Today, it is still easy to understand that a stone age drawing showing a man with a spear and a deer means "hunting for food."The evolution of written language over several hundred thousand years has not diminished the importance of communicating through pictures. In proposals, communication of details is made especially difficult by the severe page restrictions we often encounter. In addition to improving the overall presentation, the use of graphics is a primary tool in reducing pages. While there is no magic percentage, winning proposals often have 30-60% total page space in graphics.

The hardest part about enhancing your proposal with graphics is identifying them. Once identified, the actual illustration is straightforward. Which software to use doesn’t matter. Yes, graphic artists have their preferences, but when the choice is between no graphics or graphics in the only software you have and know how to use, it really no longer matters. Read More

[Editor's note: Dave Herndon recently returned from leading an OCI team in preparing a proposal for an air transportation vendor serving the USPS and other customers. Dave's team used a digital camera to provide color illustrations of customer facilities, equipment, and personnel for the proposal.]

Perhaps the most significant new tool available to proposal managers for preparing proposal graphics is the digital camera. The digital camera allows the easy inclusion of a wide range of photographs in proposals. Read More