White Papers; How To “Wire” An RFP
By Dan Safford

The truth is that some projects let out for "competitive" proposals are really sole source jobs; the client has a specific contractor or consultant in mind and is just going through the motions. The question is, How do you get your firm to be in that position?

One answer to this is to prepare what I call a "White Paper." This is a document written when you first get wind of a potential job—the earlier in the procurement cycle the better.

What goes into a White Paper? Here are the four basic elements:

Some Tips for Writing the White Paper ·         Keep the tone professional but friendly. ·         Stress your firm's experience in resoling situations similar to this one. ·         Make sure you have accurate information about the client's situation before sending off the White Paper. ·         Wrap up the White Paper by saying that you'll call within a week or so--then make sure you do. ·         Don't try to "close" the sale; remember that this is one tactical step in a strategic marketing effort.

Statement of the Problem. This is a short discussion of your understanding of the client's problem. It's based on your marketing intelligence; you have found out something about what the client wants to have done, and here you tell him/her what you think the problem is. It's extremely important not to misrepresent yourself: you are not trying to say, "You may think that x is the problem, when in fact y is really the problem."

In other words, don't patronize. Simply state the problem as best you can from the client's point of view. This will have two immediate effects. In the first place, by giving a clear representation of the problem you establish yourself (or your firm) as an expert in the field. In the
second place, and as important, the client will perceive you as being sympathetic to his/her needs. You will have established a climate of good will.

Critical Issues. In the next four or five paragraphs, identify the critical issues that must be addressed in order to successfully resolve the problem. Every solution has potential obstacles, or "showstoppers." These showstoppers may be technical; the solution requires a level of technical understanding that only experts (like you) understand.

There may be schedule obstacles that lie in wait. Or maybe political land mines lurk beneath the surface. Whatever they are, here is where you identify them. But don't stop there. Now you need to explain how you overcome those obstacles. If it's a technical hurdle, what has your firm done on similar projects to leap it? How have you used your knowledge of ticklish political implications to implement a similar solution?

By identifying critical issues and then explaining how to resolve them, you show the depth of your experience. And you also educate the client; now he/she knows more
about the problem than they originally thought.

Project Approach that Resolves the Issues. Once you have brought the issues to light and explained how they are resolved, you can suggest a project approach that best puts your solutions to work. This is really nothing more than a general scope of work. You might start by saying "On projects similar to this, we have addressed these issues by structuring the program in four tasks. . ." Then you go on and discuss the tasks, devoting no more than a paragraph or two apiece. You may, if you want, include typical deliverables of each task, and how long each task usually takes.

This is really the payoff section. If all goes well--and it certainly can--this section can contain the seed of the client's eventual Scope of Work.

Suggested Timeline. Finally, you want to include a rough estimate of how long this sort of project would take. It's especially important to include a timeline if scheduling is one of your critical issues. How long should each task take? Which tasks are linear? Which are parallel? All the while, you should be reminding them of your experience with these kinds of projects.

White Papers are short--no more than three pages--and most effective when written in a helpful tone. But remember that this is a marketing document, however much it sounds like you're just trying to help out. In the end, a well-crafted White Paper is successful if it sets up the climate for an eventual solution, and that solution is yours.

And who knows--maybe the next RFP you read may be wired for you.

Some Tips for Writing the White Paper

·         Keep the tone professional but friendly.

·         Stress your firm's experience in resoling situations similar to this one.

·         Make sure you have accurate information about the client's situation before sending off the White Paper.

·         Wrap up the White Paper by saying that you'll call within a week or so--then make sure you do.

·         Don't try to "close" the sale; remember that this is one tactical step in a strategic marketing effort.