This course provides the skills necessary to develop a concept for a proposal graphic that conveys your solution in a customer-centric way to contribute to the persuasive power of your proposal.
This class will also show you how to ensure that your graphics have a professional look and feel, including graphics templates and design principles. All the skills taught in this class are specific to Government proposals, which may be different from the traditional graphics design principles.
It is impossible to imagine modern sales and marketing without visual elements—and proposals are no different. Graphics serve as one of the most important proposal persuasion elements.
In addition to brainstorming on a graphic idea, this course also shows you how to design an action caption, sketch a graphic concept, determine how to deliver a specific visual message to the Government customer, and use professional graphic design principles and resources to make your proposal graphics look attractive.
Professional proposal graphics artists are not the only ones who need to learn how to conceptualize and design persuasive proposal graphics. It also happens to be an indispensable skill for capture managers, proposal managers, and proposal writers.
Desktop publishers and even editors will benefit greatly from this proposal graphics training, expanding their professional range and earning potential. This course will also help those who in the small Government contracting businesses who not have the luxury of working with a professional graphic artist and have to design graphics on their own.
This course is 40 percent lecture, 50 percent practice, and 10 percent discussion. You will learn the entire process of creating visuals for your solution, from managing the graphics process to conceptualizing and designing large, graphics-intensive items like cover pages and spines.
The experts who teach our Government business development, capture and proposal training are highly experienced currently practicing proposal professionals whose years of successful experience in Government acquisition and training allow them to offer valuable insights to our students. Our instructors can answer tough questions as they come up during the course. They can also tailor the material to their students’ specific challenges, and share their experience based on the most current realities. Check our instructor’s bios on our About Us page.
Upcoming Classes
Proposal Graphics Conceptualization & Design
OST Global Solutions 7361 Calhoun Place, Suite 560, Rockville, MD, United StatesThis course provides the skills necessary to conceptualize proposal graphics that convey your winning solution to Government customers. In addition to brainstorming on a graphic idea, this training shows you how to design an action caption, sketch a graphic concept, deliver a specific visual message to the Government customer, and use professional graphic design principles and resources to make your graphics look attractive.
Course Details
Location: OST Global Solutions, Inc., 7361 Calhoun Place, Suite 560, Rockville, MD 20855 (check our Visitor Guide for location details, driving directions, nearby hotels and restaurants, and more).
Remote Attendance: This course is available via GoToMeeting with live video feed. The price per seat is the same as in-person participation. Many of our students save on travel costs and attend from other locations.
Professional Certification: This is either a major or elective class that provides 1 unit (1 day) towards Bid & Proposal Academy Certification (depending on the certification type). By attending this class, you will receive 3 CEUs or more towards your APMP certification, or PDUs towards your PMP (check with the PMI on what they will honor). At the end of this course, you will get a Certificate of Completion.
Who should attend this course: Proposal graphic artists, graphic designers, proposal managers, proposal writers, technical writers, proposal coordinators, proposal desktop publishers, proposal department directors, capture managers, project personnel that contributes content to Government proposals, and any other proposal professionals who would like to round out your skills in developing persuasive and winning proposals. You don’t need to be a professional graphic artist to attend this workshop.
Course materials: Course workbook, handouts, templates, forms, and checklists.
Course Curriculum
Learning Objectives
- Choosing the right type of visual to represent your information
- Planning space for graphics and visuals in the document
- Allocating resources to account for graphic conceptualization, creation, and rendering
- Conceptualizing infographics and customer-centric representations of your solution
- Using basic design principles to create attractive graphics
- Finding and using graphics templates and stock art
- Developing powerful action captions to increase persuasiveness of the graphics
- Creating large, graphic-intensive proposal elements such as covers and spines
- Editing graphics to ensure a professional finish
- Inserting and calling out a graphic in the proposal.
Highlights
Module 1: Introduction
- Introductions and learning objectives
- Introduction to graphics and their importance in a proposal
Module 2: Preparing for Graphics Development
- Types of visuals in the proposal
- Ideal proportion of graphics and text
- Resource planning for graphics development
- Graphics management process in a large, graphics-intensive proposal
- Rules and free resources for setting up a customer-centric graphics template and palette
- Establishing graphics sizes and mockups
Exercise: Select a graphics template and palette for the proposal.
Module 3: Easy Principles of Graphics Conceptualization
- Three steps to conceptualizing graphics
- Unlocking the creative process
- Sources of inspiration and ideas
- Types of graphic representation, including an infographic representing your entire solution
- Developing customer-focused, persuasive action captions
- Determining the purpose for the graphic
Exercise: Apply three steps to conceptualize a graphic and its action caption.
Module 4: Designing the Graphics
- Seven cardinal graphics rules
- Four design methods for creating graphics
- Sources of graphics templates and stock art
- How to select and apply graphics templates and stock art to ensure professional results
- Graphics tools and their capabilities and benefits
- Using PowerPoint and other commonly available tools to render professional graphics
- Basic design techniques and shortcuts in PowerPoint
Exercise: Create the first draft of the conceptualized graphic using the available resources.
Module 5: Finishing Touches
- Design principles such as alignment, proportion, and balance
- Editing your graphics to create a professional look and feel
- Designing vignettes, pull-quotes, focus boxes, tables, and other visuals
Exercise: Apply finishing touches to a graphic.
Module 6: Creating Covers and Spines
- Setting up covers
- Preparing cover text
- Selecting photos and images for covers
- Designing spines
- Designing CD covers
- Printing and applying CD covers
Exercise: Design a proposal cover.
Module 7: Graphics in the Proposal Document
- Preparing the graphics for insertion in the proposal
- Graphics file types and sizes
- Placing graphics on the page
- Rules for referencing graphics in the proposal
Exercise: Insert a graphic and its action caption in the proposal.
Module 8: Summary and Recap
Seating is limited!
Cancellations & Rescheduling Policy
Cancellation notification must be received 10 business days prior to the training date. Upon notification, your registration fee will be refunded less a $100 non-refundable processing fee. Any cancellations beyond the 10 business days are non-refundable, but the course fee can be applied towards another training course, webinar, or an OST Global Solutions training product. No refunds will be made for the cancellation of a rescheduled course. Courses need to be rescheduled at least 24 hours in advance because we have to print the materials. As we constantly update the materials, they cannot be reused for another class. If a registrant didn’t request to reschedule and simply doesn’t show up on the day of the class, they forfeit the ability to reschedule. Attendee substitutions may be made at any time. Payment must be received prior to the course date. No-shows are liable for the full class fee.
Additional Information
If you would like to discuss whether this class is right for you or have any other questions, please call (301) 384-3350 during normal business hours.
Other Types of Payment
If you’d like to receive an invoice and pay by check, please send an email to [email protected]*.
*All payments must be received prior to the course start date.