On June 17. I taught a 90-minute webinar for the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS). The session was basically a "how to" for A/E/C/Environmental firms wishing to submit a response to a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) or Request for Proposal (RFP).
It was obviously a popular topic, because I was told there were more than 70 firms registered and more than 300 people watched the webinar. SMPS was apparently very pleased with those numbers.
I began with a brief discussion of what RFQs/RFPs are, where they come from and how you acquire them, and what they generally include. I also included a tip on how to get them to the marketing department in a timely fashion, rather than letting them "age" on a technical person's desk until they're ready to consider them.
An RFQ generally tells you the type of project and seeks broad information about a firm, its overall range of capabilities and, perhaps, information relevant to that type of project (eg., roadway, utility, residential, retail and commercial, etc.). An RFP generally provides a description of the specific project and seeks detailed understanding/approach, experience and staffing information relevant to that specific project.
I then outlined the creation steps for both kinds of responses.
To my thinking, an RFP response (proposal) has all the same components as an RFQ response (Statement of Qualifications, or SOQ), plus a few more components relevant to the specific project detailed in the solicitation.
There were 22 questions asked during the mid-point break and at the end--so many questions, in fact, that I had to answer the last three by email because we ran out of time. The question topics included:
- contents of the cover letter
- should there be an executive summary
- what word processing program was best
- including information on divider tabs
- including information not specifically requested
- ideal length of cover letter or executive summary
- what to include in SF330 Section H
- the best lead tracking system(s)
- how many projects on a resume; what details
- dress code for the presentation/interview
- using a staff member's previous experience
- do clients care about mission statements
- do clients know who they want before the RFQ/RFP
- equal gender representation on the team
- submitting just to "get your foot in the door"
Some owners will call their solicitation a "Request for Qualifications" but the solicitation requirements will include all the detailed information generally contained in a proposal. I warned about letting the title create confusion about what the owner wanted to see.
As always, I was impressed by the range of questions and the depth of knowledge and understanding the attendees showed. I have now presented for 11 SMPS chapters across the United States and three regional conferences (Pacific, Heartland and Southern). I always enjoy these SMPS events because I learn as much from the attendees as I share with them.
At the end of the session, I offered some free information on Go/No Go and Debriefing to anyone who emailed me directly. Over the next week, I received 35 requests for these files and a number of attendees asked to connect with me on LinkedIn.
Visibility is a good thing!
"A Moo-sical Moo-saic"
(Austin downtown art cow collection)