As a web designer, I bet you know the importance of web design proposals. It is the web design proposals that give you the opportunity to sell your products and services to your potential clients, so learning to write a great one is a must-have ability for designers.

In this article, we’ll show you what is a web design proposal and how to create one with templates. If you are using a design tool like Mockplus, you can share your proposal document with your team members to get their real-time feedback and then simply send it to your clients with a link. Now let’s dive into the proposal process together.

What is a web design proposal?

Generally speaking, companies and individuals looking for website design services will request a proposal before starting a project. Your answer is in the form of a web design proposal, which will clarify the needs of the client, the deliverables being offered by the web design company, as well as the cost of the service.

In short, a web design proposal is a written document that can help to sell your products and services to potential customers and clients. It is of great importance to have a well-designed and well-organized one because it is to present solid portfolio items and references, which help you win more clients.

The 7 sections that should be included in your proposal

When a client sends out a request for a proposal, he/she wants to get very detailed features that the design company has. Therefore, a web designer needs to create a long enough proposal that helps a client understand what you can do, but not so long that they don’t get through the information.

When creating your web design proposal, you need to keep in mind that it can be a make-or-break factor in landing design projects, so it is critical to master the craft. In this part, we’ll show you the seven sections that every website design proposal must have. Let's check them one by one.

1. Brief introduction

The first section that should be included in the introduction about your company, and keep in mind that these introductions should be short and sweet. The clients do not want to get overwhelmed with details at the very beginning, so all you need to do is keep the introduction brief and help them understand what they’re getting into. Here are the basic pieces of information that should be included: the client’s name, your or your company’s name, your business logo (if you have one), the project name, and date of submission.

2. Problem overview

After introducing yourself to the prospect, the first element that should be included in a successful web design proposal is the problem overview. This is the section where you show your potential client a problem their business is facing and you completely and deeply understand their problems and their needs. The problem overview can help you grab the client’s attention immediately, arousing their interest to get more information of your proposal. By stating the client’s problems, you can build trust with them and make them feel confident that you are the ones that can meet their need and solve their problems.

In short, a great web design proposal is one that places the needs and necessities of the client in the spotlight and makes them feel and believe that you can solve their problems.

3. Proposed solution

Next, you need to propose a solution that exactly explains how you are actually planning to solve the problem you stated in the first section.This is probably the chunkiest part of the web design proposal. You should avoid using technical jargon because it will get the clients confused. Instead, you need to be specific about the benefits and results your solution will provide. You can try to achieve some specific business outcomes that most clients value like more sales/clients/traffic, reduced costs and insurance against potential revenue loss. When you present your ideas and potential solution, try to anticipate the conversations the clients are likely to have in their organization, the language they use, and have your solution section demonstrate your understanding of their problems in depth and clearly show the benefits it will provide.

4. Approach and process

In this section, you need to provide a brief outline of how you work and how long the project is expected to take. This is where you need to specify when the client can expect to receive PRDs drafts, prototypes, designs, tests, rounds of corrections, etc. Be sure to set yourself a reasonable schedule and leave a little room for unexpected delays or hassles. That way, you even have a chance to finish the project ahead of schedule and keep your clients happy, rather than falling behind and frustrating them. To help make your proposal stand out, here are some information you should consider: outline the different steps in the process; outline a basic timeline, so the client knows when to expect each deliverable; outline your expectations from the client so they know what they need to do and when to help the project stay on track.

5. Fees and pricing

After outlining the above sections, the client should be very excited about the prospect of working with you. Now it’s time for you to set expectations about how much the project will cost your client. If you want to maximize your profit, you can consider offering your client two packaging options. The first one is to offer them a quicker package with a limited set of benefits alongside a pricier “premium” package with all the bells and whistles. The second one is to offer them a fixed-price package with optional extras for clients who want to invest more. By doing this, the client can get a chance to choose an option that meets their budget and you will get your profit maxmized for some clients are willing to pay for the more premium option.

6. Call to action

With all the information out there, you need to prompt the prospect to take the next steps: to accept your proposal and kick off the project. No one wants to create obstacles or reasons for clients to not hire you for the job, so you should offer them the opportunity to say “Yes” as soon as they read that last section. Here are some methods for you to consider: offer them an option to sign on PDF file; ask them to send you a confirmation to start the project; use some kind of dedicated proposal tool where the client will simply need to click on an ‘Accept’ button to kick-start the project.

