By: SEARCH ENGINE LAND

Over the years I’ve seen quite a few Requests for Proposal from companies seeking to buy SEO services. If your RFP is not written well, it hinders the SEO firm’s ability to understand and define your needs and to scope and price your project. This in turn leads to a disconnect in expectations for both parties. A lousy RFP can discourage a busy SEO firm from even responding—a very unfortunate outcome, since it takes the best firms out of the running.

Many companies intuitively “know” what they want but are challenged structurally to “ask” for it in a way that is clear, succinct, informative and constructive. If written properly, an RFP will facilitate the sales process and ensure that everyone involved on both sides get to a shared understanding of what the purpose, requirements, scope and structure of the intended engagement are. By following a few, key steps in the beginning of the RFP process, you will be able to rest easy, knowing that you are going to get what your company wants in the way that is best for you.

Step One: Nominate a “point person” for the engagement

One of the most challenging concepts for any large company with multiple working parts is to determine what the “end goal” of the engagement is. Often, marketing departments may voice different wants and needs than an IT department; even though they may be asking for the same thing semantically, they are not using the right language to communicate what they are looking for. Every successful project needs a champion who is invested in that project’s success and can pull together the disparate groups who have a stake in the outcome or a role to play. Without that person at the helm, the project will struggle.

By nominating that champion as the SEO firm’s “point person” even before you send out your RFP, you will ensure the steady flow of information throughout the process so that internal and external expectations are met.

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