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An RFP Writer is someone who creates proposal responses to solicitations. This could be within a company, or on behalf of another organization in a consulting capacity. Support from an RFP Writer is usually required when a business lacks the in-house resources required. Successfully bidding for federal contracts requires time, exceptional writing skills, and knowledge of the procurement industry.
Particularly in the public sector, buyers use acronyms to specify the type of response they require. In a nutshell, RF stands for ‘request for’. The third letter then determines the type of information required.
If you are new to the bidding process, this can seem daunting with so many different types of responses. In this guide, our RFP writers will break down the various responses you might be asked to provide.
It’s fairly common to question how to bid on government contracts as a small business. The process may seem daunting and complex from the outside. However, this isn’t necessarily the case.
By law, a proportion of government contracts must be awarded to small businesses. The government’s goal is to allocate 23% of all government contracts to small businesses. This must be the case for almost every federal government purchase between $10,000 and $250,000. The federal government works with the Small Businesses Administration (SBA) to set aside contracts.
The General Services Administration (GSA) advertises federal government solicitations both locally and nationally. The GSA works with the SBA reserving a percentage of all federal contracting dollars. They are advocates for businesses that are:
There are thousands of public sector solicitations published every day in the U.S. The services required can range from website development to the construction of a public building. Therefore, different information is required for the different types of services and contracts.
To ensure that the process is fair and transparent, buyers need to ensure that they understand the market. They need to give smaller businesses the same opportunities as larger corporations, meaning that pre-solicitation stages may also be required, creating another response type.
If you’re already confused by the thought of multiple responses, don’t worry. Let’s break this down.
Otherwise known as Sources Sought, this stage allows the buyer to carry out market research before issuing the solicitation. The process usually takes the form of a document of questions for potential suppliers to respond to. This is the earliest stage of the process and doesn’t guarantee that a solicitation will be issued.
An RFP Writer knows that this type of procurement requires high-quality responses which demonstrate competency. An RFP is also an opportunity to showcase your abilities beyond that of your competitors. You don’t want to just simply respond. You need an RFP writer to persuade the buyer that your organization is the most suitable for the contract.
An RFP can be complex. It will require much more work than the RFI stage. In fact, in terms of solicitation types, an RFP will have the most requirements.
This is why many businesses outsource their solicitation responses to an RFP writer. RFPs usually encompass the entirety of the project, in which companies are required to provide long and often complex answers. Our RFP writers have seen word count requirements range from 5,000 to 50,000+.
Depending on your industry, buyers may specify the required formatting for your answers. This could simply be a box and a word count per question, or it could be more free-flowing and allow for design. If you work in the creative industry, it is likely that buyers will publish an RFP and expect a well-designed proposal.
The only solution is an RFP writer!
RFPs are issued by buyers that are looking to procure a good, service, or product. The RFP invites relevant vendors to submit a proposal to meet the buyers’ desired needs.
RFPs can be issued by a whole range of buyers across pretty much every sector. Both the private and public sectors release RFPs including the local, state, and federal governments. Other examples include, but aren’t limited to:
Every public sector solicitation must adhere to the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR). This is to ensure a fair and transparent procurement process for all organizations. The FAR has a standardized set of regulations that are used by the public sector when procuring goods and services.
Typically, an RFP is made up of 13 sections and each one is overseen by FAR. They are labeled by letters and are as follows:
An RFP writer will be able to collate this information into a professionally crafted and persuasive proposal.
When formulating company CVs, you should remember to keep them uniform. Visuals count. You want to ensure you are giving off a consistent business and brand image. All company CVs should be in the same format.
Imagine you’re the buyer. You’re faced with an RFP response from a company that contains 10 different CVs. You may start to wonder if they are all from the same company. Then with the next response, you receive 10 uniformly formatted CVs. You’re likely to favor the one that is more uniform as they have put the effort in to ensure consistency. If you’re bidding for an RFP and submit CVs that all look different, it may demonstrate inconsistency and unreliability.
