Creative agencies and marketing companies read piles of marketing proposals a year, many are thrown out and others may not even be looked at. While some companies never respond to RFPs, many RFPs are passed up because companies do not see any potential in them. So how do you ensure you not only get responses but get the right responses from companies who share your vision? You need to make your company and project stand out and grab the attention of agencies reviewing the RFP. As a creative web design agency, we have seen hundreds of RFPs (and submitted our fair share as well). Throughout these experiences, we have found many ways to make a marketing proposal stand out, but we are going to make sure that you know the most important three.
Have A Personality
One of the most important things about sending a marketing proposal to a creative agency is letting your company’s personality show through. Creative agencies conduct as much business as any other industry, but the process is far different. We are in the business of showing consumers who you are and why they should work with you. This philosophy transfers to the RFP process; show us your personality! Partnerships with creative agencies are based on personalities, and if personalities don’t go well together, it shows in the work. Don’t be afraid to put some emotion and excitement in your RFP because agencies who judge you as limited and unmotivated are less likely to respond.
Know What You Want
Another key to receiving a response is to be specific about what you want from your creative agency. Proposals are judged by the feasibility of the project. For example, if you are looking to create a website, do not put a vague request for a website design in your RFP. Add specific metrics such as a number of pages, application integration for e-commerce, and anything else specific that you would need or would like to explore having. This allows the agency to get a better idea of your project in relation to their expertise, as well as how much to bid on your work. Considering a website could run a company anywhere from $5,000-$100,000, leaving an agency asking questions when there are so many options almost guarantees that they will not respond with a proposal.
Be Open To What You Need
Finally, agencies love it when you know what you want, but love it even more when you are open to what you need. For a creative agency, being able to forge a stable partnership with companies who are receptive to various solutions is key. Often, when companies contact an agency they have a pre-set solution in their minds to be carried out. However, the problem is that companies are unaware of much digital marketing and creative design solutions these agencies provide. Therefore, companies may be bypassing a better solution by closing their consideration set to a few known options. Of course, every company comes into a partnership with an idea about what they need, but the key to being successful in your RFP is to be receptive to different options that you might not have been aware of before. Companies who trust their agencies to provide the best service are already one step closer to achieving web design and digital marketing success.
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Ryan Flannagan is the Founder & CEO of Nuanced Media, an international eCommerce marketing agency specializing in Amazon. Nuanced has sold $100s of Millions online and Ryan has built a client base representing a total revenue of over 1.5 billion dollars. Ryan is a published author and has been quoted by a number of media sources such as BuzzFeed, CNBC, and Modern Retail.