Almost everything in a federal proposal can be viewed as a template except the proposed solution itself: resumes, corporate experience descriptions, and management plan sections. In some cases the proposed solution can be partially written using a template, particularly for operating support service contracts like base maintenance and information technology infrastructure.

Almost all companies use proposal templates to varying degrees. You can't have too many since they are the key to reducing proposal writing costs. Two key rules govern the use of templates:

1. Every template used in a proposal must be tailored to the specifics of the Request for Proposal (RFP). Templates will look like off-the-shelf templates if they aren't tailored and evaluators will downgrade your proposal. The goal is to make a template look like original text.
2. Don't lose track of your legacy content (templates). They won't save money if your writers don't know they exist or how to find them. Develop a template database and inform all proposal writing personnel of its contents.