Taking the time to ensure the visuals and formatting of CVs, policies, and procedures can really strengthen your RFP response. All documents you submit should be presented in a uniform way.
Company CVs should be personable. It may be worth including a friendly yet professional-looking picture of the team member. It should detail their job role, responsibilities, and relevant qualifications and accreditations for the proposed contract. Demonstrating their experience of working on other similar projects is a bonus as the buyer will gain trust.
When an RFP is issued, the buyer is looking for capable providers with suggestions. They want interested vendors to suggest various methods of delivering the contract. The lowest-price bidder doesn’t always win, as the buyer is looking for more than just a cheap quote.
This type of solicitation also allows vendors to negotiate terms in order to get the best and final offer.
So, how will an RFP writer format their bid?
The RFP format will differ from bid to bid. However, there are certain elements that you can expect to see in every RFP. These include:
Generally, RFPs will start by introducing the buyer. This is a common RFP format, as vendors will need to know this information for the bidding process. In this section, the buyer will most likely introduce their company and the services they offer.
Next, the buyer will outline the project and the commodities being procured. Typically, the buyer will explain their goals and what they expect to accomplish with these goods and services. This will help vendors decide whether or not the contract is right for their business.
This is a common component of an RFP format. Buyers include this section so that vendors can keep track of their deadlines.
No matter what RFP format is used, you can expect to find information about the submission procedure. This is vital information for vendors, as they need to know how, when and where to submit their bid response.
Typically, you can expect to find a project timeline in an RFP. Buyers include this to inform vendors of any time constraints. This helps to eliminate any vendors that are unable to deliver the contract within a certain time frame.
At this stage, the buyer should outline what is expected of potential vendors during the bidding process. This will help vendors through the submission process, as they know exactly what is required of them.
The evaluation criteria is a vital part of the bidding process and can be found in every RFP format. Basically, this tells potential vendors how their bid response will be assessed. Vendors should use these criteria to help them produce their response. While the evaluation details will change from bid to bid, you can still expect to find this in every RFP.
Should the buyer include it, this part of the RFP will outline any roadblocks that will prevent vendors from bidding. For example, if vendors need a particular accreditation to be successful, the buyer will put this here.
This is helpful for buyers and vendors alike. For buyers, it prevents unsuitable businesses from bidding for the contract. For vendors, this will help them determine whether or not they should proceed with a bid.
No matter what RFP format the buyer chooses, they should have a section dedicated to the contract’s budget. This will help vendors decide whether or not they should proceed with the bid.
An RFP Writer will manage their time effectively. You want to compile your response with plenty of time to spare so you aren’t rushing. Rushing your response will lead to you making easily avoidable mistakes. Key dates and times that should be stated within your timeline include:
This is the date the RFP was released/launched.
The deadline for clarification questions from vendors is often a fair bit before the submission deadline. This means you should read the documents thoroughly and ask any questions you may have early on. You will either be able to email questions or submit them on the portal where you can ask questions anonymously.
The internal deadlines you set for your team are important if you’re splitting the RFP up between them. This can allow them to plan their time, gather their data, and write a suitable response.
This may or may not be applicable depending on the size of the RFP you’re responding to. A bidder’s conference is a meeting held by a buyer to discuss a possible purchase with multiple suitable vendors. It allows vendors to gather access to some more information equally.
This is the most important date and time you should note. Buyers won’t accept any late submissions, no matter what excuse.
Once the RFPs have been submitted, the contracting authority will announce the finalists.
Depending on the bid you’re submitting, you may have to do a presentation. This is when the finalist vendors would come together and do an individual presentation.
The contract will be awarded once the buyers have chosen the winning vendor.
Top Tip: The advice from our RFP writers is to work backwards from the submission date, to allow you to plan your time. Ideally, you want to have your response completed a couple of days before the submission deadline. Factoring in extra time for any unexpected delays or technical issues.
