We’ve been introduced to some of our best clients through pretty gnarly RFPs, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Here are a few tips to get a better partner for your digital project:
- Talk to a few companies about your project before writing or issuing your RFP. Their questions can help you identify holes in your definition of scope.
- If allowed, limit the number of companies that are invited to respond to your RFP. We always put more effort into a proposal when we are personally invited to respond, or when we know there won’t be hundreds of responses.
- Provide opportunities for direct interaction with potential partners to ask questions during the RFP process (in person, phone & written). Pre-bid calls with all interested companies attending are of limited help, as most companies will be circumspect to avoid giving away insights. Only allowing written questions often results in incomplete, duplicated and frustrating answers. We understand that you may have to ensure all answers are given to all interested parties, but 1-1 calls are tremendously helpful to get clarity on questions, and to give both parties a sense of what their partnership might be like.
- Allow 1-2 weeks between your RFP release and the deadline for questions. We want to read your RFP thoroughly to submit good questions, and we may be in the middle of 2-3 other proposals when your RFP drops.
- Provide 2-3 weeks to prepare a proposal after answers are given (not 2-3 days!). Your answers could cause us to re-estimate the work, or significantly alter our proposal. This takes time.
- Describe the team who will be engaged in the project on your end, what their roles are and how much time they will have available to participate in the project. This helps us know the level of collaboration we can expect, and where we might reduce costs by sharing the work.
- Clarify any existing relationships with other strategy, design or marketing firms. This is crucial if you already have conducted research that will inform the new project, or if you are in the midst of a project (like a rebranding) that will directly impact your digital project.
- Be open about how many firms have been invited to respond.
- If at all possible, share an expected budget range for the engagement. This can have a significant impact on the approach a bidder proposes, and can help both you and bidders avoid wasted effort.
- Consider a discovery phase as a first step. Allow bidders to provide budget ranges for later phases of the project that aren’t precisely defined yet.
- Allow proposals to be submitted via email. Requiring multiple hard copies costs hundreds of dollars for printing and shipping, and adds at least another 2 days to the RFP timeline.
- Provide clear guidance regarding proposal structure and format in ONE PLACE. Many RFPs have contradictory or confusing instructions about how proposals should be organized scattered throughout the RFP. This happens often when an RFP has been cut and pasted together from parts of other RFPs. We call this a Franken-RFP.
We know an RFP procurement can be tedious for everybody involved. You’re eager to start the project, but you have to go through this process which can easily take 4-6 months. A well-organized RFP will not only save you time, but it signals to firms like NewCity that you are a professional organization that understands digital projects and you’ll be great to work with! You’ll get better proposals and better pricing.
If you have a RFP in your future, or just thinking about one, please contact us at hello@insidenewcity.com, or call Matt Simmons, Vice President of Business Development & Client Strategy, at 540-392-6538.
We have a list of questions we love to see answered in an RFP, we’ll be glad to send it to you!
