Acronym soup

While acronyms and client-specific terminology can simplify communication they can also make it worse, particularly for people who might not know the meaning of all the acronyms or terminology being used. 

It's important to always remember that source selection teams are sometimes staffed with available people and peripheral stakeholders who might not be completely versed in the client acronyms or terminology.  Moreover, all your proposal contributors need to make sure they are using acronyms and terminology correctly! 

I have always found it useful to create a "wall of truth" when working on a proposal to make sure that acronyms and terms are used correctly!   https://acronymfinder.com (and other on-line resources) can be very helpful at discerning the range of possible meanings and figuring out which one might be applicable to your situation.

Terminology, on the other hand, is equally important.  For example, on a recent proposal the client was the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).  Their RFP had thousands of pages of "technical references" associated with the RFP.  Some proposal authors referred to these technical references (in their writing) as the "specifications."  Well, as it turns out, every patent application contains a very specific legal document called the "specification."  We had to make very sure that the only time we used the word "specification" was when we were addressing that very particular document within a patent application and NOT the "technical references."  This was an excellent "wall of truth" item for all proposal authors.

Then, as allowed in the proposal preparation instructions, include these acronyms and terms with your proposal submission, perhaps as an appendix outside of any page count restrictions (at the end).

Whether you create an actual "wall of truth" on a whiteboard (in a proposal war room), or virtually via Microsoft Teams or some other collaboration platform, make sure to define all acronyms and terminology to ensure correct use throughout your proposal!