Setting internal, achievable deadlines for your team to compile their responses and data is a must. Particularly if you are splitting the bid response up between team members. This will then allow you to review the responses, make amendments and proofread again. Proofreading and editing are important steps to make before your final submissions. Factoring in this time into your bid plan is often overlooked, but it’s something you should consider.
Top Tip: Submission portals are notoriously temperamental, so it’s best not to leave it with one minute to spare!
You can either write a stellar winning response yourself or outsource this to an RFP writer. They can support you with all aspects of your response and can help you win your next RFP. Here are three advantages of using RFP writing services:
When compiling your next RFP response, you should consider developing win themes. You should consider:
Example win themes could be:
Additionally, they could be a mixture of the above. Being clear on your win themes before you start the bidding process can ensure all responses are interlinked. This can then help you stay on track, ensuring that your key win theme is woven into each response.
However, you shouldn’t just pick any random win theme from the above. You should realistically evaluate and know who your competitors are and what they offer. Do you differ from them in any way?
Once you know what your win theme is, you can then look at each question, weaving it in. Remember to include evidence to back up any claims you’re making. This will demonstrate that you are justifying the claims you are making with hard evidence. And it’s hard to deny the facts.
Running a business requires a lot of time, resources, and effort. It can then be hard to balance the running of your business when writing an RFP response. Some can take weeks or even months depending on the contract. Therefore, having an RFP writer to take care of it all for you can take the pressure off. It allows you time to focus on the important things, knowing your bid is in safe hands.
If the above wasn’t enough to persuade you, here’s a list of what RFP writing services can offer you:
RFP writing services can help you manage your bid submissions on an ongoing basis. This can involve and include, but is not limited to, the following:
Some RFP writing services offer the chance to review your previous bid responses. This is particularly useful if you’re already bidding for work but aren’t seeing success. This can enable you to see where you could go into more detail or cut out irrelevant content.
You may be forgetting to mention key aspects of your organization or explaining a process in depth. Additionally, there may be aspects of your responses that are scoring lower than your competitors. Walking you through the process and reviewing it can be very beneficial going forward, improving your chances of success.
Deciding on whether or not to go for a bid is a big deal. Bidding on the right opportunity for your business can save you a lot of resources, time, and effort. RFP writers can help refine your approach toward the decision-making process. This can help ensure you’re only going for the right opportunities for your organization.
Once you hand over the responsibility to RFP writing services, they can take care of it all for you. They know how to best formulate a response to the questions asked by the buyer. Once you’ve given them all the information they need about your business, they can write a winning response.
An RFQ is often released when the buying agency requires a straightforward product or service. Here, the focus is on competitive pricing. However, it is important to note that you don’t want to under-quote. This can raise red flags with the buyer and make them question the quality of your goods/services.
Buyers will usually provide a list of the products or services that they require a costing for. Potential suppliers must then respond accordingly.
For example, you could be a haulage company that collects and delivers timber. Buyers may be looking for how much you would charge per weight of the product and distance of delivery.
Alternatively, you could be a removal service. A buyer may ask you to provide a cost for the total number of moves required over a certain period.
Sometimes, the RFQ stage will also require you to answer a few questions to check your capabilities. However, the focus is primarily on price, and the evaluation will be more heavily weighted on your costs.
An IFB might sound a lot like an RFP, but a good RFP Writer understands that there are important differences. In fact, an IFB has more similarities to an RFQ.
An IFB would be more appropriate for an agency to use when they already have the information they need. They know how they want the contract to be delivered, and therefore don’t require suggestions. This also means that vendors cannot negotiate.
In this case, there could be numerous organizations that can deliver the work/goods required. Therefore, the award automatically goes to the lowest-priced bidder that meets the minimum requirements.
The evaluation process isn’t as complex as an RFP. The evaluators are simply focused on the price quoted and if the qualification requirements are met.
