If the RFP process is broken, how can it be fixed?

A recent report published in the USA regarding the new business tender process in the advertising industry posed the above question and provoked much debate. Interestingly the agencies were more in agreement with the process being broken than the clients.

Here’s 5 potential solutions:

-      Agencies love new business and start every pitch with loads of enthusiasm and positivity. Clients should make the most of that, not douse the flames through the process with complex layers and long periods of silence. Keep it simple and keep communicating.

-      Most RFPs have been set by committee, so contain far too many irrelevant questions, that mostly fail to allow agencies to differentiate themselves. Use the holiday packing rule – collect all of the questions for the RFP, then throw half of them out.

-      Digital transformation is always part of the RFP, so the brief should be clear on the role the agency can play in helping the client deliver it.

-      One 2-3 hour meeting is not sufficient to make a decision on a new business partner, yet is the norm. Why not spend a whole day with the pitching agency to better understand what partnering with them is really like?

-      Ultimately, clients get the agencies they deserve and agencies get the clients they deserve. The best RFPs I ever worked on started with the client presenting their business first and giving the agency real insight into the aims for the next 3-5 years. (NB: I worked on hundreds of pitches and can count these on one hand)

If you’d like to discuss this further, please contact me at www.redroadco.com