Request For Proposal (RFP) is business written document businesses create in order to request proposals from potential agencies or contractors. The document states all important information, necessary details in order to communicate an organization’s need to avail of service and invite vendors for collaborations. It forms an important part of the process of starting a mobile application development journey because:

• A detailed RFP sets the foundation for the project and also eliminates ambiguity.
• It acts as a problem-solving platform for many ideas.

For example, you are looking forward to building a mobile application for your business. You would require creating a document to invite mobile development companies to submit proposals to you. Based on the requirements of the RFP, the agencies bid to win the contract.

Many companies at a time will bid on a similar project. It is on you to compare bids and select the best company for the service.

Remember good and well-written RFP’s lead to great proposals, great proposals lead to better working, professional relationships, which eventually leads to better outcomes. So, if you also want to write an engaging and well-written proposal, here is everything from A-Z to help you write an amazing mobile app RFP. But before jumping directly towards the steps to writing RFP, have a look at some other hidden insights.

Who writes an RFP?

Ideally, RFP’s should be written by the main stakeholders of the project. The Request For Proposals is the employee’s opportunity to advocate for their team, themselves and their needs.

The person who writes RFP should have clarity about the project as the process includes choosing a vendor who will carry forward the project. 

Another important aspect of RFP is seeking answers from vendors to certain questions like the strategy they would follow for mobile application design, their success rate at completing a project within a given deadline.

There are different kinds of RFP’s like branding RFP, workplace RFP, public relations RFP, government RFP, marketing RFP, and Design RFP. But since we are looking forward to mobile application RFP, design RFP is the one you should target.

Design RFP seeks to target graphic designers who can aid in the development of the business mobile application. But before writing an RFP, it is important to learn about the terminologies that sound close to RFP:

• RFI- It stands for Request for information. It is used to collect information from sources and does not necessarily need a proposal. 
• RFQ- It stands for request for quote. This is used to get information regarding price, delivery. Businesses send RFQ to ask about the final price and other details about the deal.

Why you need an RFP?

RFP does not only communicate what you want but also tells who you are and why should your RFP be chosen among other RFP’s. Your RFP should be written in a crystal clear manner and directly talk about the aims, functionality, deadlines, selection criterion, and contact information. 

The quality of your RFP has a significant bearing on the proposals you will receive. Many companies do not like responding to the badly written RFP’s and that is not good both for you and your business. 

Now that you are aware of the terminologies and the professionals who write RFP’s, the next step is to go through the process that makes an RFP great. 

How to write a great mobile RFP?

In this part, we will go through the steps to write an amazing mobile app RFC. Remember no RFC is alike. Every company has its own preferences but it is also important for your RFC to get recognized and for that follow some of the basic steps mentioned below:

• Company’s summary

The first step is to introduce your company, the business problem, the solution to seek and the project description. Here you are required to write a brief but clear overview of your company. Also explain the way your company works, your aims, goals and the core values. Do not use plain words if you want it to look professional. 

• Mention the eligibility criteria

Yes, you can mention this in your RFP. For example, you can write that you are looking forward to the agency that provides a qualified app designing, a professional building, and a maintenance team. Also, you can seek information about the details of the team dedicated to the project.

• Purpose of the mobile application

Here you are required to specify the reason to build a mobile application. Also, mention the details of the functionality of the application. For instance, you can mention that the application should have subscription capability, video downloading, social media sharing feature, shopping cart and other enhancements for the mobile application user.

• Project summary 

This step would include everything from a summary of a business problem to goals and an ideal outcome. This step is like consulting a doctor for advice about steps and remedies that would help you feel better. The project summary is detailing the vendor about your needs. It will also include the following:

• Solution considered 
• Operating systems (OS) and Devices
• Stakeholders and decision-makers 
• Goals and result

• Budget 

 The mobile application app budget is affected majorly by two factors:

• Size of the project
• Experience and quality of the agency

Providing budget details is important especially to seek accurate responses and setting a price rate for the project. Adding a budget in the RFP allows the firm to understand exactly what services the vendor is able to offer to meet the targeted business goals.

• Project timeline

 While mentioning the project timeline, make sure you mention the RFP deadline as well. Further, it should also include the launch date associated with the event, when do you need to start the development, the date when the project is set to be launched. Mentioning the project timeline helps the vendor to know that when can they hear from you. So, for every milestone, you decide to reach, make sure you choose a realistic date and deadline.

• Mobile agency background and capabilities

Basically, this section is to be filled by the responding agency. It consists of questions that analyze the abilities of the company. The questions are designed in a manner that helps to gather information for comparison between different development agencies.  It should contain the following points like:

• History/background
• Portfolio
• Awards bagged if any
• Team of designers
• Design capabilities
• Project managers and
• Reference projects

Writing a mobile RFP can seem daunting to you for the first time. But remember, even the most seasoned RFP professionals were once beginners and began with the same as a challenge. Once you begin to write an RFP, remember some of the beginner’s tips:

1.  Build a relationship in the RFP process.
2. Define the objectives coherently.
3. Review the requirements time and again.
4. Have clarity about the terminologies before you begin to write.

All the points about RFP have been covered from scratch. So, whether you are a beginner or an experienced RFP professional, the above-mentioned points will add to your knowledge and help in writing an amazing RFP.

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