There are a few things you need to do before you’re able to bid on RFPs. These include:
Your DUNS number is a nine-digit identification number for the physical location of your organization. This can be found on the Duns and Bradstreet website.
The NAICS code stands for the North American Industry Classification System. Your company will have a primary NAICS code or multiple, depending on if they have multiple services or products. You’ll need to match your services/products to an NAICS code. To find your NAICS code, you can refer to the U.S Census Bureau.
In order to respond to a government RFP, you must be registered with SAM. SAM is the government’s System of Award Management (SAM). Your registration as a vendor will eliminate the need to enter the same details over and over. This improves efficiency when doing business with the government. You will need both your NAICS code and DUNS number to register.
Government agencies are required to use SAM.gov to advertise all contracts over $25,000. Any vendor interested in doing business with the government can use this system to search for live opportunities. An RFP writer can help with the submission of a RFP opportunity.
Opportunities posted include:
You are able to filter the search results via:
Remember: You should take the time to find and qualify for new business opportunities. This is key to improving win rates. You shouldn’t underestimate the importance of well-defined search terms that will help save time.
Before you begin to bid for an RFP, you should establish a pre-bid strategy. This can help you in the long run by evaluating if the opportunity is right for your business. This should be an essential step before progressing with your response.
Just because you meet the eligibility criteria, it doesn’t mean you should respond to every RFP you come across. Putting together a checklist of questions to ask yourself can help you determine if you should go ahead. You should consider the following, for example:
These questions can help you decide if you should apply. An RFP Writer can help you establish your bid or no-bid strategy if you’re unsure. Double-check that there are no hidden necessary accreditations or qualifications you need before applying. You must read the bid specification carefully and thoroughly (even if it’s 50 pages). Make sure you meet all prerequisites before proceeding.
As mentioned, depending on your business, when bidding for public contracts, you may need certain accreditations and certifications. Having business certifications can help your business stand out among your competitors. The SBA can award you specific official certifications for your business depending on whether you qualify.
Below are some useful ones for small business owners that may or may not be relevant for your business:
The 8(a) Small Business Certification was designed to help create equal opportunities for small business owners. This is particularly useful for business owners who are ‘socially or economically disadvantaged’.
To qualify, you must be:
The Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) is a program with the goal of growing business in historically underutilized areas.
To qualify, you must:
If your business is majority-owned and operated by one or more women, you may qualify for this program. There are two types of women-owned business certifications available:
To qualify, your business must:
A B Corporation is a for-profit business that is driven by a social mission. To become a B Corp, your company must have a positive social impact. To certify, you must complete the B Impact Assessment (BIA) and meet the legal requirements.
The National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) is an organization committed to integrating minority-owned business enterprises (MBE). The NMSDC defines minority as “an individual who is at least 25% Asian, Black, Hispanic or Native American.”
To qualify for an MBE certification, your small business must:
There are three different certifications you can apply for as a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces.
To qualify, you must be a small business that is:
The National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC) created a certification program to help the LGBTQ+ community. It was created with the aim of gaining them greater access to contracting opportunities.
To qualify, your small business must:
Good time management and planning skills are essential to any successful RFP. You must manage you and your team’s time meticulously to ensure a winning response is submitted on time. If your time planning truly excels, you may even submit it before the deadline!
Once you decide to respond, a good way to plan out your time is to work backwards from the submission deadline. This can help you evaluate your workload and assess the amount of time you need to dedicate to it. You should make a note of the key dates and everything you need to submit.
This could include:
You should aim to have your submission ready at least a couple of hours before the deadline. You should factor in the time for edits, reviews, and proofreading. Including extra time for unexpected delays can be beneficial. Setting internal deadlines is also another great way to help you and your team manager their time.
Technology is notorious for failing at times of critical importance to take this into account. The same goes for submission portals if you are submitting on one. They can be temperamental, to say the least. Submitting your response early as opposed to two minutes beforehand can help avoid this. This can help take the stress and pressure off.
