How to Ask Companies for Stuff
Introduction
So, you want to ask a company to send some free stuff to your DBF team, but you’re not quite sure how to do it professionally? What you need is a good proposal. Once you’ve got a decent proposal prepared, it should be fairly easy to modify to send to other companies. The guidelines herein are merely for a general proposal, but be aware that some companies may have a specified outline for proposals that you should follow.
Where to start - Cover Letter
First, draft up a "cover letter." This should be a brief (one or two paragraphs) summary explaining who you are, what you want, and what they’ll get in exchange. Indicate that your actual proposal is included as an attachment. Be sure to include all of your contact information at the bottom of the letter, in case they have any questions.
The Proposal
The proposal should probably include eight sections: objective, background, team achievements, future developments, advantages of the donation, financial need, advertisement, and conclusion. Basically, you want to tell them what you’re going to tell them, tell it in detail, and then tell them what you told them. The most important thing is to be concise, yet informative and persuasive. Here are some guidelines for the eight sections:
Objective
Who are you? What do you want? And why do you want it? Explain in one sentence.
Background
Describe the competition a little bit. How active has your school been in DBF in past years? What is the purpose of DBF? Why is it important to students in their pursuit of a career in engineering? Reference the competition website for more information. This should be one or two paragraphs.
Team Achievements
Where do you stand in the design process? Sound excited about where you are and where you’re headed. How well has your team done in the past? One paragraph.
Future Developments
What are plans from now until competition? Try to relate this to whatever item you’re asking for. For example, if you’re asking for building supplies, mention the team’s excitement to start manufacturing the aircraft. One paragraph. You may be able to combine this section with "Team Achievements," just call it something else.
Advantages of the Donation
How will this company’s product help your team succeed (why should they give it to you)? How would it benefit your team? One or two paragraphs...this section is particularly important so make it good!
Financial Need
Explain your funding situation. Why can’t you afford this product for yourself? One or two paragraphs.
Advertisement
What’s in it for the company? What’s their incentive to give you something? You could advertise the sponsor on your team’s website, advertise with logos on your aircraft at competition, prepare a display banner for competition that names your sponsors, or find some other way to publicly announce their generosity. One paragraph.
Conclusion
Summarize why the donation of this product contributes to the betterment of your DBF team. Thank them for considering your proposal. One paragraph (should be as short as possible).
--Bev
