Requests for proposal for websites—or RFPs as they’re often called—can be difficult to write, especially for non-technical customers.

So, I thought I’d draft a set of guidelines specifically geared toward non-profits working the public policy world—the core audience of ReadyMadeWeb.

Here’s what your RFP ought to include:

Overview
Write a simple overview of what you want your website to include and what you expect to get from it.  This should be the guiding statement that directs the project.

Organization Profile
Describe your organization as you would to a potential donor or new hire. This provides much-needed context to the developer. Examples of any existing websites or similar projects—such as blogs, podcasts, or even hard-copy papers—will help establish what your organization is all about.

Intended Audience
Describe your audience. Is it specifically geared towards a specific demographic, professional community, or special interest group?  Are you trying to reach the grassroots or policy makers?  Trying to reach too many audiences with the same site can make for a conflicted project, so this question should be considered carefully.

Websites You Like
What websites do you like? Are there already sites appeal to your aesthetic sensibilities and mesh with the image your organization wants to present? Identify as many specific features or design elements as possible about these sites to help the developer determine what appeals to you.

Sample Content
Provide samples of the content that you wish to present through your website.   Be careful to think through every possibility for this, including papers, press releases, events, blog posts, video, podcasts, and staff biographies.

Branding/Front-End Requirements
Include all design specifications or branding requirements that must be met including logos, slogans, and color schemes.

Technical/Back-End Requirements
Highlight all of the platforms you currently use even if you don’t intend to integrate them with your website—you may find that more data integration is possible than you would have otherwise imagined.

Your technical specs should also include the following three points:

Ownership
Pay close attention to the intellectual property aspects of any proposal.  If a contractor wants to use a proprietary solution (ReadyMadeWeb doesn’t recommend this, see our About page), make sure it’s not a proprietary solution of their own invention, otherwise, that contractor will essentially own your website.  The software that runs your site should either be open-source, or licensed directly to you, not the contractor.  If your relationship with this developer sours, you want to be able to end that relationship without losing your website.

Control
Keeping your website in your control is important.  Outline what changes to the site—other than adding new content—you’ll need to be making on a regular basis.  If you envision frequently adding new categories or types of content to your site, ask for this to be included as one of the features in the site, or determine in writing what the contractor will charge to make those changes over the next 12 to 24 months.  Request that the website be hosted on server that you own or rent and that you retain a copy of all usernames, passwords, and other access information.  Don’t let a developer hold your data hostage.

Data Backup
Establish your data backup requirements.  Does your data need to backed up weekly, daily, or hourly?  How much content are you producing and how much do you value it?  Ask for quotes on different options if you’re unsure.

Budget and Time Requirements
This is one of the most important aspects of any RFP. This allows the developer to adequately address your needs to the appropriate scale with a custom tailored proposal.  Keep in mind, however, that developers will often present a project budget that comes in just under the dollar amount you’ve provided.  Many website solutions contain the same feature sets, but may vary in their polish and ease and implementation.  You may find that you’re willing to live with a solution that does 90% of the things on your wish list if it comes in at 10% of the price of the 100% solution.

This should give you a leg-up on many other organizations that aren’t able to articulate their ideas clearly in their RFP.

Do you see something missing from my list?  If so, please leave a comment below.

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