Preparing an RFP does not mean you need to abide by the Federal Acquisition Requirements (not fun trust me). It simply means creating a structured communication of your requirements that forms a reference point for vendors to respond and a yard-stick (is it a metre stick in Europe?) against which to objectively compare the many product offerings you will initially consider. The content of your RFP will vary depending on your situation and in many cases any corporate or legal procurement constraints that you may be subject to. We have provided an outline for a typical RFP as Appendix III.
There are several options in how you chose to conduct your RFP process. Larger organizations that have software vendors salivating at the very thought of their business will almost always receive more timely and far more aggressive response than smaller organizations seeking to engage vendors in an RFP exercise. One golden rule prevails though, if you dont get good service in pre-sales, youre never going to get good service in post sales - aka Red flag #1. For an interesting CRM buyer experience, refer to Appendix IV - CRMGuru Article on How Well Do CRM Vendors Sell as an all too common anecdotal experience that is incredibly indicative of continued after-the-sale CRM vendor performance. The quality of any RFP response is indicative of the quality and esteem in which the software vendor holds your business.
It is a good idea to provide the vendors with advanced notice that the RFP will be distributed on a date certain. This will allow vendors to prepare by assembling or allocating resources to thoroughly review your document and put together an appropriate and hopefully thoughtful response. You must ensure that you allow vendors an adequate period in order to provide a high-quality response. Typically a period of 3-4 weeks is normal depending on the scope of the requirements list. We are strong advocates of dictating the format of the RFP response and advising vendors not to veer from this format. This provides you with the opportunity to easily consolidate and then evaluate the responses quickly and effectively. Experienced vendors are conditioned to responding to RFPs in this manner and will not have any objections. A complaining vendor is definitely a tell-tale sign for Red flag #2.
You may choose to include a go/ no-go requirements list. This is a list of the absolute-gotta-have-em-aint -no-question-about-it-couldnt-do-it-without-em functions. It is basically a polite way of saying to your vendor universe, if you cant do these then lets not waste each others time. Use a little caution here and ensure you dont limit your market too soon. Requirements like Integrates to our in-house APGOL5.56 V2R Accounts Receivable System will at best give you confused vendor responses and at worst no responses at all.
There are several options in how you chose to conduct your RFP process. Larger organizations that have software vendors salivating at the very thought of their business will almost always receive more timely and far more aggressive response than smaller organizations seeking to engage vendors in an RFP exercise. One golden rule prevails though, if you dont get good service in pre-sales, youre never going to get good service in post sales - aka Red flag #1. For an interesting CRM buyer experience, refer to Appendix IV - CRMGuru Article on How Well Do CRM Vendors Sell as an all too common anecdotal experience that is incredibly indicative of continued after-the-sale CRM vendor performance. The quality of any RFP response is indicative of the quality and esteem in which the software vendor holds your business.
It is a good idea to provide the vendors with advanced notice that the RFP will be distributed on a date certain. This will allow vendors to prepare by assembling or allocating resources to thoroughly review your document and put together an appropriate and hopefully thoughtful response. You must ensure that you allow vendors an adequate period in order to provide a high-quality response. Typically a period of 3-4 weeks is normal depending on the scope of the requirements list. We are strong advocates of dictating the format of the RFP response and advising vendors not to veer from this format. This provides you with the opportunity to easily consolidate and then evaluate the responses quickly and effectively. Experienced vendors are conditioned to responding to RFPs in this manner and will not have any objections. A complaining vendor is definitely a tell-tale sign for Red flag #2.
You may choose to include a go/ no-go requirements list. This is a list of the absolute-gotta-have-em-aint -no-question-about-it-couldnt-do-it-without-em functions. It is basically a polite way of saying to your vendor universe, if you cant do these then lets not waste each others time. Use a little caution here and ensure you dont limit your market too soon. Requirements like Integrates to our in-house APGOL5.56 V2R Accounts Receivable System will at best give you confused vendor responses and at worst no responses at all.
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