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Respond to RFIs and RFPs

Requests for information (RFIs) and requests for proposal (RFPs) ask you to complete a form set up by the buyer. You answer it page by page, can save a draft at any point, and send it once every required field is filled in.

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  • quotations-rfqs-list
  • quotations-rfqs-show
  • quotations-create
  • quotations-update

Overview​

Unlike an RFQ, an RFI or RFP has no line items to price. Instead, the buyer attaches a form, which can be split across several pages. Your response is the completed form.

Request typeWhat the buyer wantsButton to send your responseWhat your response is called
RFIInformation about your company or offeringSend SubmissionSubmission
RFPA proposalSend ProposalProposal

Finding the request​

  1. Select Request Responses in the navigation menu.
  2. Select the Store the request came from.
  3. Set the Type filter to RFI or RFP, or leave it on All.
  4. Select the request to open it. Requests you haven't answered yet have the Received status.

You can only see requests whose delivery address is covered by an RFQ setting you are assigned to. For more on the list, filters and statuses, see Find Requests.

Reviewing the request​

The top of the page shows the request's title, status and number (for example RFI #120 or RFP #121), followed by:

  • A countdown to the close date, for example 3 days, 4 hours remaining. It shows Quotation already expired once the close date has passed.
  • Close Date and Time, Delivered By, Urgency and External ID.
  • Comments from the buyer.

Anything the buyer left blank shows as Not provided.

Below this, the form is split into two panels:

  • Sections on the left lists the pages of the form. You can search the pages and select Sort by name. Select a page to open it.
  • The selected page on the right shows its questions.

Answering the form​

  1. Select the first page under Sections.
  2. Answer each question on the page. Required questions are marked as required.
  3. Move to the next page and repeat until you have answered every page.

The buyer's form can include these kinds of questions:

Question typeHow you answer
TextType a short answer, or a longer one in a multi-line box.
NumberType a number.
Email, URL, Phone numberType a valid email address, web address or phone number.
DatePick a date. The buyer can stop you picking past or future dates.
CheckboxTick or untick the box.
Select, Multi-selectPick one option, or several.
Rating, Scale, SliderPick a value within the range the buyer set.
FilesUpload one or more files. The buyer sets whether you can upload more than one file, the maximum file size and the allowed file types.
SignatureSign in the signature box.

Some questions may already be filled in by the buyer, and some may be read only. Help text from the buyer shows with the question.

Tracking required fields​

While a request has the Received status, each page that has required questions shows a counter, both in Sections and at the top of the page:

  • 2 of 5 fields in red: some required questions on that page are still empty.
  • Completed in green: every required question on that page is answered.

Pages without required questions show no counter.

Saving a draft​

You don't have to complete the form in one sitting.

  1. Select Save draft at the top of the page. A Draft saved. message confirms it.
  2. Come back later and open the request again. Your saved answers are filled in.

A draft can be incomplete, and the buyer is not notified about it. In the Request Responses list, a request with a draft shows a Draft badge next to its title.

To throw a draft away, select Discard draft and confirm. This cannot be undone.

Drafts that can't be sent

If the request changes while you are drafting, the send button is disabled. Hover over it to see why, for example:

  • This request closed while your draft was unsubmitted.
  • This request has been closed. You can discard your draft.
  • A new round has started; this draft belongs to an earlier round. Discard it to start a new response.

In each case, discard the draft. If the request is still open, you can then start a new response.

Messaging the buyer​

If you have a question about the request, select the chat button at the top of the page.

  1. If there is no conversation yet, the Create Channel dialog opens. The Channel Name is filled in for you, for example RFI/RFP 120 - Your Company. Change it if you like.
  2. Select Confirm. The chat panel opens next to the form so you can keep working while you talk to the buyer.

Once a channel exists, the chat button opens and closes the chat panel.

Sending your response​

  1. Check that every page shows Completed. The send button stays disabled until every required question on every page is answered.
  2. Select Send Submission for an RFI, or Send Proposal for an RFP.
  3. A Submission submitted successfully. or Proposal submitted successfully. message confirms it, and you return to the Request Responses list.

The request's status changes to Responded, and the buyer is notified.

Deadlines

You can send your response only while the request is open. Once the close date passes, or the buyer closes or ends the request, you can no longer send a response or a draft. Check the countdown at the top of the request, and the Close Date column in the Request Responses list.

After you send your response​

  • Open the request to see your answers. They are shown read only, and the portal has no option to edit a response after you send it. If you need to change something, message the buyer.
  • When the buyer makes a decision, the request's status changes, for example to Awarded. See Request statuses.

Information

There is no option to reject an RFI or RFP in the portal. If you don't want to respond, you can let it close without sending a response, or message the buyer.

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