Horst_in_Luck

Enterprise Account Executive

How to handle an extended RFP timeline?

Hey war roomies,

I'm working on an RFP that was supposed to be finaliezd by end of last year. In December the client told us that they have to reclarify the ownership and that they can't give us a concrete timeline for that.

Since then we regularly received updates from different stakeholders stating that the internal discussions are still ongoing.

Originally I was assuming that we were the preferred vendor, as we have some history in the account, received positive feedback, and some statements I interpretated as hints.

Official communication of the RFP winner only happens after they clarified the open topic internally.

I see a risk of them currently negotiating with one of our competitors. But every attempt to engage in a converstation, results in them stating that they need some more time for the internal discussion.

Any advice on how to interpret this situation and what actions to take / not to take?

8

11 comments

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medhardwaredr

Opinionated

6

Director of Sales NA

It could be that they do just need time. Companies are busy in general let alone an individual so things get backed up however in this case it’s entirely possible you’re behind.
Google Sandler and their approach to closing it should be helpful

Pachacuti

Politicker

5

They call me Daddy, Sales Daddy

I would wondering if (1) money's an issue - is project funding being redirected/reprioritized. (2) is the project no longer carrying the same weight - are other initiatives being prioritized more highly? and (3) I would worry about my competitors actions.

Horst_in_Luck

Good Citizen

0

Enterprise Account Executive

Money and project importance are probably not an issue, as we are connected to a much larger project. Urgency on the other hand is a big topic, as they are looking at a multi-year timeline, and not much reason to start right now vs. in a month.

Your point on worrying about my competitor's actions nails it. They will do everything to get ahead, and I'm not sure how to counter that as the initially preferred solution.

Any experiences on this?

SaaSguy

Tycoon

4

Account Executive

Gotta respect the buyers timeline, but it is not great to not know it. It sounds like your dealing with multiple stakeholders - if they are srs about buying there is no reason they dont have an idea by when.
I'd try to single out a single stakeholder as an internal champion and lean on them to get some deeper insights.

BigShrimpin

Catalyst

2

Account executive

nothing you can do but stay in touch with the exec buyer and try to build a champion. In many rfp cases the decision was made during the drafting of the rfp so dont feel too bad if you lose in the end

Sunbunny31

Politicker

2

Sr Sales Executive 🐰

Unfortunately it sounds like they had no compelling event necessitating a purchase, so they can have the luxury of time to consider. And consider. And get pulled into another competing project.

The RFPs I’ve been involved with that stall like this inevitably don’t have a compelling event to aim for. And most people are reluctant to make big decisions unless they have to, so you have an endless cycle. If there is any way you can help get things going by building a case of the cost of doing nothing, or the benefits your solution brings that will save them $ or the like, that’s a suggestion. If you aren’t in a position to do that, then you’re going to have to be patient and realize all these stakeholders have their jobs to do in addition to having meetings to make a decision.

CuriousFox

WR Officer

2

🦊

It's a fine line of knowing when to wait and knowing when to walk away.

Horst_in_Luck

Good Citizen

1

Enterprise Account Executive

Very well put @Sunbunny31
And you are spot on. I think about how to show them the $ they are losing.

One development that can happen if this drags on for longer, is that some business units will choose their solutions instead of going with the RFP decision, which might end up with multiple vendors in place, contradicting the client's harmonization strategy.

How would you play this line of argument?

Sunbunny31

Politicker

0

Sr Sales Executive 🐰

I’d bring that up - remind them of the purpose for the RFP, the cost associated with multiple disconnected solutions, having to learn and administrate several, etc.

At the end of the day, though, no one can stop a customer determined to make the stupid decision. You just have to be professional and resist the “I told you so” when they inevitably fail.

Justatitle

Big Shot

2

Account Executive

And this is why I hate RFPs.

pwnzor

Opinionated

0

Head of Sales

RFP's take a long time and typically follow a very specific procurement process. You've just got to deal with it. I sell into the Federal gov't and GovCon space and this part of it is the bane of my existence at the moment.

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