If you think RFP software is just for RFPs, you’ve come to the right place. We’re here to clear the air and help you see just how many use cases your organization is missing out on.
The first step is understanding that RFP software is really an intelligent content management system. Capabilities of this kind of technology can reach far beyond responding to request for proposals.
You may have RFP software already, so what follows will help you uncover more ways to maximize the technology you invested in. You may be considering a solution, and this post will help you see the realm of possibilities.
Being that our name is RFPIO, a common misunderstanding we come across is that our solution is only for RFPs—when in fact our clients use the application for numerous projects across departments. Here are some real-world RFP software use case examples that have transformed organizations. Get ready to gain inspiration and efficiency!
RFP software for onboarding
Onboarding new hires is one of the most important first steps when an organization is building a strong team. From job descriptions to employee handbooks, from training materials to online courses…a lot of company information is needed throughout the HR process.
While basic company information may not change too often, it will still change. Roles within the company, and the necessary training to learn the nuances of that job, can change frequently—especially in a growing organization. Having access to the most current company information, and being able to revise HR-related content, are big time-savers for organizations.
RFP software like RFPIO was made to promote collaboration, so any number of users can access the solution. Since usage is not limited, we often see human resources teams using the platform directly for onboarding new-hires. It’s easy for them to learn, and they can quickly use or add content at will to support their hiring efforts.
RFP software for discovery calls
When it’s time to qualify a prospect, it’s up to an SDR (Sales Development Representative) or BDR (Business Development Representative) to pick up the phone and be ready for anything. A prospect will have any number of questions, many of them technical.
While sales should know a product or service inside and out, it’s impossible for them to know every detail. They turn to account executives or product teams for answers, or scour many Google docs and folders to locate information.
RFP software offers a single source of truth for teams within an Content Library. Many sales teams we know keep RFPIO open on their computer screens during discovery calls, because they can rapidly search for any type of company or product information and instantly answer prospect questions.
RFP software for proactive proposals
To sell within a highly competitive industry, sales teams must be proactive. Even if a prospect hasn’t issued an RFP, if sales feels their organization is the perfect fit, they can take steps to stand out from the competition.
Creating a proactive proposal isn’t typically a priority for busy teams who are juggling opportunities with multiple prospects. Like any formality with a prospect…these things take time. At this stage in the sales process, it’s more about presenting your organization in a favorable light.
We love seeing how sales teams are assembling proactive proposals with minimal effort using RFPIO. Top content is one our client’s favorite features—they quickly identify the best and most current responses, filtering by star rating or review date. Since presentation is everything with a proactive proposal, they use customized templates to easily export the document with a beautifully branded finish.
“RFPIO can be utilized to manage both Q&A RFPs, as well as unsolicited proposals. Each project includes a ‘tasks’ page where all non-submission tasks can be tracked (e.g. intent to bid, follow-ups, etc.) It has already helped us cut the response/review workflow time in half. As a small team who ships a lot of projects, this is a game changer for us!”- Carah Counts, CareATC
RFP software for sales emails
Sales teams live in their inboxes more than they would like to admit. Whether they are describing features, answering questions, or following up after submitting an RFP…they compose and send hundreds of emails every day.
Even with numerous forms of communication like Slack or LinkedIn, email conversations will inevitably come into play. While there is no way to eliminate email, there are ways to use technology like RFP software to your advantage. Which is exactly what some of our smartest clients do to enable their sales teams.
RFPIO has a great feature that recommends email content. RFPIO Lookup helps sales manage Content Library content across all web pages and applications when using a Google Chrome browser. Sales teams can leverage this feature to speed up email responses, and ensure they are presenting quality information that will inform and impress prospects and clients.
RFP software for marketing content
Modern marketing teams greatly depend on content for countless initiatives. Marketing owns: brand guidelines, blog content, email campaigns, testimonials, case studies, ad campaigns, social media content, public relations…and, the list goes on.
