For consultants after the discovery call
Consulting Proposal Template and Example
The client's situation, objectives with measures, three priced options and terms, each with a guidance line, plus a full example proposal annotated section by section.
Proposal for Dana Whitlock, COO, Larkfield Foods (example)
On-time delivery has fallen from 94% to 81% in a year, by your own dispatch reports. In your words: “We sell a Tuesday delivery and find out on Monday night we can't make it.”
On-time delivery back to 92% by the end of March, late order changes under 50 a week, and overtime under 15 hours per depot.
1. Fix the handoff: 6 weeks, $28,000. 2. Fix and prove it with a pilot: 10 weeks, $42,000. 3. Fix, prove and roll out to all three depots: 16 weeks, $64,000.
Choose an option and sign by Friday 23 October, and we start at the Northfield depot on Monday 2 November.
Sam Ortega · Northgate Advisory (example)
What you'll get
Eight sections with guidance, three priced options and a worked example
- Eight sections, each with a guidance line and slots
- Three options with fees that step up in value
- A full example proposal, annotated section by section
Before and after
Your call notes in. A first draft out.
Call w/ Dana Whitlock, COO, Larkfield Foods, 6 Oct. 3 depots, about 640 restaurant and grocery customers. On-time delivery down from 94% to 81% this year. Two big customers complained in writing. “We sell a Tuesday delivery and find out on Monday night we can't make it.” Wants it fixed before the March menu changes. Budget not discussed.
1. The situation Larkfield Foods delivers to about 640 restaurants and grocers from three depots. On-time delivery has fallen from 94% to 81% this year, and two large customers have complained in writing. In Dana's words: “We sell a Tuesday delivery and find out on Monday night we can't make it.” 4. Options and fees Option 1: Fix the handoff · [weeks] · [fixed fee]. Option 2: Fix it and prove it at one depot · [weeks] · [fixed fee]. Option 3: Fix, prove and roll out to all three depots · [weeks] · [fixed fee]. To confirm with the client What budget range do you have in mind for this work? Where is on-time delivery measured, and what counts as on time?
Facts and fees your notes don't give stay in brackets, as questions for your next call.
Why it works
What goes in a consulting proposal?
A consulting proposal puts in writing what you and the client agreed on the call. It covers their situation, the results they want and how you'll measure them, how you'll do the work, and what it costs. Alan Weiss calls a proposal "a summation, not an exploration" and keeps his to about two and a half pages. This template follows that idea in eight sections, each with a guidance line on what belongs there and what to leave out.
The heart of it is three options with fees. Each option meets the objectives and builds on the one before, so the client chooses how much help to buy rather than whether to buy. Weiss calls this a "choice of yeses" and prefers three. The second doc is a full example proposal for an invented food distributor, with a note under every section on why it works. It ends with option ideas for four other kinds of project.
Download it as a Word file with no account, or open it in River and paste your call notes. River drafts the situation in the client's words and shapes the three options. Every missing fact becomes a question for your next call, and fees stay in brackets for you to set. To draft from a long transcript, the client's email or an RFP, use the consulting proposal generator. Once the client picks an option, the statement of work template turns it into scope, acceptance criteria and payment dates.
What lands in your doc
What's inside the proposal template
- Eight sections, in order
Situation, objectives and measures, approach, options and fees, timeline, assumptions, client responsibilities, and terms. - A guidance line in every section
What belongs there and what to leave out, with a strong and a weak example where it helps. - Three options with fees
A table for three options that step up in value, each priced as one fixed fee. - An annotated example proposal
A complete proposal for an invented food distributor, with a note on why each section works. - Options for other projects
How the three options look for a strategic plan, a software selection, a pricing review and a restructure. - A send checklist and five rules
Nine checks before you send, and the five rules behind the template, from agreeing first to sourcing every number.
How it works
From call notes to proposal
Open the template
Click Edit with AI. The proposal opens in River with every section, table and guidance line in place.
Paste your call notes
Optional. Paste your notes or the client's email, and River drafts each section from what the client said.
Fill the gaps
Facts your notes don't give become questions for the client, and every fee stays in brackets for you to set.
Send it and follow up
Run the checklist and send it. When the client picks an option, turn it into a statement of work.
Questions consultants ask
Common questions
What is a consulting proposal, and what should it include?
A consulting proposal is a short document that confirms the problem, results, approach and fee you agreed with the client on the call. It has eight parts: their situation in their words, objectives with measures, approach and phases, options with fees, a timeline, assumptions, client responsibilities, and terms with next steps. It ends with a place to sign.
How long should a consulting proposal be?
Usually two to five pages. Weiss writes that his are "typically two-and-a-half pages", because the proposal confirms a conversation rather than making the case from scratch. If yours runs much longer, the extra pages are often about you, or a sign the scope isn't agreed yet. The worked example runs about three pages.
Why offer three options?
Three options let the client choose how much help to buy instead of whether to hire you. Each should meet the objectives on its own. Each step up should add something the client can see, such as a pilot or a full launch, not just more hours. Never add an option you wouldn't be glad to deliver.
Should I put fees in a consulting proposal?
Yes, once you have agreed the scope on the call. Give one fixed fee per option and a payment schedule, so the client compares outcomes rather than hourly rates. If they asked for a day rate, give the rate, an estimate of days and a cap. The terms section covers payment, expenses and changes.
What's the difference between a proposal and a statement of work?
The proposal sells the work: the problem, the objectives and options for the client to choose from. The statement of work comes after they choose, and fixes what is in and out of scope, each deliverable and how it's accepted, and when you're paid. Our statement of work template picks up where this one ends.
Does River write the proposal for me?
Only a first draft, and only from what you paste. Client facts, figures and quotes come from your notes. Every fee stays in brackets for you to set, and every missing fact goes on a list of questions for the client. You choose the approach, the options and the price, and you can change every line.
Is it safe to paste my client's details?
What you paste stays in your own River space unless you share it. Under River's privacy policy, your content isn't used to train AI models, and River's AI providers are bound by their agreements with River not to train on it. Check your NDA with the client before pasting anything it covers.
Your next step
More for your project
Send a proposal the client can say yes to
Open the template with every section in place, or paste your call notes for a first draft with the gaps marked.