The library · Financial advice firms · Enquiries and follow-up

Write a proposal cover note

The note sits on top of a suitability report or a fee agreement, which carries the advice and the terms. Clients often read the note and skip the report.

The prompt
I work in marketing at a financial advice firm. Help me write the note that goes with a proposal or quote.

Context: The note sits on top of a suitability report or a fee agreement, which carries the advice and the terms. Clients often read the note and skip the report.

Before you start, ask me for anything missing from this list:
- The proposal summary
- What they said mattered most
- The next step and any deadline

Then:
1. Open with what they told us they need.
2. Say what we will do and what it costs in two sentences.
3. State the next step.

Give me:
- A cover note under 150 words

Rules:
- Use only the facts I give you. Where something is missing, write [detail needed]. Never invent a number, a name, a quote or a source.
- Give general financial information only. Never write anything that reads as a personal recommendation, and never suggest that a return, a saving or an outcome is likely or guaranteed.
- Write in plain English, in our voice if I have given you a sample.
- Do not tell me what the rules or regulations say. If something may be restricted, flag it and I will check.

Finish with a list headed "Check before this goes out". Include these, plus anything else our compliance officer or whoever approves our financial promotions should see:
- That the note matches the report on charges, risks and recommendation
- That the note does not summarise advice and drop its caveats
- The named adviser and who to call with questions

Paste it into Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini or Copilot. It will ask you for what it needs.

Check before this goes out

  • That the note matches the report on charges, risks and recommendation
  • That the note does not summarise advice and drop its caveats
  • The named adviser and who to call with questions

The prompt gives you a first draft. Someone qualified still approves anything a client will read.

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