016 The Invisible Touch – The Fallacy of the Obligatory RFP Response

Fallacies of Marketing

Ahhhh, the dreaded RFP – Request for Proposals.

Believe me I understand why companies issue them: governmental agencies HAVE to (they have to seek the lowest bidder) and others do it to shop the price.

But from the end of the business which feels it has to comply by jumping through all the hoops laid out in such a document, I border on contempt for them.

Architect Philip Johnson Replies To An RFP

The now-classic (though perhaps not exactly true) reply that world-renown architect Philip Johnson gave is terrific.

He was sent an RFP for the design of a new building. Succinctly, the reply was sent:

"We'll Do It."

As they say in the MasterCard commercials: PRICELESS!

And let's face it, what company using its best judgment would ever send an RFP to another company which COULDN'T do it?

Think About All The Lost Time

Are you SURE you really want to jump up and down and spin around exactly the way the requesting company asks you to do? Is this work REALLY what you want? Is this the ONLY way to get this assignment.

If you look back to Section 011, you'll be reminded that often people have already made up their mind about with whom they want to work… they're just gather statistics to back up their decision. AND, in this case, they are gather pricing information, working one group against another.

How long with you (or those working with you) have to spend on this versus getting to know (and having them know you) the decision-makers.

Are you brave enough to send back a reply like Philip Johnson at least one time to see where it gets you?

Dan Kennedy Refuses To Submit RFPs

Back when legendary marketer, Dan Kennedy, ran a Public Relations – Marketing Company (instead of his direct response empire), he decided he would no longer submit to RFPs. If people wanted his firm, they could negotiate directly with them.

Their track record was known; people wanted the results they had delivered to others; he was a known entity and to take all of this extra time away, would deprive his clients of his valuable attention to their projects.

I like it!

Do A Test Run On Craigslist

Though I didn't exactly submit an RFP, I recently needed to hire an additional part-time staff person to help with some typing of my materials. I underline the most important parts of books, and so to create an electronic "Best of This Book," I get an assistant to type what I underline.

So I learned that RFPs can tell something about you… IF you aren't known to your prospect.

I listed a job description in Craigslist and asked people to write to the "blind reply" address that Craigslist uses when we don't want to identify ourselves more than saying "near Philadelphia, PA USA"

I received 57 (FIFTY SEVEN!!) replies within the first HOUR! And since I hadn't asked for much specific information (just telling them to tell me WHY they wanted to work with me, HOW qualified they were, and HOW much (in compensation) it would take to get them to work for me.

The variety of replies was astounding. From "my ex-husband is a bum and I need money" to "I LOVE to type and will share that love with you" to "what you present sounds very interesting and I look forward to helping you."

Here's a suggestion (if you don't object to asking a question even if you don't need the results): before YOU have to apply for some work, spend some money on Craigslist and ask others to apply for the kind of work YOU are about to apply.

You will learn a LOT from their replies – style, substance, all the way to how their emails look when they arrive in your computer.

Believe me… I NEEDED some more help, so the $25 I spent on Craigslist will help me find another assistant. But it also confirmed to me the impact that the Worldwide Economic Meltdown of 2008 – 2009 has had on people… people who are hurting and who reply to job offers in droves (and at pay rates way below what they received just 12 months earlier).

But test for yourself – it will help you when your proposals are for real.

Best,

Charlie Seymour Jr
Blogging, Podcasting, Consulting

PS: You can find me here:

http://twitter.com/UltimateWAHDads

http://facebook.com/CharlesSeymourJr

http://www.linkedin.com/in/charlesseymourjr

PPS: Do you have trouble writing? Turn Your Words Into Gold – Go Here To Learn More! NOW is the time to start.

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Keep this with this article, please:

Charlie Seymour Jr is an entrepreneurial evangelist and marketing-success coach helping individuals and companies (up to $100MM) explode their success through online and direct-response marketing. He specializes in blogging, podcasting, photography, video, and Facebook applications. Visit his blog at http://bit.ly/24eYTO to learn more about his successes.

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Fallacies of Marketing

016 The Invisible Touch – The Fallacy of the Obligatory RFP Response