6 Questions to Ask Before Responding to an RFP
Picture this: you’ve just received your fourth Request for Proposal (RFP) this week. While reading through the document, your mind runs through a quick-fire list of RFP evaluation criteria. Client relationship, the opportunity value, and the timeline all race through your mind. After a quick review, you decide: This proposal is worth responding to.
Pause. What’s wrong with this RFP process?
As David Allen, author of Getting Things Done, once said: “Your mind is for having ideas, not holding them.” And your process for responding to RFPs should be no different.
The reality is, writing RFP responses takes up valuable time, resources, and collective energy, so it’s important to evaluate bids using a consistent, scalable approach that the whole team is aligned with. (Otherwise, the proposal process can get messy as different employees use a range of approaches, with no consistent RFP evaluation matrix.)
So, how do you respond to an RFP with confidence? Read on for industry insights, recommended criteria, and advice that makes the process easier for both proposal and procurement teams.
In this article you’ll learn:
RFP Evaluation Process: 76% of Teams Use Go/No-Go Frameworks
Research shows that 76% of teams use some form of go/no-go decision framework before starting a response to an RFP.
More than three-quarters of teams believe it’s valuable to assess customer fit before investing resources into a proposal. This is because establishing criteria upfront helps teams be more impartial and consistent from the outset of their RFP process.
Too busy to create a custom framework? Download Loopio’s Free go/no-go template now.
Choosing Your RFP Evaluation Criteria: Questions to Ask
While there are many factors to consider when evaluating and how to respond to an RFP, we’ve narrowed it down to six critical questions to reflect on.
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1. Is the Client a Good Fit?
Consider whether this opportunity is the right fit for your business and put significant weigh on this question. For example, if you cannot deliver immediate (or future) value in the required timeframe, the customer may be a bad fit. Or, if you’ve done projects similar to this one in the past, take a deeper look at your previous RFP success metrics. If the data indicates that it’s a poor fit and seems like a long shot, approach the document with caution.
Plus, how much do you know about this industry? This will also help you assess if the RFP opportunity is a good fit because it’s important to understand if the issuing business is actually part of your target market. If you receive a proposal for an industry that isn’t relevant to your business, you could be doing your company a disservice by responding.
Risks of bringing on an ill-fitting customer include:
- They’re more likely to churn
- They could point your product in the wrong direction
- They may negatively impact team morale
Questions to Assess Customer Fit:
✓ Is this industry a fit for your business? Do you know enough about the industry, its pain points, and how to best solve them? Does the customer fit your strategic and sales goals? Consider if you’ve had success with similar companies and industries in the past (or if the issuing company is outside your target market).
✓ Do you have project insight? Did you anticipate that your company would respond to this RFP? Do you have distinct insights into the potential client’s needs and expectations? Or is the project information based solely on solicitation?
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2. Do You Have an Existing Relationship or Connection with the Prospect?
Your relationship with the prospect can have a strong influence on the success of a submitted RFP. Access to the decision-maker who is choosing vendors, stakeholders, or influencers in the process can all give you a leg up on the competition.
With an existing relationship in place, you’ll have a better sense of the prospect’s needs and timelines, as well as opportunities to ask (important) clarifying questions. For example, Qualtrics, an experience management software, sends hundreds of RFP responses every year. In their experience, they found that relationship is the number one influencer in winning a response to an RFP.
Questions to Assess Client Relationship:
✓ Have you worked with this organization in the past? Does your team have a well-developed relationship with this potential client? If you have never worked with the company and the RFP is your first touchpoint (also known as a “blind RFP”), your chances for consideration might be lower.
✓ Do you know who the decision-makers are? Can you speak to key contacts for more information? Do you have access to any stakeholders that can share insights or influence the decision-making process?
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3. Who Are You Competing Against?
Watch out for competitor language in the RFP. You might notice references to specific product features or terminology that a competitor is known for, which can signal a predetermined choice by the prospect (or, even worse, a competitor’s involvement in creating the requirements).
While it’s possible that the customer is already considering another product, remember—you don’t know for sure unless you ask.
Questions to Assess the Competitive Landscape:
✓ Do you have competition? Be sure to evaluate the RFP for any references to specific features you’re known for—or that your competitor has instead.
✓ Is your team qualified? It’s important to self-evaluate your team and ask whether you’re superior to most (if not all) of your competitors. Do you have relevant experience, or are you marginally qualified?
According to Leslie Douglas, Director of Sales Training at JB Sales, this is particularly more common in the private sector because it doesn’t adhere to the same compliance requirements as organizations within the public sector. A way to prepare for these types of blind bids is to educate yourself on the key messages and value props of your competitors.
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4. Do You Have Time to Complete a Quality RFP Response?
It takes time to write a focused response to an RFP. Teams may have just weeks (or sometimes even days) to submit an RFP response, so the deadline is another important factor. A request with a tight timeframe will mean a rushed job and a higher likelihood of missing the opportunity.
Last-minute requests can also signal the prospect has already selected their vendor. If this is the case, they may only be issuing an RFP to comply with their internal procurement process.
Questions to Assess Your RFP Process Timeline:
✓ Does this timeline comply with your team’s typical turnaround? Before thinking about how to respond to an RFP, consider if this proposal is possible within your team’s service level agreements. (For example: providing your legal team three business days to review.) If not, can you make a case for why your team should make an exception for this particular bid?
