how to write "request for proposal" for social media projects?

HOW TO GENERATE A

COMPREHENSIVE "REQUEST

FOR PROPOSAL" FOR

SOCIAL MEDIA

CONSULTANCY

Andrew Chow (andrew@ideamart.com.sg)

Request for Proposal

Company Information

Statement of Work

Proposal Submission Procedure

Scope of work and Business requirement

Vendor information

Estimated Budget & Resources Allocation

Company Information

Corporate Overview

Your organization including company size, locations,

number of system users, current Social Media efforts

Capabilities, stakeholders, marketing & customer

service plans,

Business goals your are looking to achieve

COMPANY INFORMATION

Company Information

Technology Environment

Your technology environment including: LAN diagram,

telephony system, server operating system, desktop

operating system, programming languages, web-

architecture, applications, etc.

STATEMENT OF WORK

Statement of Work

Purpose

Social Media Program (development/implementation

Business requirement

Scope

How each department that will be using Social Media.

Explicitly state what is not in scope.

If you are planning on a phased approach, provide a

summary or bulleted list of what each phase will look

like from your perspective.

Statement of Work

Project Schedule

Project Milestone Dateline

RFP Delivered to Vendors February 1, 2010

RFP Question Period Ends February 15, 2010

RFP Close Date March 1, 2010

Conduct Evaluations April 1, 2010

Award Contract to Vendor May 1, 2010

PROPOSAL SUBMISSION

PROCEDURE

Proposal Submission Procedure

Vendor RFP Reception

“By responding to this RFP, the vendor agrees to be

responsible for fully understanding the requirements or

other details of the RFP, and will ask any questions to

ensure such understanding is gained. [Insert your

company name] retains the right to disqualify vendors

who do not demonstrate a clear understanding of our

needs. Furthermore, the right to disqualify a vendor

extends past the contract award period and [insert your

company name] will be at no fault, cost, or liability.”

Proposal Submission Procedure

Good Faith Statement

“All information provided by [insert your company

name] is offered in good faith. Specific items are

subject to change at anytime based on business

circumstances. [Insert your company name] does not

guarantee that any particular item is without error.

[Insert your company name] will not be held responsible

or liable for use of this information or for any claims

asserted there from.”

Proposal submission Procedure

Communication & Proposal Submission Guidelines

Proposal Submission Procedure

Evaluation criteria

Profile of Project Team

Past portfolio

Official recommendation

Live project

Proposal Submission Procedure

Short-list Selection

SCOPE OF WORK &

BUSINESS REQUIREMENTSThis section will provide a categorized list of business requirements, with an associated description for each requirement.

These requirements will provide the foundation for vendor presentations, discussions, and negotiations

Scope of Work & Business

Requirements

Audit & Evaluation

Understand Business Goals & Objectives - discussions with Senior Management to identify business goals & objectives of adopting Social Media. Develop internal alignment on role of Social Media program and identify any project risks.

GAP Analysis (Current Social Media Effort) – workshop with department leaders to identify areas for improvement or opportunity. Analyze gaps in workflows to determine where the Social Media program can drive efficiencies.

Content Analysis – Evaluation of existing content, identification of new content needs, and define supportable workflows to create and manage all content

Scope of Work & Business

Requirements

Recommendations & Planning

Channel Selection – Review of social media applications and channels. Provide recommendations for the effective use of Social Media in the delivery of COMPANY XYZ services online. Channels can include Twitter, Facebook and YouTube as well as any other recommendations to enable social interaction with customers and prospects.

Develop Business Requirements – based on the audit, work with key stakeholders to develop requirements for marketing, sales, customer service, IT, etc.

Project Roadmap – create detailed implementation plans

and estimate timelines based on requirements gathered.

Scope of Work & Business

Requirements

Implementation & Integration

System Design – build the Social Media program including dashboards, reports, process, marketing campaigns, and customer support.

Information architecture – Design and/or recommend a robust and scalable Social Media program that integrates into the overall site framework.

Guidelines and policies – Create standards and policies that promote and encourage end user participation in Social Media but limits liability.

Launch Social Media Program – Implement Social Media project plan.

Scope of Work & Business

Requirements

Training, Monitoring & Measurement

Training – provide role specific scenario-based training to end users and administrators.

Measurement – ensure internal system administrator is fully comfortable managing systems on a day-to-day basis.

Improve Adoption - explain how your consulting services package will ensure that all system users adopt the new Social Media program.

VENDOR INFORMATION

Vendor Information

Corporate Overview – legal name; year of incorporation; number of employees; income statement if available.

Products & Services – description of all products & services supplied.

Markets Served – description of geographic/industry markets & % of share.

Partners – list of current business partners and roles in ecosystem.

Customer References – provide 10 references of customers in our industry.

Methodology – be sure their methodology is a good fit with your culture.

ESTIMATED BUDGET &

RESOURCES ALLOCATION

Estimated Budget & Resources

Allocation

Provide a breakdown of costs related to their Social Media Consulting and Implementation services. Costs include, but are not limited to, fixed pricing & deliverables, billable hours (time & materials based pricing), travel expenses, etc. Vendor must agree to keep the quoted pricing in their proposals for a minimum of 90 days after proposal submission.

All proposals must include a project schedule & work breakdown structure, which identifies timelines, key milestones, project phases, or other project plan information.

THANK YOU

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

Andrew Chow (andrew@ideamart.com.sg)