Blog | RFP | Digital Marketing & Technology Agency

RFP 101

Say it: “RFP”. For buyers and vendors alike, the mere mention of the term
results in a deep sigh or two. Why?

Because RFP’s are:

For Buyers

A challenge to write
Time consuming
Where to start?

For Vendors

Too long
Too complicated
Too hard to read

When your RFP is long and convoluted, the responses you will get back will miss the mark-making it harder to find the experts you need to complete your task.

A good RFP is vendor-centric. In other words, written for its intended audience.

To ensure your next RFP is as clear and successful as possible, we’ve assembled a list of 7 points to consider (we’ve learned by reviewing hundreds of them).

Be Easy-To-Read.

Be concise.

Life is busy enough. Don’t make your RFP a slog.

8 – 10 pages of straightforward, concise language should be enough to communicate your goals
Provide a table of contents with anchor links to help navigate the document
Use headlines and subheads to make the content skimmable
Avoid murky language, legalese, jargon or clichés.

Don’t say: “Our new site must have a clean, crisp, modern design.”
Do say: “Our new site must appeal to a younger demographic with Tik Tok-like visual cues.

You can provide links to examples of digital work you like, making it easy for vendors to see
what you’re looking for.

1

Business
up front.

Legal in the back.

Even lawyers don’t love reading legal language, digital vendors even less so. Still, many
companies/organizations insist on inserting legal content first, followed by the business
requirements. Do the reverse.

Help RFP respondents put their best foot forward—give them the info they need to formulate
a good response up front:

An overview of the project
The technical environment they’ll be working in
The scope of what they’ll be doing (in scope and out of scope)
Any mandatories

Finally, put any legal documentation into an Appendix at the end of the document. This
creates a clear delineation between project content and legal, and makes it easier to split
the section off to send around for review.

2

Be clear

about the review process

Let potential vendors know exactly how the process will unfold, and how they’ll be evaluated.

Provide one point of contact
List out key dates
- Date RFP was issued
- Deadline for questions
- Expected response date
- Submission deadline
- Shortlist announcement date
- Shortlist interview dates
- How the winning vendor will be notified
- Expected start date

Explain how responses should be formulated
- Details on a response template, if required
- Details on content sections, and the order you
  want them in
Let people know how they should respond
- Email
- RFP portal
- Snail mail
- Hand-delivered (yes, this still happens
  sometimes)

3

Be clear

on who you want
to work with

If you’re hoping to work with a small local agency or looking for a multinational with a global
network of offices, be clear about it. Identify any “rule in, rule out” factors,
you’ll be taking into consideration.

Describe the ideal partner you’re looking for by answering:
- What will the winning proponent need to have?
- Is having experience in your company's industry or business vertical essential?
- Do you need someone local? Or can the vendor be located anywhere?
Are there any technological requirements the vendor will need to have?

4

Be explicit

about what you’re
looking for

Is your job large? Small? In between? Give a full and complete rundown of all the
services you’re looking for:

Strategy
Information Architecture
Wireframing
Creative Services (Design, Copywriting)
Development (web, iOS, Android)
Augmented Reality
Migration
Content Development
Video
eCom (Shopify, Magento, Other)
Photography/Image Sourcing

Accessibility Audits
SEO
Site Maintenance
Content Maintenance
Reporting
Hosting (on Canadian soil?)
A CMS (Content Management System)
- Enterprise-level (e.g. Adobe Experience Manager)
- Proprietary (e.g. Agility or SiteCore)
- Open source (e.g. WordPress or Drupal)

Detail any specific features you’d like to
integrate:

Exit Intent (e.g. Opt-In Monster)
Push Notifications (e.g. Aimtell)
Chatbot

Looking for 3rd party integrations? List them:

Analytics (e.g. Google Analytics, Tableau)
CRM (e.g. Salesforce, Constant Contact)
ERP (e.g. Microsoft Dynamics 365)
ATS Portal (e.g. Workday)
Intranet/Internal Platform (e.g. Sharepoint)

Finally, also include any value-added services you may be looking for:

Competitive Review
A/B Testing
Awareness/Launch campaign

The more detail you provide on these items, the better chance you have of finding the right vendor for the task at hand.

5

Be realistic

on timing

If you’re trying to launch something by a specific date, let respondents know, so they
can formulate that into their proposal.

Allocate enough time to complete your task
Keep in mind that corporate websites, for example, can take 14 – 18 weeks to complete
Mobile apps may take several months
Factor in some time to get up to speed with a new vendor

6

Communicate

a budget if you can

Most companies don’t include the budget in their RFPs, out of fear that vendors may max out estimates,
or that competitors will gain some insight into their business. While this may be true in some
circumstances, including a budget or budget range in an RFP can go a long way to helping vendors put a
viable plan together. Including a budget can:

Weed out unsuitable vendors
Help agencies determine if your budget matches their minimum engagement size

If you decide to include a budget, you’ll also want to let vendors know if it’s an all-in budget, or if things
like platform or hosting costs are separate.

Aren’t sure what your budget should be? Try calling 2-3 vendors/agencies informally and ask them
for their opinion. Be transparent. Let them know why you’re asking them about costs. Then, while you’re at
it, let them know you’ve got a juicy RFP on the way.

7

Need more help writing your next digital project RFP?
Let’s talk.