werepeLeri:

Why will someone say the bolded?

But there is a question that comes to mind. How will you know if you are the only one that submitted a proposal similar to yours to the same agency?

How will you know?

Soul_caine: @ sheyma get a non disclosure agreement. Had sth with a telecom coy too. Good luck and be careful

drzed:

First of all, dont make the mistake which many Nigerians make when submitting proposal.

The best approach is to introduce the project, describe the problem and simply highlight the solutions that will emerge. NEVER (and I repeat) NEVER ever describe the methods, technique, process or the actual approach to reaching the solution. This will be done ONLY after trust and guarantees have been established. Let me explain.

For example:

1). You have identified how Company A will increase profit at half the cost of providing a popular service (lets call it Service X).
2). In your initial proposal, just simply overview (i.e. give an introduction) of who you are and how your expertise matches their business model, then;
3). Discuss why/how they are losing money through their current procedures (this is the part where you catch their attention by exposing their weakness or inefficiency) and then;
4). Explain in the proposal that profits can be increased by reducing costs of providing Service X; by following a new approach called Solution Y, which you developed originally.

Then you can now submit the draft proposal which is just a skeleton without flesh. But also have another version of the proposal which contains details of HOW they can arrive at Solution Y by following your brilliant concept. But keep the detailed proposal secret until the time is ripe (See STEP 9 below). If they ask why you are withholding details, be honest: Tell them you are protecting your idea.

5). At this stage, (assuming that the company truly wants/needs to cut down cost of Service X) your phone will be ringing off the hook with calls from their representatives. Agree to meet them, and prepare a PPT presentation of the same material in your original/skeletal proposal, just in case. They may/would want you to make an oral presentation (besides, its a professional to always be ready).

6). Before you go get legal representative (lawyer) to prepare a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) and have the idea/proposal copyrighted as well. This is much more than putting letter C in a circle. There are official ways of copyrighting and it is cheap. For effizy, you can even get a dark suited lawyer to accompany you. There are samples of NDAs online that you can modify by yourself, but having a legal firm prepare one with their letter head and/or having a lawyer accompany you is more effective in Nigeria. They wont want to mess with you.

7). If they are honest and truly require your service, they will sign the NDA. Just make sure you have audio and video recording of the signing process, especially IF a lawyer is not present. Dont let them know you are recording the process. Pssst: ask Otedola for handout on how to capture crooks digitally. Audiovisual recorders in the form of spy pens, ties, fez caps and wristwatches abound everywhere even in Nigeria of today.

8'). If they are dishonest (and 75% of your potential Nigerian clients fall into this category) they will not agree to sign the NDA. In that case, walk away. It is better to "die" with your original idea than have id1ots steal it, while you gnash your teeth each time you watch it being executed. Walk away and approach their competitors or find a willing investor, in which case, repeat STEPS 1 to 7 above.

9). For the honest 25%, after the NDA is signed, you can now bring out the second detailed PPT slides (or detailed documentation) which contains the HOW aspect of your proposal. Dont expect this NDA thing to happen overnight. They will likely consult their own lawyer and re-invite you for the signing after some days/weeks.

10). If they breach the terms of the NDA i.e. execute it without you or disclose it to some third party without your permission, (explicit or otherwise), you can confidently approach Mohammed Fawehimi and similar legal folks who like to take on (i.e. sue) such crooked Nigerians head-on...sometimes for free, or sometimes for a fixed percentage of the spoils of war! But you can also reach a journalist who is looking for a story like this to make a name for him/herself. Trust me, big companies and big men dont like being rubbished in the media, especially if their is audio or video evidence.

11). Did I mention that you should dress VERY well each time you visit your clients? Once your potential clients (especially the crooked 75%) perceive you to be a hustler or 'hungry man', they will be tempted to out-muscle you out of your ideas. First impression matters. Borrow your friend's decent car for the trip if you have to. Sounds funny, but it is true. Even in developed countries: a successful looking consultant has bigger chance of tying up a deal than a tattered-looking, job-seeking, desperate-sounding hustler. Sad, but true. Ask yourself, if you were the CEO of a Telecoms or Fast Food company, will you not be more comfortable parting with 10 Million Naira to a well-dressed consultant, rather than to a ragged-looking fellow?

12). Also bring along a colleague or two each time you visit them. Even if they are not your employees or business partners, the presence of two or three of you in a room will inspire confidence in your consultancy. A one-man show is not usually well-respected and does not always look professional. Think about it: you are the minister of Railways and you want to do a deal with a German company to deliver High Speed Urban Trains to each Nigerian City. Will you be happy if only ONE German showed up all the way from Munich? Or will you be more impressed if he came with a team?