✓ How often do you win bids with a tight deadline? Look back at past RFPs that your team has rushed. If your win rate is relatively low on these bids, you should consider passing on this opportunity.
✓ Can you reuse existing RFP content? If you can reuse content from past proposals, you may be able to respond to an RFP faster than expected. Are there little-to-no new requirements, or will you need to spend time customizing the document?
✓ What stage of the sales cycle is the RFP received? The stage of the sales cycle in which an RFP is received also dictates how you should proceed. For example, if a tech company has already been through a demo and is nearly halfway through the sales cycle, there’s a good chance that they will move forward with the product.
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5. Do You Have the Right Resources, Including SMEs?
Next, you need to determine if you have the right resources available—including access to your Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) within your RFP’s timeline. Remember, you probably have to do more than hit the minimum requirements of the RFP to win the final round.
According to new RFP management trends, the average RFP response takes approximately 24 hours to complete—a trend that has held steady over the past three years.
Questions to Assess Team Resources:
✓ Do you have resources available? How much bandwidth do you and your team have to spare? Is your core bid team available? What about additional resources? Consider if the project scope is stretching the team too thin.
✓ Do you have buy-in? Do you have buy-in from the right internal stakeholders to meet this deadline? Or is this an important client for your team to retain?
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6. What is the Value of Undertaking the RFP Process vs. Winning?
Take a step back and ask yourself, what is the cost of pursuing this opportunity? Spending 15 hours on a potential $5,000 deal is less efficient than spending 25 hours on a proposed $200,000 contract. That’s why weighing your time against the opportunity will allow you to better prioritize which RFPs to pursue.
To calculate this, you’ll need to understand your return on investment (ROI) for this particular bid. Many RFP responses simply aren’t worth the resources it costs to respond, based on your chances of winning.
Want to learn how to calculate return on investment for each proposal? Read this guide on RFP metrics.
Questions to Assess the Opportunity’s Value:
✓ What is the cost of pursuing this opportunity? Based on your odds of winning, is the cost to submit reasonable? Or is there a high cost of resources for a bid you’re not likely to succeed with? Consider whether the cost is worth the gain for this opportunity (which brings us to our next point).
✓ What’s the value of winning? By submitting this bid, are you likely to meet or exceed your team’s profit goals? Or is this a low-value RFP that won’t help your team reach its target profit? Compare the value of this RFP to your team’s overall revenue goals.
Remember: you don’t have to decide immediately.
It’s important to keep in mind that you don’t have to decide to move forward with an RFP opportunity right away. It’s okay to take the time to ask the potential customer some questions about the proposal (or any other context that you may need) in order to submit the best (or most appropriate) response.
Putting RFP Evaluation Criteria Best Practices into Action
Now that you know the criteria for assessing an RFP, you need to make your framework actionable. Here are the two steps you need to take to put your new RFP evaluation criteria to work.
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Create a Standardized RFP Intake Form
In an ideal world, your RFP process should start before the RFP arrives. Prepare an alert system so that every time you hear about a potential proposal, key stakeholders are notified to start the RFP assessment process.
One way to do this is to create a mandatory intake form. That’s what the Qualtrics team does to handle their massive volume of hundreds of proposals each year. When someone becomes aware of an RFP, they fill out a form with briefing details—even if the RFP itself isn’t yet available.
This helps start the evaluation process early, so the RFP team can determine if they have bandwidth based on the timeline.
You can create your intake form using existing systems like Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, or any Customer Relationship Manager (CRM) of choice. (Google Forms will do in a pinch too.)
What to Include on Your RFP Intake Form
- Due dates (including those for questions and preliminary forms)
- Company name (company as well as parent company, if known)
- Sales routing information (geographic region, vertical, company size
- Request type and format (web portal, spreadsheet, document)
- Notes on the prospect’s needs and potential key win themes
- Opportunity $ value (if known)
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Draft Your Own Go/No-Go Framework
To determine which RFPs are worth their time, many teams create a “go/no-go” decision framework using the key questions we covered above (also known as a ‘bid no bid process). This framework helps consistently focus on the bids most deserving of your team’s time and attention.
Looking at the evaluation criteria we just covered, which are the crucial questions that you’d like your own bid/no bid framework to cover?
Make sure your questions include the following categories:
- Customer fit
- Relationship
- Competition
- Timeline
- Resources
- Opportunity Value
Too busy to create a custom framework?
When Should You Not Respond to an RFP? (How to Gracefully Say ‘No’)
If you go through an assessment process and still feel uncertain about an RFP, consider revisiting the opportunity with your team. Be honest about your hesitation—there’s no shame in backing out gracefully.
Letting your prospect down gently builds trust and can help you establish the foundation for a future relationship. Vendor understand that writing an RFP response is a big lift for you—but it’s also a big lift for the folks reviewing the RFP. Try and do your part to make their job easier, by letting them know your company doesn’t have the right solution through a no-bid letter.
What is a No Bid Letter?
A no bid letter helps you maintain your relationship with the customer—while also providing candid feedback about why this RFP doesn’t suit your business.
Send this polite submission through the same channels as you’d submit the RFP—you may be surprised how this approach reaps rewards in the long run.
In some instances, if the potential customer wants your business, they may cancel the RFP and reissue it based on your feedback. (Pro-tip: templatize this friendly no-bid letter, so you can efficiently use it anytime you need to say no to an RFP).
Want to learn more about RFP best practices? Learn how to respond to an RFP letter of rejection.
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