Top Tip: if there is no assigned word count for a question, assign your own. Base it on the size and specification of the question. This can help you stay focused and not ramble on. Look at the word counts for questions of similar sizes.
Be sensible and include enough the cover all the information required. However, it’s important to remember that quantity over quality isn’t always best. If you’re submitting page after page just because you can, doesn’t mean you should. Try and plan out your response highlighting the key points that need to be covered.
The first tip from our technical Bid Writers is to acknowledge the importance of bid management. When you find a bid that you would like to go for, you need to read the buyer’s documents carefully. No matter how big they are, they need to be read thoroughly. This is so that you can make notes on exactly what they are looking for.
If you aren’t addressing the buyer’s needs in your proposal, you are very unlikely to win the contract. The point of writing RFP proposals is to showcase why your business should win.
Bid management also involves breaking down the workload into manageable chunks. This way, you can stay organized and be aware of what needs to be done and when by. This will make the bidding process far easier and less stressful. You’ll also not be rushing at the last minute and making easy to avoid mistakes!
Proof of experience is expected with almost every bid. A buyer wants to be reassured that you are experienced and can be trusted to do a good job. They should be similar in scope, style, and complexity for the bid you’re going for. Demonstrating that you have successfully completed other projects in budget and on time will increase their confidence in you.
One way you can save time going forward is to have a bank of contract examples formulated. These are known as boilerplate responses. Often, each contract example required will be 500-words. A buyer typically requires 2 – 3 within the last 3 – 5 years.
If the word count allows, including how you overcame any challenges can benefit your response. It can show your problem-solving skills and flexibility – both of which are good skills to detail. Some will require you to include testimonials and contact details from past clients. This is to fact-check that you’re telling the truth. These can really strengthen your bid.
For example, a buyer may ask Detail challenges you overcame while delivering a similar contract.
Let’s say you’re a construction company and building material suppliers were delayed due to COVID-19. You should detail step-by-step how you overcame this challenge with a timeline. This can greatly benefit your RFP demonstrating that you have initiative.
The power of including testimonials should never be underestimated. They can really strengthen previous case studies. If the word count allows, you should include positive testimonials. You should detail what the contracting office wanted, what you did as a business, and what the outcome was. Include whether it was on time and within budget with a quote from the CEO or business manager.
This is once again giving evidential proof of the quality of your work with a positive outcome. Bear in mind that the CO may want you to detail their contact information. This is to fact-check that you’re telling the truth. Therefore, it’s best not to exaggerate or fabricate.
Contracting officers will favor the bid responses that include added value to their proposal. After all, they want to get the most bang for their buck. What else can you bring to the table?
Are you bringing anything else to the table that your competitors aren’t? Do you offer an environmentally friendly solution to an issue?
Do your research on the buyer and see if they have any objectives or targets they’re trying to meet. Are you able to offer or cater to any of them? Including an innovative out-of-the-box solution to their requirements will impress them.
Depending on the type of RFP you’re bidding for, below are a few examples you could include to added value:
One point our RFP Writers want to emphasize is that you shouldn’t use technical jargon when writing RFP proposals. The chances are the person reading your bid will not be as well versed in the subject as you are. Therefore, it can be easy to confuse them if you’re using terms that they won’t understand. Your RFP response should be clear and concise. Using technical jargon will make it a lot more difficult for the reader to digest.
All RFP responses should be reviewed before submission. This is not the same as proofreading, which you will find more about it on the next point. All RFPs should be reviewed against the question, specification, and scoring criteria.
Ideally, this should be done independently or by someone not involved in writing the bid. You could even go as far as scoring the responses. This could help the RFP Writers go back and develop their responses. It can help them know where there are gaps in the content or where you ramble.
The final thing you should do before you submit is proofread your response. This can help you spot any grammatical or spelling errors. This could be critical in separating you from your competitors. Think of it this way: You have two high-quality content responses. One has no errors, the other has avoidable mistakes dotted throughout. As an evaluator, which one would you pick? An RFP response with no errors implies that you are a trustworthy vendor.
