Ad Agency RFP

Purpose

The purpose of this tool is to help you design a Request for Proposal (RFP) for Ad Agency Services. An

RFP is a formal invitation to request vendor proposals that meet specific business requirements and

purchasing criteria. Agencies interested in pursuing the opportunity will respond with their approach to

delivering on your requirements, provide a detailed project plan & budget, and relevant references. An

RFP is useful for expediting the contracting process, once negotiations are complete.

How to Use this Template

Complete the following sections with your Ad Agency project team. Cut & paste this information into a

document that reflects your corporate image, and deliver your RFP to a short-list of potential vendors for

review and proposal submission. The ‘Scope of Work & Business Requirements’ section contains a

comprehensive list of potential requirements. Be sure to cut out requirements you don’t need, and add

any that are particular to your organization.

Title Page

[Insert Company Name or Logo]

Ad Agency Request for Proposal

[Insert Date]

Table of Contents

Page

1. General Information 3

1.1 Corporate Overview

1.2 Contact information

2. Statement of Work 3

2.1 Project Purpose

2.2 Project Scope

2.3 Project Schedule

3. Proposal Submission Procedure 4

3.1 Vendor RFP Reception

3.2 Good Faith Statement

3.3 Communication & Proposal Submission Guidelines

3.4 Evaluation Criteria

3.5 Short-list Selection

3.6 Terms of Service

3.7 Conflict of Interest

3.8 Proposal Presentation Points

3.9 Reference Accounts

4. Agency Information 6

5. Estimated Budget & Resources Required 6

1. General Information

1.1 Corporate Overview

Provide a description of your organization including company size, locations, current capabilities &

systems, stakeholders, expansion plans, and the business goals you are looking to achieve.

INSERT OVERVIEW OF COMPANY, including target customers, verticals served, solutions offered.

INSERT INDUSTRY OVERVIEW, including competitors, relative positioning, growth opportunities,

go-to-market strategies, etc.

ROLE OF AGENCY PARTNER: what services you expect the agency to provide.

OVERVIEW: insert a paragraph on the key attributes you hope to find in the agency you are

hiring, and your reason for hiring.

1.2 Contact Information Primary liaison contact information: Enter Name

Email to which questions should be addressed: Enter Email Address

Location for presentations: Enter Address, City, State/Province, Country

2. Statement of Work

2.1 Purpose

The purpose of this Request for Proposal (RFP) process is to invite vendors to submit their

proposal to provide Ad Agency and implementation services. This document contains the

business requirements necessary for a successful engagement.

2.2 Scope

Outline the scope of services, such as:

Ongoing strategic planning and creative consultation

Content creation

Media relations – international, national, trade, business, local

Analyst relations

Awards

Product reviews

Trade show support

Special events

Metrics and monitoring

2.3 Project Schedule

This schedule is based on our current timelines, but is subject to change.

Project Milestones Deadline

RFP Delivered to Agencies June 1, 2009

RFP Question Period Ends July 15, 2009

RFP Close Date July 31, 2009

Conduct Agency Evaluations September 1, 2009

Award Contract to Agency September 30, 2009

3. Proposal Submission Procedure

3.1 Vendor RFP Reception

By responding to this RFP, the agency 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 agencies

who do not demonstrate a clear understanding of our needs. Furthermore, the right to disqualify

an agency extends past the contract award period and [insert your company name] will be at no

fault, cost, or liability.

3.2 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 therefrom.

3.3 Communication & Proposal Submission Guidelines

Communications shall not be effective, unless a specified procurement executive who is

responsible for managing the RFP process formally confirms these communications in writing. In

no case shall verbal communication govern over written communications.

Please submit your proposal by [insert RFP Close Date].

Please send questions related to this RFP, and agency proposals to:

[Insert your company name]

[Insert department name] [Insert mailing address]

Attention:

[Insert contact name & title] [Insert phone/email/fax contact information]

3.4 Evaluation Criteria

All proposals will be evaluated systematically, based on the following key criterion. The purpose of

this section is to identify agencies with the interest, capabilities, and financial stability to provide

services as defined in the Scope of Work.

Following is a list of our key evaluation criteria:

Insert Criteria

Insert Criteria

Insert Criteria

Insert Criteria

Insert Criteria

3.5 Short-list Selection

Agencies who have demonstrated their capacity to meet our needs will be contacted via phone

and/or mail to be notified of their selection to move forward in the RFP process. Agencies, who

have not been selected, will not be contacted.

3.6. Term of Service

COMPANY wishes to engage agency for a/an ____-year term with a ____-day cancellation provision

by either party.

3.7 Conflict of Interest

Proposing agencies are asked to certify that they have no conflicts of interest in serving COMPANY.

Principal competitors are: LIST COMPETITORS. Additional companies may also be considered

competitors, and we ask that you email any questions on competitors if you have them.

3.8 Proposal Presentation Points

To keep the presentations focused, we ask that you focus on how you are going to help us achieve

the three priorities of our 2009 program, listed below:

Priority #1

Priority #2

Priority #3

3.9 Reference Accounts:

Three client references should be provided at the time of your presentation, including: Current

contact name, address, phone number and email.

Client Reference #1

o Contact Name

o Address

o Phone Number

o Email

Client Reference #2

o Contact Name

o Address

o Phone Number

o Email

Client Reference #3

o Contact Name

o Address

o Phone Number

o Email

4. Agency Information Agencies must submit the following information to be considered:

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 references of customers in our industry.

5. Estimated Budget & Resources Required

All Agencies must provide a breakdown of costs related to the services provided. Costs include, but are

not limited to, fixed pricing & deliverables, billable hours (time & materials based pricing), travel

expenses, etc. Agencies must agree to keep the quoted pricing in their proposals for a minimum of 90

days after proposal submission.

Finally, all proposals must include a project schedule & work breakdown structure, which identifies

timelines, key milestones, project phases, or other project plan information.