they are getting a really good deal. For example, in the leadup to your pricing page, you could mention something like “Businesses of your size typically spend more than $50,000 on a chatbot strategy.” Later, you tell them that the cost of your service is only $10,000. Instantly, the client’s mind is flooded with positive endorphins and a growing acceptance to such a good deal.
• Add a guarantee. A lot of agency owners get skittish about guarantees. I understand. However, you may want to consider it. Obviously, you don’t want to eviscerate your profit margins, but it’s fine to assure them of some level of success.

Sign Here and Next Steps | 1-2 Pages

This is where you bring it all together and invite them to sign.

Notice the flow of the proposal up to this point — intro, powerful strategy, how much it costs, and then sign. This is intentional and strategic.

Sign Here

Add a signature line or e-sign.

Next Steps

Bullet out the action steps that should follow — 1) invoice, 2) strategy call, etc. Be sure to make it clear what you need the client to do next.

In this section, tell the client exactly how to get in touch with you, how to get their questions answered, etc.

Pro Tips

• If possible, use an e-sign tool here. It makes it easy for the client to close the deal, which means that you get a quicker turnaround on your proposal.
• You may also want to add a link to your invoice with pay now option into your proposal. This gets you your funds faster and ties the entire proposal + payment process together in a beautiful package.

Terms and Conditions | 3-10 Pages

Contracts and proposals should come with legal language to protect both you and the potential client. Add your standard agreement to this section.

Sales Material | 2-10 Pages, Optional

Most of the time, you’ll send your proposal after you send sales material — the information about your business, your service, etc.

However, if you are responding to an RFP, you should include all of this information since the client may be seeing it for the first time.

This proposal does not include a full explanation of everything that should be in your sales material, here’s a general idea of what to include.

• 1-2 Pages – About your company, your people, key personnel, and your mission
• 1-2 Pages – Information about the services that you provide
• 1-2 Pages – A discussion of what sets you apart from the competition, an overview of your process, and how you achieve success for your clients.
• 1-2 Pages – Case studies
• 1-2 Pages – Endorsements

Questions and Answers about Chatbot Proposals

Now that you have the bones of an amazing proposal, let’s answer a couple of common questions.

How should I send my chatbot proposal? Email? Fancy online form? Paper made out of trees? Fax?

First off, what’s a fax?

Second, whatever works best for you and your client.

I’m a fan of sending simple proposals — basic documents with clear instructions. But I also like electronic versions that look pretty and work well.

The important thing is to have a system for creating and sending these. Efficiency is key.

What’s the sequence of sending a proposal, an RFP, etc. How does it all work?

This depends on your funnel and lead generation strategy.

Typically, the process works like this:

1. A prospect reaches out for information.
2. Your agency gets on the phone with the prospect for a discovery call. This is where you gather as much detail as possible regarding the client’s business, challenges, and desired objectives. The outcome of this call should be the client’s openness to reviewing your proposal.
3. You send the proposal.

Chatbot Proposal Pro Tips

• Sending something quickly is more important than making an uber-personalized proposal. Creativity, branding, color scheme, and personal touches are great! Don’t ignore them. However, you should prioritize speed over those creative and personal touches.
• Set clear expectations. The client should know exactly what to expect from you in terms of communication, deliverables, and timeline. Make this absolutely apparent in your proposal.
• Never send the proposal (blueprint and pricing) without a personal confirmation.
• Everything should be an easy yes. Make it easy for clients to agree to the information and proposal without having to dig around for additional information or answers to common questions.

Chatbot Proposal for Agencies: Important Next Steps

• Does your agency sell chatbot services? If not, find out how.
• As a first step to selling chatbot services, you’ll need to sign up for Customers.ai. You can do so for free right now.
• Join Customers.ai island, a free Facebook group with thousands of members. You’ll get to get cutting-edge intel on scaling your agency, selling chatbot services, and anything else you need to succeed.