Once you have completed your response, you could wait a couple of days before reading over it. This will help you spot errors you may have missed before. Additionally, you could get someone else to proof it. A fresh pair of eyes can also spot any errors and make sure it flows well. When compiling your response if you’ve split questions up to your team, get someone else to proof them. You could also:
This could help increase your chances of success. An RFP Writer can also help you proofread your response before you submit it. They can also help check that it’s in line with the specification. If you don’t have the time to proof it yourself, outsourcing to a Bid Writer can help submit it error-free.
One way you could review your RFP response is as if you were the contracting authority. You could print off the specification and go through it with a highlighter. Highlight any key relevant points or keywords and phrases they’ve used. Then, go back through your response and see how many you have and where you could add more.
This will easily allow the evaluator to see that the various key points have been covered in your proposal. This is an obvious signpost to them that you have read the specification. It also signified that your business is going to deliver the contract, catering to their needs.
If you’re struggling to review your own bid response, our RFP Writers can help. With our RFP Mentor package, you can rest assured that your RFP response is in line with the specification. Our Bid Writers will go through your response, double-checking for any errors and help ensure you’re answering the questions.
So, hopefully, now you have a better idea of what to expect from an RFP writer. You know what it is and how using RFP writing services can benefit your business. They can help optimize your chances of success. The more contracts you win, the more experience you have. The more experience you have, the bigger contracts you can go for. The bigger contracts you go for can allow you to grow and expand your business.
An RFP Writer can help you expand your business by winning you contracts. They can save you time and resources allowing you to continue running your business. You can trust them to write you a winning RFP response.
We hope this guide has helped to clear up the differences in solicitation types. However, we know that many organizations don’t have the time or resources in-house to respond to these requests. That’s why we developed our RFP writing services.
Do you need support with a bid or a proposal? Our team of multi-disciplinary RFP Writers has supported over 700 organizations globally. They proudly hold an 87% bid success rate so you can be sure that your bid is in safe hands.
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After a short conversation, they quickly grasped the basics of our business and sector in which we operate. Jonny and the team took the stress and hassle away from us and we are very happy to say that we were awarded the first contract that we collaborated on.
We would highly recommend Hudson and look forward to future endeavours together.”
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This is our ad-hoc response writing service. This is ideal for businesses that don’t have the time or skilled writing resources to reactively bid. Our clients also use this service to respond to particularly important bids.
For example, if your contract is ending and it will be published again for bidders you want to maintain this contract, and it’s crucial that you submit an outstanding proposal. Don’t assume that because you have worked with the agency before that you will automatically be chosen again. There is nothing stopping a competitor from also submitting a better proposal or quoting a lower price.
Simply submit your solicitation documents for a free quote.
You can think of RFP Mentor as your critical friend. Before you submit your bid or proposal, it’s important to put your work through a thorough proofing process.
An RFP Writer will assess your work against the solicitation documents. This acts as a practice submission. An RFP writer will read the proposal as if they were the buyer. Our writers will;
We cannot stress enough the importance of submitting an error-free bid. When you work close to a project, it’s easy to miss mistakes that are glaringly obvious to an outsider. Mistakes and inconsistencies in your work raise red flags for the agency. They suggest a lack of attention to detail which is a concern for the buyer.
Do you need help with preparing a bid proposal? Proposal Ready can help businesses that are new to tendering or those in need of rejuvenating their content. An RFP writer can offer you proposal writing services, creating:
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Because the information on this blog is based on Hudson Outsourcing LLC’s own opinion and experience, it should not be considered professional financial investment advice. The ideas and bidding strategies should never be used without first assessing your own personal and financial situation, or without consulting a financial professional. Hudson Outsourcing LLC’s thoughts and opinions will also change from time to time as the market changes and as Hudson Outsourcing LLC develops.
