In industry, a lot of professional payments for design work tends to be completed in stages.
Priority of resources, time, effort, etc is based on how much you are getting paid. Time is money.
Project Proposals:
Set clear aims and objectives.
Overall aims - General outcome
Specific aims - Specific outcomes
Objectives - Outputs
Aims are the changes that your project will make to the status quo.
Changes in people’s perceptions.
Changes to the way people do things.
Political change.
Social change.
The impact that your finished work is designed to have on a particular audience or user.
Objectives are the methods and activities by which you plan to achieve your aims.
What research will you carry out.
Where will you go for specialist information.
What kind of people will you contact to help you along.
What expert advice will you need.
What processes ……
……
S pecific - Details exactly what needs to be done.
M easurable - Achievements can be measured in terms of units, or specific success criteria.
A chievable - That resources, scope and scale are within your capabilities or capacity.
R ealistic - The objectives are possible to attain -which is important for your motivation.
T ime - The period of time, target dates, schedule or timetable is clearly defined.
Show the research you have already done.
Who needs it?
Why do they need it?
What evidence can you provide to support your argument?
What circumstances have created this need?
Don’t make empty statements.
Who are they? (audience)
Demographics.
Locations.
Lifestyle.
Which industry.
What values do they have?
What will they engage with it?
Describe your motivations.
What are your goals?
What are your ambitions?
What are your success criteria?
What are your values?
- Political standpoint.
- Environmental concerns.
- Social factors.
- Economic factors.
Make your proposal easy to read by:
Using a professional template/layout.
Using the appropriate tone.
Not repeating yourself to pad it out.
Asking two people to check your grammar and spelling before you submit.
Visualise the ending.
What do they require?
Begin with your vision of the ending in mind.
What does the project require?
What criteria do you need to satisfy?
Who is the target audience?
What will stimulate their interest or hook them into the idea?
What do they expect to get, personally and professionally out of the project.
What do you require?
What do you requite for the project.
What initial research will you undertake to stimulate your interests or start you on the research journey?
What criteria do you need to satisfy?
Who are your target audience?
What you want to get, personally and professionally out of the project in terms of recognition, challenge and achievement.
Assume nothing.
Except that the reader of your proposal knows nothing about you, your skills or the context of your project.
Explain everything.
Question everything.
If everything does something the same way.. nothing will stand out. Follow these rules, but break them too.
