How to Make a Proposal Presentation [A Detailed Guide]
- Ink Narrates | The Presentation Design Agency
- Sep 5, 2024
- 7 min read
Updated: Aug 4
Last month, our client Jake asked us a question while we were designing his proposal presentation:
“How do I make sure they don’t zone out halfway through?”
Our Creative Director answered without missing a beat:
"By making it feel like a conversation, not a lecture.”
As a presentation design agency, we work on dozens of proposal presentations every year. And while each one has its own context and industry quirks, there's always one recurring challenge: people try to cram everything in, hoping more information will convince the client. But here’s the truth. The best proposal presentations don’t inform. They persuade.
In this blog, we’ll walk you through how to make a proposal presentation that doesn’t just check boxes but actually makes people say yes.
In case you didn't know, we specialize in only one thing: making presentations. We can help you by designing your slides and writing your content too.
What Is a Proposal Presentation?
A proposal presentation is your chance to walk someone through a business offer, not just on paper, but in person (or live on screen). It’s the spoken version of your proposal document, supported by slides that highlight the essentials: what you’re offering, why it matters, and how it solves the client’s problem.
But let’s be clear about something most people miss.
A proposal presentation isn’t a summary. And it’s definitely not a visual version of your Word doc.
It’s a live conversation designed to persuade. The goal isn’t to list out everything you’re capable of. It’s to make the client say, “Yes, this is exactly what we need.”
Think of it as a narrative with a beginning, middle, and end:
The beginning sets the stage.
It shows that you understand the client’s problem better than anyone else in the room.
The middle offers your solution
Not as a menu of services, but as a clear, strategic response to their need.
The end builds confidence
And shows them how easy it is to move forward.
And throughout the presentation, your tone, structure, and design all work together to show that you’re not just another option. You’re the one who gets it.
That’s what makes a good proposal presentation powerful. It doesn’t just explain. It convinces.
Why Your Proposal Presentation Is More Important Than You Think
Most proposal presentations are treated like formalities. The client already has the PDF, right? So this is just a walkthrough, a polite nudge, maybe a recap.
That mindset kills deals.
Here’s why: the proposal presentation is the one moment where your potential client is giving you their undivided attention. No scrolling, no inbox, no distractions. It's your shot to steer the narrative, not just repeat what's on paper.
We’ve seen this happen time and again. Two vendors offer nearly identical services at similar prices. The one that wins? It’s usually the one that delivered a more focused, more human presentation.
Because clients aren’t just buying a solution. They’re buying confidence.
They want to walk away thinking, “These people get it. They understand what I need and I trust them to deliver.”
And you don’t build that trust by reading off slides or showcasing ten variations of the same idea.
You build it by presenting a clear point of view. You show that you’ve listened. You frame their problem in a way they haven’t heard before. You take control of the room—not by dominating it, but by guiding it.
The goal is not to dump information. It’s to move the conversation forward.
So, if you’ve been treating your proposal presentation like a rehash of your doc, it’s time to change your approach.
We’ll show you how.
How to Make a Proposal Presentation
Let’s start with the hard truth: most proposal presentations are too long, too vague, and too self-centered.
People cram in every detail they couldn’t fit into the PDF, hoping that saying more will do the convincing. But in reality, the more you overload your slides, the more you confuse the client.
So the first rule is this: your proposal presentation is not a document on slides. It’s a story.
It has to flow. It has to make sense in real time. And most importantly, it has to feel like it was built for them—not recycled from your last five pitches.
From our experience working with founders, consultants, marketers, and sales teams, here’s how we structure and design proposal presentations that get a yes.
1. Start With the Context They Care About
Skip the “About Us” slide upfront. That’s not where trust begins.
The first thing you say should be about them—what you’ve understood about their current situation, their pain point, and what’s at stake.
One of our SaaS clients once began their proposal presentation with this:
“Over the past 3 years, your customer churn has increased by 14%, costing an estimated $2.6M in recurring revenue. We believe this trend is reversible, and here’s how.”
That’s it. One slide. Two short sentences. The client leaned in.
Why? Because it reframed the pitch. It wasn’t “Here’s what we offer,” it was “Here’s the problem we know you’re dealing with, and we’re here to solve it.”
That’s where your presentation needs to start—with what matters to them right now.
2. Define the Problem More Clearly Than They Have
Here’s where you separate yourself from the pack.
Anyone can repeat back the problem the client described in the RFP. But if you can show them a fresh, clearer way of looking at that same issue—one that’s sharper or more actionable—they’ll start to see you as a strategic partner, not just a vendor.
