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What To Do Before You Start Writing

April 13, 2006

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OK, you've made the decision to bid the RFP or RFQ from the government. What should you do next?

Anyone who will be involved in writing the proposal (that may be just you) should do the following before you write the proposal:

1. Read the RFP again.
2. Make an outline of the RFP by section and decide who is responsible for responding to each one (if it is just you, note on each section anything you need to do to gather and prepare the required information).
3. Create a proposal calendar with timelines, milestones, and due dates clearly spelled out.
4. Review the evaluation criteria that the buying office will use to measure the proposals. Ask the buyer or contracting officer if there is anything else that you need to know and to clarify any criteria that you don't understand. Make sure that you understand all points so that you can address each and every one in your proposal. Do this before you begin to write. Here are just some of the common criteria that evaluators might use in evaluating a proposal and some of the points you should cover:
   • Is the proposal formatted according to instructions?
   • Is the project solution presented in the proposal plausible?
   • Is the proposal organized and is it responsive to the basic requirement?
   • Are the basic requirements in the RFP followed?
   • Is the company's delivery schedule acceptable?
   • Does the company demonstrate the capability to perform?
   • Does the company have related experience?
   • Has the company had past performance history?
   • Is the company financially stable?
   • Is the cost reasonable?
   • Is the costing method credible?
   • Are the company's personnel resources adequate?
   • Has a bill of materials been created?

   Warning Don't make the mistake of many small businesses and just focus on the Scope of Work section in their proposal. Give as much study and attention to the evaluation section and write to that as well. While the Scope of Work may state the requirement for 100,000 rubberbands, it is the Evaluation section that will contain the requirement that they have to be delivered within 24 hours. You have to address both requirements. If you aren't familiar with the evaluation factors, you will have lost the game before you begin.

5. Gather and review any information (including marketing materials) about your competition. It is easier to communicate the superiority of your products/services if you are very familiar with the features and benefits your competition offers.
6. Gather information on any subcontractors you will need and use.
7. Create an outline for your proposal. Below are sample categories that you may want to consider for your outline. They will give you a general idea of the areas that need to be covered and how to organize them. (The outline is more applicable to contracts over $100,000, but can be a user tool for smaller contracts as well.)

    Executive Summary
    Introduction
    Benefits of the Proposed Solutions
    Your Organization and Experience
    Company's Project Management
    Technical Methods

   1. Explanation of the proposed project
      1. Project overview
      2. Proposed project configuration
   2. Project requirement
      1. Standard products/services
      2. Maintenance
      3. Project characteristics
      4. Bill of Materials
   3. Future enhancements
      1. Project growth

    Cost Proposal

   1. Cost basis
      1. Project procurement costs
      2. Operating costs
      3. Maintenance costs

    Delivery and Acceptance
    Qualification
    Pre-Award Considerations
    Organization
    Financial Status

Work Smart If, in responding to an RFP, you will be sharing proprietary technical information, you should include a Proprietary Notice in your proposal. The notice should appear on a separate sheet at the beginning of the proposal and should read something like the following: "This proposal contains confidential information on ABC Company which is provided for the sole purpose of permitting the holder of this document to evaluate the proposal submitted to {fill in the blank}. In consideration of the receipt of this proposal, the buyer agrees to maintain the enclosed information in confidence and to not reproduce or otherwise disclose any information to any person outside the group or team directly responsible for evaluation of its contents." It is best to get legal advice on the best wording for your situation.

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