We’ll use our own example for this one. When submitting for software awards, repetitive questions kept coming up. Rather than copying and pasting from various documents or creating new answers for each submission, our marketing team used RFPIO to store responses to these questions…
- Basic company / contact information
- Product / service value proposition
- Competitive advantages
- Employment data
- Financial data
- Customer testimonials
- Awards and achievements
With each award submission, marketing saved time by repurposing previous responses in minutes. Marketing teams are usually familiar with technology like RFP software, because they are involved in the messaging side of the RFP response process. It’s worth stopping to explore how a collaborative, content management platform like RFPIO can be utilized even more.
RFP software for SOWs
Although SOWs are specific to project scope, they don’t need to be created from scratch each time. This is a common trap teams fall into, but there are ways to use technology like RFP software to work smarter with SOWs.
Projects lean toward the complex side. In a recent report by Project Management Institute, only 22% said projects within their organizations had a low level of complexity. Figuring out how to convey the project scope with a highly complex project can be difficult, but it is not impossible when teams have a strong toolset to work with.
When our clients use RFPIO to complete SOWs, they are spending much less time than before with documents and spreadsheets. Section templates consist of standard content that can be repurposed and used for different stakeholders. Reusing and assigning content within the application greatly improves workflow for SOWs, from content creation to the review process.
“Running our SOWs through RFPIO has helped us keep our documents better organized. The team can quickly review their assigned sections and they don’t have to scroll like they would do in a Google or Word doc. The time-savings has just been awesome.”- Hayli Hay, Metal Toad
RFP software for grants
Similar challenges and solutions discussed in the previous SOW section also apply to teams writing grants. At a nonprofit organization, resources are typically even more scarce. Grant writing can take a lot of time away from other priorities. The key here is to repurpose your content with the help of technology like RFP software.
Using a manual process will only hold a nonprofit team back from reaching their true potential. Funding is critical for the longevity of any nonprofit organization, so the grants they submit must be accurate and compelling. Grants must be submitted often to keep funding opportunities coming in.
We see nonprofits using RFPIO’s Content Library to access powerful stats and current financials to strengthen their grant content—without searching endlessly for these numbers. A sequential review process is also helpful in case a team of one needs to get approval from other directors or a board before submitting.
RFP software for security questionnaires
While sales teams may live in their inboxes, team members who face security questionnaires reside primarily in spreadsheets. Security questionnaires are becoming more common as privacy and security concerns move top of mind for any organization beginning a partnership with another.
On average, a security questionnaire will consist of hundreds of questions—sometimes, thousands. These are the numerous types of security questionnaires…
- Security Questionnaires and Security Questionnaires Lite – Standardized Information Gathering Questionnaires
- VSAQ – Vendor Security Assessment Questionnaire
- CAIQ – Consensus Assessments Initiative Questionnaire
- VSA – Vendor Security Alliance Questionnaire
- NIST 800-171 – National Institute of Standards and Technology Questionnaire
- CIS Controls – Center for Internet Security Questionnaire
….and any variety listed here can be completed efficiently in RFPIO.
Our clients depend on auto-response and bulk answering to cut completion time dramatically, since the solution does a majority of the responding upfront. At the end of the RFP security questionnaire, teams finish up with the source export, which allows them to export back into the original source with clean data.
“RFPIO not only has more flexible configuration for those compliance questions, it does store responses. As far as I can tell, RFPIO is the ONLY software you should be considering.”- Anthony Rossi, MasterControl
“Time is the scarcest resource and unless it is managed nothing else can be managed.” Peter Drucker said those words, and we couldn’t agree more.
Every organization has complex projects, and every team is searching for ways to make processes more efficient. Your resources are valuable, and you want to ensure time is spent optimizing strategies rather than managing tasks.
RFP software is an unbeatable time-saver across organizations. We hope these real-world use cases inspire you to think outside the box, so you can utilize automated technology in new ways and achieve higher levels of success.
