I’ve been working with a number ofcompanies lately on big deals - deals up to $100M. The companies are on bothcoasts, in the midwest and in the southeast. They’re in very differentindustries and their customers are government, private, public and educationgroups. Diverse enough?

 

The one thing that every one of these deals does have in common was that they all requiredsome sort of RFP response as a part of the process. In each case I served asstrategist, RFP response coach and pitch doctor. There are bunch of greatthings to share with you from these experiences, but today, I justwant to talk about the RFP Frame. How do you frame your response? I use the "4Cs of the RFP Frame."

 

Candidly,most people start with responses they used for past RFPs. Then they cut andpaste and massage what they come up with and call it good. The problem is thatthey are thinking about the process of writing the response and what they wantit to say, not the process of reading the RFP and what the readers are lookingfor. The 4 C’s focuses on building the guidelines for the response in the termsof the reader. Here goes…

 

Competency- Can you clearly demonstrate in your response that your company can do thework? Not sexy stuff–not the big “ah-ha” moments–just strong credentials?

 

Credibility- Is your company strong? In some contracting businesses, just being bonded bya credible firm is enough. In other businesses, strong financials arenecessary. Still others are looking for the strength of your partners, vendorsand banks. The core issue is your company’s strength and longevity.

 

Customization- Can you do this project in all of its specifications andnuances? We have rarely found a contract–whether it is building a hospital,manufacturing plane landing gear, outfitting a major retailer or staffing amedical center–in which the buyer did not believe that their project wasincredibly unique and challenging. This means you have to demonstrate that youunderstand all there is to understand about this project and are conversant inan intimate way with the specs and nuances in your RFP response.

 

Consistency- Do you have a story that hangs together? We work on the10% of the answer that has the greatest leverage. Most of the answers to an RFPare “check-the-box” quality. If you can check that box, that is good enough.Then there is the 10% upon which the final decision matters. That 10% has to beconsistently found throughout the response.

 

Becausethe initial process of RFP responses is simply about not being disqualified,and thesecond level is about being chosen as a finalist for interview or presentation, youneed to make certain that your responses to each question are accomplishing at least one of these 4 Cs.

 

Whateverstimulus package president Obama and the 2009 Congress come up with, itwill mean lots of federal money flowing out into the economy. The outcome ofthat will be contracts. Because there will be regulatory oversight, there willbe RFPs as a part of the process. If you want some of the money, start withthese 4 Cs in framing the response.

 

Lookingfor more tips? I’ve written a free e-book with tons of tips for landing thesehuge deals through RFPs: http://www.huntbigsales.com/ebooks.php.