A Step-by-Step GUIDE for Qualifying RFPs
You just received an RFP. You read through the requirements, and you aren’t a great fit. You’ve never spoken to anyone at the company, except briefly with the procurement manager when they emailed you the RFP. Their legal terms also look like they’ll be an insurmountable challenge - but that’s ok. You’ll respond anyway, because you miss all the shots you don’t take, am I right?
Yet you never use this logic anywhere else in your life.
We are qualifying in and out of opportunities on a daily basis. The neighborhood café offers you a free coffee? Heck yes, you take it! A recruiter sends you a LinkedIn message for a job interview at a terrible company at half your current salary. You politely decline. Someone mildly creepy on the bus asks you out for drinks? Ya, you say no. We are always deciding how to spend our precious time, and RFPs are no different.
The Smart Approach: Strategic Qualification
The key to successful RFP management lies in selective qualification. Not every RFP is worth your time and effort. By carefully evaluating each RFP, you can identify the deals with a high probability of success and prioritize your resources accordingly.
Key Considerations for Qualifying RFPs:
Relationship with Decision-Makers: Do you have a strong rapport with the key decision-makers at the potential customer? If not, it will be an uphill battle to gain their trust and business.
Product Fit: Does your product or service directly address the customer's pain points and align with their business objectives? If there's a mismatch, your chances of success are significantly reduced.
Legal Terms: Can your legal team reach an agreement on the customer's legal terms? If there are major obstacles, it's a sign that this deal may not be worth pursuing.
Customer Budget: Does the customer have a dedicated budget allocated for the project? If they're still seeking funding, it's unlikely they'll be able to afford your solution.
Response Timeline: Does the customer's response timeline align with your team's capacity? If it's unreasonably short, you'll be forced to rush your proposal, potentially jeopardizing your chances of winning.
Common Qualification Red Flags
Less than three weeks to respond: If the customer gives you a short deadline, it's a sign that they likely already have a preferred vendor in mind. Unless you're 100% sure you're the pre-chosen winner, do not respond!
You don't know the customer stakeholders: It's crucial to have a good relationship with the RFP's main stakeholders before the RFP is released. If you don't already know them, try to connect with them after the RFP is submitted. If the customer refuses to meet with you, it's a clear indication that they have no interest in working with you.
The procurement team is running the RFP: Procurement teams are often focused solely on finding the lowest price. If the main RFP stakeholders are in procurement, it's likely that the deal will go to the lowest bidder. Unless you're confident you can offer the lowest price, don't bother bidding.
The company doesn't have a budget for the project: If the customer hasn't secured funding for the project, it's unlikely that the deal will move forward. Any RFP released without a budget is likely just a fact-finding mission, not a real opportunity.
Competitor Language: If your competitor's specific jargon, products, and services are heavily mentioned in the RFP, it's a sign that they may have been involved in drafting the RFP. This means they are probably the pre-chosen winner.
Track Your Data and Iterate
Continuously track your RFP qualification criteria against wins and losses to identify patterns and make informed decisions about which RFPs to pursue. You can track RFP customer data around company size, industries, and geographies to understand where your company is having success and where it needs to course correct.
I highly suggest making this an annual activity.
Your Free RFX Qualification Matrix
Find my free RFX Qualification Matrix here. You can download it or copy, adding your own qualification criteria, brand colors, and company logo.
Conclusion
Adopting a strategic approach to RFP qualification will save your team time and resources, increase your win rate, and ultimately lead to success in the competitive world of sales. Remember, it's not about responding to every RFP; it's about responding to the right ones.
