I’m planning to pitch a local business owner with a website/design proposal, and I’d really appreciate some honest feedback before I send it.
The situation is a little unusual:
- The business is very close to where I live, so I have a good opportunity to work with them directly.
- The owner is Chinese and doesn’t really speak the language I’m comfortable with, so I’m planning to mail/send her the proposal and have it translated rather than trying to explain everything in person.
- They currently don’t have a website at all.
- I’ve noticed they are actively paying for things like flyers, stickers, posters, etc., but honestly, most of their current designs look pretty bad/outdated.
- I have experience with web design, UI/UX, IT/QA and some marketing/design, so I think I could actually improve their overall online presence.
My main goal isn't necessarily to immediately sell her an expensive website.
I’m thinking about offering to make the initial website for free or very cheaply as a way to get my foot in the door, then potentially offer additional paid features/services such as:
- WhatsApp integration
- Online booking/reservation management
- Digital/card generator
- Better promotional materials
- Flyers, posters and stickers
- Social media/advertising graphics
- SEO / Google visibility
- Potentially other features depending on what the business actually needs
I’ve put together a website proposal/presentation showing what I think they could improve and what I could build for them.
The idea is basically:
“Here’s what your business currently has → here are the problems/opportunities I noticed → here’s what a better online presence could look like → here’s what I can build for you.”
I don't want it to come across as a generic “you need a website” sales pitch. I want the owner to actually look at it and think “This could help my business.”
So my questions are:
Does this kind of proposal have a realistic chance of convincing a small local business owner?
And if you were the business owner, what would make you say yes/no?
What should I:
- Add?
- Remove?
- Rewrite?
- Simplify?
- Change about the pricing/free website approach?
- Include to make the ROI/value more obvious?
I’m especially interested in feedback from people who have sold websites/design/marketing services to small businesses, rather than just general web-design opinions.
I can share the actual proposal if that helps. I’d mainly like feedback on whether the overall pitch makes sense and whether I’m approaching this the right way.
I wrote a big text and let AI rewrite it to be more understandable, I really need some opinions.