7. About/company information

Many designers like to add this as the last section. This is where you can highlight what you bring to the table (as a team or as individuals), your talents, your areas of expertise and strengths in choosing the services. It is recommended to give the client a brief portfolio or a link to an online portfolio where you could also add social media links and testimonials from other clients, which help you to enhance your brand effect. Except for adding the About Us section to your proposal, another thing that should not be forgotten is your Contact Information, which can help to connect you and the client.

Additional tips for creating a great website design proposal

In this part, we will share with you some additional tips to help simplify and streamline your proposal writing, presenting and signing process, for both current and future clients.

Ask yourself some key questions before starting your proposal

Before you get your design proposal started, ask yourself the following questions:

• Why does your client need a website?
• What are their expectations of a new website?
• In what way are they expecting the new site to affect their business?
• To what extent will the site promote and showcase products and services in the near future?
• Does the client hope to interact with visitors on the site? If so, how?
• Who is their competition? What are they doing to get ahead? What is their inspiration?
• What sites, images, layouts do they, or their customers, find most appealing?

If you can answer all these questions clearly and methodically, then your proposal will definitely catch the prospect’s eyes.

Make an evaluation of your abilities, resources, and availability

After asking yourself the above questions, you then need to evaluate your abilities and expertise to assess whether you have all the expertise needed to provide your clients with the site they want. You need to consider whether you will have to outsource work to developers, content creators, photographers, animators, graphic designers, etc. or not. If so, how much would this cost? Is there a need to purchase plugins, addons, or any other products, software, or hardware? How long will it take to get your design completed once you have received all the necessary materials? How many team members will be fully available during that time? All of these questions should be taken into consideration, thus can help you evaluate your abilities and expertise more comprehensively.

Create your proposal with templates

You don’t have to recreate the entire proposal every time; instead, you can save some time by developing a proposal template which can be quickly duplicated for each prospect. Your template should include subheadings for the main sections listed above, along with any standard packages or options you offer most prospects. Just get your proposal started with a professionally crafted template that’ll catch the attention of your potential clients.

Some premium and Free web design proposal templates

1. Modern web design proposal template

This free web design proposal template has 28 Pages, two different sizes A4 and US Letter.

Here are some notable features of this template:

• Easy Customization and Editable
• A4 and US Letter Size with 3mm bleed
• 28 Complete pages with Master pages
• Paragraph Style, Character style included
• Images, text, Objects are Different Layers

Read more

2. Simple web design proposal template

This simple web design proposal is a sharp and professional template used for web design, web development and apps. It comes in A5 Paper size.

Here are some notable features of this template:

• Easily customize to suit your own brand
• A5 Page Size
• CMYK @ 300 DPI Print-ready
• All images not included in the package
• Free Fonts Used

Read more

3. Clean web design proposal template

This is 14 pages clean, elegant and professional web design proposal template. It is fully editable, customizable and easy to work with. This proposal can serve multipurpose.

Here are some notable features of this template:

• Stylish Layout
• Clean and Modern Layout
• Paragraph Styles
• Layered Template
• Print-ready with bleed
• Auto page number
• Built-in free fonts

Read more

4. Professional web design proposal template

This is a sharp and professional template used for web design, web development and apps. It comes in two paper sizes including A4 and US Letter.

Here are some notable features of this template:

• Easily customize to suit your own brand
• A4 and US Letter Page Size
• CMYK @ 300 DPI Print-ready
• All images not included in the package
• Free fonts used

Read more

5. Free and clean web design proposal template

Free download

This web design proposal template puts together everything that you need to approach your potential clients. This template knows what they are looking for, and it will professionally present your outstanding work and create the best impression.

6. Free and elegant web design proposal

Free download

This web design proposal template is perfect for the agency that wants to wow prospects who are considering building a new website. It includes detailed service descriptions, pricing, legal terms, and electronic signature.

7. Free and high-end web design proposal

Free download

This is a high-end website design proposal template, the logo, text, colors, and images are all 100% editable, allowing you to get amazing results in no time.

8. Free and freelance web design proposal

Free download

This freelance web design proposal template was used over 25,000 times and its logo, text, colors, and images are all completely editable. Just get it to reach excellent results and the best conversion rate in just a few minutes.

Wrap up

A good and amazing web design proposal can help to build a great client relationship. It can give a prospect a good idea of how you can help them solve a design challenge. It’s not just a breakdown of costs, but a document to sell your products and services to potential clients. Hope the above templates can help you get ready to answer a call for design proposal and make you feel less anxious about creating a selling document to help push someone to hire you.

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