Nonprofits often operate on limited budgets and with constrained resources, making it difficult to tackle big projects that further their missions. This is where an RFP can be your greatest asset.
A request for proposal (RFP) is a formal document through which nonprofits outline their need for a new project or service and invite vendors, contractors, or consultants to submit detailed proposals with their solution.
RFPs must include several specific elements to ensure potential vendors or consultants have a clear understanding of your needs and can submit relevant proposals. Here are five core elements your RFP needs to contain to help you find the right partners for your organization:
Organization Overview
Begin your RFP with a brief introduction to your nonprofit. This sets the foundation for a clear and mutual understanding between your nonprofit and potential partners, fostering a stronger basis for collaboration.
Specifically, introduce your organization by sharing your nonprofit’s:
- Mission: Communicate the core purpose of your organization and the future you’re working towards, so vendors can recommend solutions that are in line with your overarching objectives.
- Background: Provide an overview of your nonprofit’s history, highlighting key milestones, achievements, and any significant projects you’ve undertaken in the past. This background information helps prospective vendors understand the context in which your organization operates and the journey you’ve taken to get to your current state.
- Impact and Reach: Describe the impact your nonprofit has had on the community or cause you serve. Pull relevant statistics and success stories from your donor database to help vendors appreciate the significance of the project they might be involved in.
Keep your RFP concise by limiting this foundational information to a page or less. This approach places more emphasis on your project and ensures that vendors can quickly understand the requirements and submit relevant proposals.
Project Description and Goals
Provide a detailed description of your project, explaining why you’re seeking assistance and highlighting any challenges you aim to address. Then, list the tangible outcomes that the project is expected to produce, making sure to:
- Be specific and clear: Define each goal in precise terms. For instance, instead of saying “improve donor engagement,” specify that you want to “increase donor retention by 15% within one year.”
- Use SMART criteria: Frame goals using SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound) criteria to provide a clear understanding of what is expected.
- Align with larger objectives: For each project, explain how it will fit into your nonprofit’s overarching strategy. For example, if you need a new website developed for a fundraiser, you might explain how much you expect to raise and how you intend to better capture new supporters’ data to build long-term connections.
Let’s say your nonprofit is preparing an RFP for a technology consultant. After introducing your need for a new, scalable CRM, you might explain that your goal is to increase operational efficiency by streamlining donor management, volunteer tracking, and event coordination processes, leading to a minimum 15% reduction in administrative overhead by the end of Q4. The consultant can then use this information to help you set up your new CRM.
Scope of Work
RFPs are only useful to vendors if they provide a project’s specifics. Break down the scope of your project into manageable sections, including the:
- Deliverables: Detail the specific deliverables expected from the selected vendor or service provider, whether you need educational resources, event marketing materials, building blueprints, or a fully designed website.
- Timeline: Present a timeline that outlines key milestones for the project. Or, let the prospective partner know that you’re flexible in terms of timing.
- Roles and responsibilities: Define your nonprofit’s responsibilities and the roles you expect the vendor to play.
- Budget: Review your nonprofit’s finances and state your budget range for the project. Then, ask the recipient to submit a detailed cost breakdown of their services.
- Technical requirements: Outline your technical requirements so vendors can assess their capabilities and compatibility. For example, if you’re working with a consultant to get the Blackbaud CRM up and running, you might specify that you need help configuring the software modules and migrating data from your old system.
When vendors have a clear understanding of what is expected of them, it prevents misunderstandings and leads to more successful collaboration.
Selection Criteria
Specify how proposals will be evaluated. Your criteria may include:
- Experience: Consider factors such as the number of years in the field, successful projects completed, and specific expertise relevant to your project. A strong track record demonstrates the vendor’s ability to deliver results.
- Alignment with goals: Evaluate how well the vendor’s proposal aligns with your organization’s objectives to ensure that the project’s execution will be in line with your desired social impact.
- Approach: Assess the vendor’s approach to solving the problem at hand. Look for proposals that demonstrate creative solutions and bring a fresh perspective.
Specify how your nonprofit will weigh these selection criteria in an RFP to provide transparency about the evaluation process. The prospective partner can then tailor their responses to address your priorities, leading to more relevant and competitive proposals.
Submission Guidelines
Provide clear instructions on how vendors should submit their proposals, including:
- Format: Specify instructions on page limits, font type and size, margins, line spacing, and any other formatting details that will make it easier for the evaluation team to review proposals quickly.
- Delivery: Clarify if the proposal should be submitted electronically via email or through an online submission portal or if physical copies are required.
- Deadline: Ensure that all potential vendors are aware of when to submit their proposals. Include the applicable time zone if the RFP is being distributed to a wide geographic audience.
If possible, indicate when you expect to contact the selected vendor. That way, they’re not left wondering.
As you embark on your next RFP journey, keep in mind that flexibility is key. Each project is unique and your proposal should be customized according to your specific needs and goals at that given time. With the right approach, you will attract well-suited vendors, receive relevant proposals, and facilitate a transparent and efficient selection process for your project.
