You’ve come up with a solid product idea and can’t wait to launch it in the market. The ultimate test, however, is getting others to believe in your idea. To do that, you need to effectively sell the product vision to investors, which requires an excellent product proposal. A well-crafted product proposal is key to gaining their confidence and support.
But how do you create one? In this article, I will explain the step-by-step process of creating a compelling product proposal with a proposal maker and share some product proposal templates to help you ace your pitch and turn your vision into a reality.
Click to jump ahead:
- What is a product proposal?
- The anatomy of a winning product proposal
- Sample proposal templates
- Create winning product proposals with Venngage
What is a product proposal?
A product proposal is a detailed document or presentation to pitch a product to potential investors, customers or collaborators. It outlines the purpose and scope of the product, target audience, competitors and product roadmap.
You can use a product proposal to seek help for the development of a new product or request funding to launch the product.
The key purpose of a product proposal is to communicate the product vision to the investors and relevant stakeholders and highlight the product’s success potential.
Benefits of a well-written proposal
Here’s why you need a well-written proposal:
- Funding potential: A compelling proposal increases your chances of securing funding by clearly articulating the value of your product, its market potential, and the return on investment for stakeholders. Investors are more likely to commit when they see a clear, professional presentation of your vision and strategy.
- Structured project roadmap: A well-organized business proposal outlines a detailed roadmap for your product’s development, launch, and growth. This structured approach demonstrates your preparedness and ensures stakeholders understand the steps required to achieve your goals.
- Better chances of product approval: By addressing key concerns and providing data-driven insights, a polished proposal instills confidence in decision-makers. It shows that you’ve anticipated challenges, planned solutions, and are ready to execute effectively—significantly increasing the likelihood of approval.
The anatomy of a winning product proposal
Now, let’s see the different sections of a product proposal and how to write them.
1. Executive summary
Individual venture capital firms receive 1000 proposals a year. How do you make the cut in such a cutthroat competition?
The best way to do that is to add a compelling executive summary. Investors don’t always have the time to go through a 10-20 pages proposal in detail. So, providing a quick overview of your product idea, the challenges it solves and the product implementation plan in the beginning, helps the investors and stakeholders understand your vision and make decisions faster.
Here are a few tips to keep in mind while writing the executive summary:
- Use a storytelling approach. Start with an intriguing fact, statistic, or anecdote
- Highlight the most significant challenge your product will solve
- Keep the summary short, 1-2 pages max
Let’s see an executive summary example for an inventory management product.
Executive summary example:
Small businesses lose an estimated $10 billion annually due to inefficient inventory management. Many still rely on outdated systems that lead to excess stock and lost sales.
StockSmart is an AI-powered inventory management platform designed for small and medium-sized businesses. By predicting demand with 95% accuracy, StockSmart helps businesses optimize stock levels, reduce waste, and boost profitability.
The global market for inventory management solutions is growing rapidly, with the SMB segment projected to reach $5 billion by 2026. StockSmart has already onboarded 100 beta customers, with users reporting up to 20% cost savings in the first quarter.
We are seeking $1 million in Series A funding to accelerate product development, expand marketing efforts, and scale our customer base. With proven results and a growing market, StockSmart is positioned to help businesses increase efficiency and profitability.
Pro Tip: Write the executive summary at last so you have all the relevant data points.
2. Problem and opportunity
Next is the problem and opportunity section where you introduce your product and explain the ‘Why’ behind it. Start by highlighting the industry challenges. This builds the narrative for how your product acts as a breakthrough.
Pro Tip: Include statistics from market surveys and customer quotes to highlight the pain points your product aims to resolve.
3. Solution overview
Now, introduce your product as the solution, highlighting its features and benefits in detail. This is the hero section of your proposal-where you pitch your product, focusing on its unique features and benefits.
Make sure you tie back the solution to the original problem. For example, in the below template, the proposal mentions affordability as a problem and the solution talks about the steps to make the product affordable.
Pro Tip: Instead of trying to increase the appeal of your product, try to identify and address the friction (pain points) of your target audience. Let’s say you are creating a wearable fitness tracker for senior citizens, the friction points could be complex interface and difficulty wearing the band due to conditions like arthritis. Address how your product will solve these friction points.
4. Target market
This section defines who your product is designed for, helping investors understand the specific market needs you’re addressing. By clearly identifying your ideal customers, you demonstrate that you’ve thoroughly researched the market and that your product has a clear value proposition. It also showcases the market demand for your product.
Here are some tips to make the target section stand out:
- Create customer personas: A persona might include their job title, goals, challenges, and buying habits. This humanizes the audience and shows you’ve thought deeply about their needs.
- Categorize your audience: Define your ideal customer by demographics (age, gender, income, location) and psychographics (interests, values, lifestyle). For example, “Our target audience is tech-savvy professionals aged 25-40 who work in fast-paced environments and value productivity tools.”
- Highlight the market opportunity: Provide data on the size and growth potential of the target market. This can include statistics on the number of potential customers or projected market growth in your industry.
5. Competitive analysis
“Why should we invest in your product?” This is the favorite question of investors, especially if there are other competitors in the market.