For example, in a proposal for an urban design project, instead of saying:
“The area lacks pedestrian engagement.”
We reframed it as:
“The street isn’t failing because people don’t walk. It’s failing because there’s no reason to stop walking.”
That one sentence shifted the mood of the room. Suddenly, we weren’t just repeating their challenge. We were diagnosing it in a way they hadn’t thought of.
This is where your proposal presentation adds real value. You’re not just pitching—you’re reframing.
3. Present Your Solution Like a Journey, Not a Feature List
This is where most teams stumble. They go into full feature mode.
“We offer A, B, C. Here’s our tool. Here’s our methodology. Here’s how we work.”
Slow down.
Clients don’t care how many steps are in your onboarding workflow. They care about what their life looks like after working with you.
So instead of presenting your solution as a static package, walk them through it like a journey.
Slide 1: What will we change in Month 1?
Slide 2: What will they start seeing by Month 3?
Slide 3: What does success look like after 6 months?
This isn’t just a better way to organize your slides. It helps the client visualize the outcome. You’re helping them see the future they’re buying into.
We did this with a professional services firm pitching a global brand. Instead of listing deliverables, we mapped the experience as a before-and-after:
Before: Internal teams are unclear on campaign objectives, messaging is inconsistent across regions.
After: Unified brand voice across 14 markets, with quarterly playbooks tailored to local teams.
No fluff. No jargon. Just transformation, clearly shown.
That’s what your proposal presentation needs to do—paint the after.
4. Back It Up with Proof, Not Promises
Once you’ve told them how you’ll help, it’s time to show them why they should believe you.
But this isn’t the place to drop a dozen logos or testimonials.
It’s about selecting 1 or 2 relevant case studies and making them relatable.
One of our clients in construction services used this format in their proposal presentation:
“3 years ago, a logistics client approached us with almost the same issue—slow site rollout, rising costs, and misaligned contractors. Here’s what we did. Here’s what changed.”
This slide had four bullet points and one timeline graphic. Simple. Effective.
If you have results, share them. If you have experience in the same industry, highlight that. If you solved a similar challenge, tell that story in one slide.
Clients aren’t looking for perfection. They’re looking for competence.
5. Make the Commercials Clear and Easy to Understand
No one likes pricing slides with tiny text, multiple options, and asterisks everywhere.
You’re not a SaaS website.
In a proposal presentation, clarity beats complexity. Show one simple pricing model. Be upfront. Make it visual if possible.
For example, a three-tiered option slide works well only if each tier is meaningfully different and tied to outcomes.
What doesn’t work?
Overloading each option with 10 bullet points
Using vague titles like “Pro” and “Enterprise” without context
Making the cheapest option feel deliberately underwhelming
Instead, tell them:
What’s included
What changes if they choose the next tier
What kind of results they can expect
You don’t need fancy pricing tricks. You need transparency and confidence.
6. End with What Happens Next
The last slide is not a thank-you slide.
It’s a momentum slide.
Too many teams say, “Let us know if you have questions,” and just stop talking. That’s not how decisions are made.
End with clarity:
“If you’re ready to move forward, here’s what the next two weeks would look like.”
Or:
“We’re holding two slots open for onboarding next month—here’s how to reserve one.”
Show them what’s next. Give them a reason to act. This isn’t pushy—it’s helpful. It removes friction.
Even a simple checklist of next steps (sign agreement, onboarding kickoff, etc.) helps anchor the conversation.
7. Design Matters. A Lot.
We’ve said this to every client we’ve ever worked with: your ideas are only as strong as your slides make them look.
You could have the best proposal in the world, but if your slides are cluttered, inconsistent, or hard to follow, people will tune out.
Good design doesn’t mean flashy animations or stock photos. It means clarity. Consistency. Visual structure.
Use whitespace to breathe
Highlight key numbers and insights
Use brand-aligned colors and fonts
Never crowd more than one core idea per slide
We once redesigned a proposal deck for a client in renewable energy. Their original slides were full of dense text and complicated graphs. We cleaned up the layout, made the data visual, and trimmed the content by 40%. The result? Same proposal. Completely different impact.
Your slides are not decoration. They’re framing devices. They shape how your message is received.
Why Hire Us to Build your Presentation?
If you're reading this, you're probably working on a presentation right now. You could do it all yourself. But the reality is - that’s not going to give you the high-impact presentation you need. It’s a lot of guesswork, a lot of trial and error. And at the end of the day, you’ll be left with a presentation that’s “good enough,” not one that gets results. On the other hand, we’ve spent years crafting thousands of presentations, mastering both storytelling and design. Let us handle this for you, so you can focus on what you do best.