A request for proposal, often called an RFP, is a document that businesses use to ask potential vendors for project proposals. The document explains what the business wants from its project, what vendors should do to apply, and how the business will select the right candidate. Some nonprofits and government institutions are required to use RFPs to solicit proposals. You can use this sample RFP template to solicit proposals for a variety of vendors, from construction sub-contractors to social media marketing service providers.
[Sender.Company] , a (DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS), is in need of (DESCRIPTION OF END PRODUCT) and is accepting proposals in response to this Request for Proposal (this “RFP” or this “Request for Proposal”) in order to find a qualified source to provide (DESCRIPTION OF END PRODUCT). Our goals with (DESCRIPTION OF END PRODUCT) are:
The objective of this Request for Proposal is to locate a source that will provide the best overall value to [Sender.Company] . While price is a significant factor, other criteria will form the basis of our award decision, as more fully described in the Evaluation Factors section of this Request for Proposal below.
In this section of the basic RFP template, provide relevant background information on your company. What is your industry? Who are your customers? More importantly, what’s the evaluation criteria, and what are the deliverables? Answering these questions up front helps bidders understand if they are unqualified and streamlines the RFP process by avoiding the solicitation of low-quality RFP responses.
Using our Information Request Form streamlines the information-gathering process, ensuring you have the necessary data to make informed decisions.
The following submission guidelines and requirements apply to this Request for Proposal:
1. First and foremost, only qualified individuals or firms with prior experience on projects such as this should submit proposals in response to this Request for Proposal.
2. Bidders intent on submitting a proposal should notify the representative identified on the cover page no later than (DATE).
This may be useful, since it could show how on or off the mark you are in this stage of the RFP process. For instance, if you do not receive any notice, then the time frame might be too small for your project goals, or perhaps the scope of work is unclear.
3. Bidders must list at least (NUMBER) projects that are substantially similar to this project as part of their response, including references for each. Examples of work should be provided as well.
4. A technical proposal must be provided that is not more than (NUMBER) pages. This technical proposal must provide an overview of the proposed solution as well as resumes of all key personnel performing the work. In addition, the technical proposal should provide a proposed schedule and milestones, as applicable.
A good RFP may or may not choose to separate the technical and price proposal during procurement of bids. You may opt to remove the page limitation as well. Use your judgement. The page limitation is meant to streamline the review and evaluation of proposals, but if you do not have a good understanding of what is involved in the work, you may not be able to settle on an appropriate page limitation.
5. A price proposal must be provided that is not more than (NUMBER) pages. This price proposal should indicate the overall fixed price for the project as well as hourly rates and an estimated total number of hours, should [Sender.Company] decide to award a contract on an hourly rate basis.
Pricing will vary by project. For example, you may want itemized pricing if you will be buying materials or equipment. Additionally, you may want to see the breakdown of the overall fixed price. Edit the above as necessary to fit your preferences.
6. Proposals must be signed by a team member who is authorized to commit on behalf of the bidding company.
7. If you have a standard set of terms and conditions, please submit them with your proposal. All terms and conditions will be subject to negotiation.
You may also opt to create an appendix to this request for bid template that includes the set of terms and conditions each bidder is expected to bid against. This appendix demonstrates the terms and conditions you want the bidder to follow. If you choose to follow this path, edit the above clause to use wording such as, “Please review the suggested terms and conditions in Appendix A and revise your standard set of terms and conditions to follow them. All terms and conditions will be subject to negotiation.”
8. Proposals must be received prior to (DATE) to be considered.
9. Proposals must remain valid for a period of (NUMBER) days.
Think about how long it will likely take to complete the selection process. Account for the time taken to review, evaluate, and negotiate a contract with the service providers, and then add a buffer. You will want to request a validity period that will keep their prices valid for that period of time.
When vendors or contractors are competing to secure your project, a Bid Proposal Template is crucial. This template helps vendors present their offerings, pricing, approach, and timelines in a standardized format.
10. [Sender.Company] anticipates selecting at least two individuals or firms to have more in-depth discussions with, and will make an award to one of these “down-selected” individuals or firms. However, [Sender.Company] reserves the right to select no proposals should no bidder submit a proposal that meets the company's needs.
More complex projects may justify even more guidelines and requirements than above. Less complex projects may justify less guidelines and requirements. Add and remove requirements as necessary to ensure you get proposals that have value.
The purpose of this project is as follows:
Why do you need this project done? Are you using an outdated product now and need a redesign? Is your business facing roadblocks by not having this done? Provide some details around the current state of things at your company and where you ultimately want to be.
Add project purpose description [Sender.Company] currently uses (FORMER SOLUTION). The executive team has determined that it is not effective at (PURPOSE). This lack of efficacy causes (PROBLEM 1).
Furthermore, the current solution is (PROBLEM 2). [Sender.Company] believes that by improving (SERVICE/SOLUTION), we can offer current and future clients more effective service.
The description of the project is as follows:
Provide a project overview while keeping this section purpose-driven or goal-oriented. After all, you may have a number of bidders who can provide the same result using different approaches, all of which have cost implications. Ideally, you want to provide a project description that leaves the methods to the bidder. For example, a website RFP would list the functionality and outcomes the business wants from their new site instead of specific features or programs.
Add project purpose description [Sender.Company] is seeking a provider to implement (PROJECT) that is (DESCRIPTOR 1), (DESCRIPTOR 2) , and (DESCRIPTOR 3) . The (PROJECT) should accomplish (PURPOSE) .
The project must also achieve (GOAL 1), (GOAL 2), and (GOAL 3). Finally, the project should include (GOAL 4).