You can address this question by doing a thorough competitor analysis. Check your competitors’ products, their features, pricing, pros, and cons and provide a comparison chart or a table explaining why your product is better than the other players in the market.
Here is a sample format you can use for competitor analysis:
6. Implementation plan
Product implementation strategy is one of the most crucial sections in a product proposal. It highlights how you’ll market the product, acquire customers, and scale your business to generate higher returns for the investors and stakeholders.
Here’s what to include for a robust and compelling implementation strategy:
- Outline the development roadmap from ideation to launch. Include specific milestones such as prototype creation, testing phases, product iterations, and final production.
- Break down the budget for each stage of the product life cycle, including development, testing, marketing, and scaling. Highlight how funds will be allocated, such as for staffing, technology acquisition, manufacturing, or operational overheads.
- Define your target audience and how you’ll position the product to meet their needs. Outline the channels you’ll use to market the product (e.g., social media, partnerships, advertising campaigns).
- Discuss potential partnerships, supply chain optimizations, or technology enhancements to support growth.
- Go beyond the immediate implementation phase to outline your vision for the next 3-5 years.
7. Success metrics
The key to creating an impressive product proposal is to step into the shoes of the investors and evaluate your product from their perspective. Investors are primarily interested in understanding how your product will generate returns, solve critical problems, or capture market opportunities.
This is why you need to include success metrics in your product proposal. It explains how your product will achieve goals.
Success metrics vary as per the industry. However, here are some of the key metrics you should include in your product proposal:
- Financial performance, including projected revenue growth (% over time).
- Market penetration percentage, customer acquisition rates (e.g., cost per acquisition), customer retention and churn rates.
- Expansion into new markets or geographies.
- Partnerships or collaborations secured
Pro Tip: If you have launched your product in the market and are seeking additional funding, you can highlight success metrics achieved so far in charts or graphs. This not only demonstrates your product’s proven potential but also provides investors with tangible evidence of growth and performance.
8. Team and expertise
Including a section about your team in the product proposal is optional, but it can significantly improve the chances of acceptance. By introducing your team and highlighting their expertise, you provide investors and customers with assurance that your product is backed by a capable and experienced group.
For example, if you are building a product for the telecommunication industry and one of your team members has over a decade of experience in this field, it conveys the investors that your team knows the ins and outs of the industry and have the ability to solve the industry challenges, thereby boosting the credibility of your product.
You can add a short description for each team member, such as “With over a decade of experience in [specific area], [Name] has led [significant achievement] and is the driving force behind our product’s strategy.”
Here are a few things to keep in mind while mentioning your team details in the product proposal:
- Mention your team members’ experience and skills that directly relate to the industry and the product.
- Show how your team’s background equips them to navigate the complexities of the market.
- Provide examples of individual or team accomplishments that reinforce their qualifications and expertise.
You can add your team details in this format:
8. Call to action
Clearly state the next step you expect from the reader (e.g., schedule a meeting, provide feedback). End the proposal with a compelling call to action (CTA). It tells the investors or stakeholders what you expect and prompts them to take action.
Here are some CTAs you can add in your product proposal based on your target audience:
- Partner in Our $10M Growth Strategy!
- Lower Customer Acquisition Cost by $50 per User
- Secure Your Stake in the Next Market Disruptor!
Sample proposal templates
Creating a product proposal from scratch can seem like a herculean task. Outlining sections, adding data, designing the proposal and creating graphics — all of this requires professional expertise.
But, there’s an easy way to create a product proposal — customizable product proposal templates. These templates have pre designed layouts, text, and images to get you started easily. You can easily modify the text, replace images and icons with the drag-and-drop editor, and apply your branding guidelines to create professional product proposals
Below I have listed some of the best product proposal templates you can use to craft a winning product proposal.
1. Product Proposal Template
This minimalist product proposal template is the best for pitching simple ideas. It provides dedicated sections for the table of contents, product concept, goals and objectives, timelines, and estimated budget.
The cover page provides a large space for your product image for a visual appeal. You can add your product’s relevant details.
2. Blue Product Proposal Template
Working on a new technology, such as a smartwatch or wireless earbuds? This Blue Product Proposal Template is a great option to present your plan. The professional proposal format with a simple color theme makes the proposal visually appealing. The ‘Introduction’ page is divided into different sections where you can highlight the existing products in the market and their challenges.
This proposal works best when you want to provide more information about the industry, market players, or product features.
3. New Product Manufacturing Proposal Template
If you are looking for funds to manufacture your product, this Manufacturing Product Template is all you need to convince the investors. It has a professional layout with all the necessary sections to pitch your product.
You can easily talk highlight the product features, explain the manufacturing plan, and provide budget details to manufacture the product.
4. Product Price Proposal Template
The Product Price Proposal Template is for businesses who want to pitch their products to prospective customers. The template provides a table with relevant sections so you can list all your products, their features and pricing, making it easier for customers to make a choice.
Create winning product proposals with Venngage
Initially, the success of your business depends on the strength of your product proposal. To make the best impression, it’s essential to create a compelling and well-crafted proposal. This is where Venngage’s customizable product proposal templates come in. With a wide range of themes, layouts, and dedicated sections tailored to cover every key aspect of your product and industry, you can easily design an impactful product proposal that stands out to investors and stakeholders.
