What’s the first thing you do when you get a request for proposal (RFP)? For a lot of people it is to manically start pulling information and people together in an attempt to get a head start on writing what will become a serious tome of work.
Trust us – this not the right first step.
The first thing anyone should do with an RFP is decide whether they should respond, or not.
I know the idea of turning down work is an anathema to most people and the optimist in all of us always thinks no matter how small there’s always a chance we might get the work…but nowadays your time is too valuable to waste large chunks of it.
Evaluating RFPs well could actually be a way of freeing up some time and of making sure you give the right amount of time and effort to the ones you do reply to. This gives you more chance of winning the business you already have a shout of getting.
So how do you decide what RFP is worth the time?
Well, it’s obviously not an easy decision and a lot of is has got to be down to your own gut feeling. I know this isn’t scientific but trusting your own instinct is important.
To give that instinct a bit of honing one useful exercise is to revisit some old RFPs that you’ve both won and lost. Try and see if there are any patterns in both the Winner and Loser pile and understand where you maybe bidding for work that isn’t right or doesn’t fit your offering. By now, you should be getting a feel for what type of RFP is a good one for you.
Once you’ve done this there are really 3 headline areas to look at with each bid
1) Is it a done deal?
Some RFPs are sent out to tick a box to say a certain number of people bid for the work – and this quite often happens after the potential client has engaged their preferred supplier (you may even have been that preferred supplier!).
Sniffing these out is very, very useful as typically you are on a hiding to nothing.
2) Is it what you do?
Take a long hard look and see if it really is what you offer that this customer is looking for?
If you don’t think you’re quite the right type of supplier then that’s a big step towards the customer thinking the same. Even if you did win it could mean some big issues when it comes to delivery…
3) Show me the money
Is all the effort of bidding and then doing the work worth the money you will get in the end? If not, then why spend the time?
So through analysing each bid and then using a dose of your own instinct you can make a decision.
It might not always be the right one but over time you’ll develop it and it will make a big difference to your business.
Saying no to potential new business is not easy but it could just ensure you win the business you should be getting…