Well, thats my two cents based on experience. Enjoy your success. Remember, there is no such thing as luck. What people call luck is simply a matter of preparation meeting opportunity. Be prepared and know your worth. I am also assuming that you have a registered business, if you dont, you are essentially wasting your time trying to do consulting work with private or public entities.

cheers
Suggested Reading: Million Dollar Consulting by Alan Weiss

logica: Guy are you one of those idea thieves being spoken about here? Surely you know what is being spoken about here. If an idea is not new and other proposals of the same nature had been submitted, would it not be normal for the proposer to be so informed? Or what would explain the recurrent theme of being strung along just long enough to get a working knowledge of the idea before being jettisoned?

werepeLeri:

Loud smelly mouth. A simple question was asked, you come bring your smelly mouth like say na you know everything? Duncey duncey dunc.e. I don steal your grandpa idea before? Can you even come up with an idea worth my effort in reading talkless of stealing it? mtcheewww. Gerrout. Answer simple question instead of playing over sabi house wife wey dey call him husband Uncle.

logica: Who go help this ediot answer hin s.tupid question? Continue waiting for answer. Monkey.

But if not for the fact that you are retarde.ed you would have seen the answer in my post: *hint* it is customary to be informed if your idea/proposal is now new. Are you feeling a twinge of guilty conscience? Even monkeys can feel guilty. Allah be praised.

werepeLeri:

Allah? See twert dey mention that name. Dummy smelly mouth. Imbeci.le - i know your Dad calls your Mum those three names, Monkey and eeeediot and retarde/d...and she answers - hey buffon. LOL. Allah indeed.

It wasnt a question I expected the answer from a low lifer like u. Read in between the lines sometimes.

logica: Yes o! Allah be praised that your father is scratching his crotch after fvcking your werepe infested mother's stinking hole. Isn't that how they came to name you "werepeleri"? K'o baje fun e.

werepeLeri:

This thing pain u gangan o. LOL. Catching fun here. I never knew you are a Boko Haram, I wouldnt have wasted time on you bas.tard. Go prepare more bomb to bomb your goatie bearded head.

logica: Lame a$$. Who asked whether you were catching fun or a disease? Be gone and stop polluting the thread.

Ji_sun_pack: I did some things for NNPC which could have made me multi millionaire as far back a 2008 and made me go into early retirements, just when I finish cooking the meal the mudaphockers removed me from the loop.


Don't you ever contribute your shyyt to those dirty bastards. Now, you'd pay me 70% else I ain't gonna drop nothing to nobody.

Ji_sun_pack: I did some things for NNPC which could have made me multi millionaire as far back a 2008 and made me go into early retirements, just when I finish cooking the meal the mudaphockers removed me from the loop.


Don't you ever contribute your shyyt to those dirty bastards. Now, you'd pay me 70% else I ain't gonna drop nothing to nobody.

okunboy: Take Note:

1) Do not bid for advertised contract by the Govt....in most cases they have 'owners'. Or in worst cases the advertised job had already been awarded or even executed. DONT Waste your precious time, money and energy!

2) If you av got a proposal for a agency, try to get enof info abt the organization, their budget, etc. Most importantly try to get the right contact.....and present yourself as one who they can do business with. Once you can win the confidence of say the DG....you are way up to push ur proposal thru.

3) Put an identity to your proposal.....don't go about submitting your ideas for others to steal. Submit yourself first! Over 80% of contract awarded here are strictly based on personal relationship.

4) Becareful who you are dealing with......! You may be dealing with a commissioner (in a State for instance) and later find out he's a wrong person. I don't deal with commissioners, in most cases they are rogues. If I have a proposal for a State I seek audience with the Governor or his deputy or any member of his 'kitchen cabinet'. If it's a university, my target is the VC, chairman of Council or any other political members in the council.

5) Dont think you are the only one with the idea. Nigerians are dynamic people. You may find others with the same idea you have.....it does not mean they steal it from you.... So be prepared and maintain an open mind.

6) Nigeria business environment is an ocean sometimes full of sharks and whales, swim carefully, be strong and be courageous! God Bless!!!

samchide: @ op the truth is that you must have and understand the power of your God (universe) and you must also have an insider. You might win the contract and execute the Job but what about your money? Without and insider they keep telling you to come back and for years you won't get to have your money till another government takes over .

Biggoozz:

Ok Okunboy, pls mail your id and if you don't mind, a number I can contact you with to solutionboxx@gmail.com. Thanks.

Yomieluv: Am not into projecting,can you involve a lawyer at the presentation,in order to make it legal,or do a better version of it that includes more features,when presenting it,remove the salient points,so you must be present in the implementation...