SiteCrafting, Inc.
14 Dec
How to Write an Effective RFP
I've been responding to a lot of RFPs recently and through that process have come to some conclusions on how I wish the RFP process actually worked.
These are a few questions a traditional RFP generates:
Here are the types of questions they *should* generate:
What is possible not just for this year's budget, but ongoing? If this were your company (city, govt. agency, etc.) what sort of solution would you propose given our budget and timeline? What sort of results can we expect from our new site? Will our site scale using this platform? What about mobile?
Seventeen years ago I bought my first lawnmower for cheap, I replaced it a year later, it never quite worked right. Then, I bought another one, again replaced it a year later. I've had my third mower, a John Deere for 15 years - get it? i wish the salesman had asked me how many mowers I wanted to buy instead of showing me the cheapest.
Seventeen years ago I bought my first lawnmower for cheap, I replaced it a year later, it never quite worked right. Then, I bought another one, again replaced it a year later. I've had my third mower, a John Deere for 15 years - get it? i wish the salesman had asked me how many mowers I wanted to buy instead of showing me the cheapest.
You see, the first is great if you're buying copper wire or dish soap. It's horrible if you want to pick the right web partner. Focusing solely on the money changes the response you will get from companies. You will have people striving to "buy" your business with the hopes of change orders. You will get unqualified respondents who will say, "Oh yeah, we can do that too" only to find that they don't know how or deliver incomplete solutions. The worst case, you will pick a sub-par solution based on price.
The bottom line is this: You should have a budget. If you don't, you shouldn't be seeking the services of a professional firm. Instead of commoditizing the process, turn it on its head. Make the vendor demonstrate what they can deliver within your budget. Just like I don't want a jewelry salesman showing me $10,000 rings if I only have $500 (or even worse, showing me a $500 ring if I have $10,000) - you want to give the company you're soliciting bids from a workable number. THEN you have begun to truly compare apples to apples.
I know the typical response might be, "We have to spend the public or shareholders money well." OK, what's worse, finding the right partner at a little higher price or cycling through unqualified bottom-of-the-barrel solutions?
Here's my list of suggestions:
- Fully define your scope as a wish list into "must haves" and "would likes"
- Disclose your timeline and budget
- Ask your respondents for full resumes of the staff that will work on the project
- Ask for project case studies as well as data demonstrating delivery
- Let them propose / explore areas not outlined in your RFP - you want their expertise, not just your own
- Call their references
Photo by Flickr user Dwonderwall
Deep Thoughts, Odds 'n Ends
by Brian Forth | 12/14/2011 7:05pm | Comments (0)
by Brian Forth | 12/14/2011 7:05pm | Comments (0)
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