Should I Hire an RFP Writer?

While you’re the expert in your business, learning a new craft like RFP writing takes time and resources away from your business. So, why not outsource writing winning responses to tender writing services or RFP writing experts? We break down where hiring an RFP writer can benefit your business, and you can decide if it’s worth it to you. 

Upon taking your first steps into the public contracting arena, two things may have happened:

1. You may have opened the first RFP, skimmed through the 20 (or more) pages, thought to yourself, “I don’t have the time for this,” and then went about your normal day-to-day or
2. You may have taken on those 20 pages and then dedicated at least 40 hours to submitting a response that you likely lost. After which, you’ve decided to never “waste” the time again. 

Whether you made the choice that RFPs were or were not worth your time, one fact remains true: you have a product or service that a public entity purchases. Therefore, when you elect not to respond to RFPs, you leave money on the table. Let’s discuss the factors to consider when thinking about whether or not to hire an RFP writer.

Consider Efficiency

Small businesses need to be efficient to be successful. No surprise there. What’s surprising is how many businesses fail to understand the difference between being efficient and being productive. Efficiency focuses on quality, while productivity focuses on quantity. When beginning to respond to RFPs, the goal is to not respond to every RFP — that will undoubtedly consume all of your resources. Alternatively, the goal is to produce a quality response while utilizing your resources (both capital and labor) in the most efficient way possible. 

Think of hiring RFP writers as extensions of your team. What an RFP writer does is produce a quality RFP. They’re the experts of this new department and work with your team to produce the best possible response without draining your business resources. 

Set Measurable Goals

Before diving into the RFP process, evaluate what makes your business run. Then, think about what would happen if you took significant time away from those items. How would your business be impacted? By measuring the RFP process’s efficiency, you’ll understand how it affects your business. With this in mind, here are some measurable goals to track when hiring an RFP writer.

• Organization. RFPs can quickly get confusing! Hire an RFP writer to organize the RFP into highly manageable formats to ensure every t is crossed and every i is dotted in your response.
• Details. RFP writers ensure your response meets every requirement, including what you may think are minor details. Formatting, for instance, may feel like a minor detail. However, RFP reviewers have discarded all responses for non-compliant formatting. Following directions win contracts. 
• Time. Time is money. According to Boardroom Metrics, a business that chooses to respond to its first RFP alone dedicates 100 hours on average, while a business that decides to outsource invests only 25 hours. Although both businesses reduced the time they spent responding to RFPs over time, the business that hired an RFP writer learned to respond to more RFPs more efficiently.
• Cost. When weighing the cost of hiring an RFP writer, know you are hiring them for their expertise in delivering high-quality responses. Hired RFP writers save on total time investment, and on average, most clients see ROI by their second RFP. 

There’s no question that responding to RFPs can help your business garner profitable relationships. But can your company afford to designate the in-house resources it takes to write a winning RFP response? If yes, go for it! If not, then hiring an RFP writer might be the right choice.

Before Hiring an RFP Writer, Learn More About the RFP Process

Writing an RFP? Need help defining basic terms about the RFP proposal process? We can help! Whether you’re working to improve your evaluation or learning about local agency RFPs, The Bid Lab’s Learning Center has the right resources to help you respond. And, if you’re wondering how to write an RFP Scope of Work or an RFP cover letter, we cover those, too. We even know how to get your RFP layout exactly right! So, if your business is very busy already doing what it does best, no worries. We’ve got you covered! 

Hire Bid Writers From The Bid Lab

The Bid Lab works with small to medium-sized businesses to navigate the complexities of responding to RFPs. With a combined 50+ years of RFP experience, our experts have helped our clients win thousands of bids. We work as an extension of your team and guide you through the entire process. Our team can find RFPs that align with your business, write compelling content, and design a visually pleasing response. We make sure your compliant bid is submitted on time. Schedule a free consultation with The Bid Lab today, and let us help your business grow by responding to RFPs Reach out by calling 1-844-4BIDLAB or emailing respond@thebidlab.com.