As a meeting planner, the Request for Proposal (RFP) is your sales tool and blueprint for potential customers and partners. Keeping this document updated and current for your organization is important to your success.
Your RFP explains to stakeholders the needs and requirements of your client for a meeting or conference. It is important to put this list together using input from members of your client’s management team, who have extensive experience working on the conference.
Here is a list of what a RFP should include, at minimum:
Introduction – Provide an overview of the conference including a description of the delegates who will attend and the numbers of years the conference has been held.
Economic Profile – Describe the delegates and their responsibilities within their organizations.
Dates/Patterns – Request the daily pattern and month when the conference is held. Also note if any holidays or specific dates should be avoided.
Housing – Include requested hotel rate and rate history of previous conferences. You should also note the number of rooms needed by day and type, if required. Complimentary staff rooms are requested here and ratio of one comp room per 20, 30 or 40. Request hotel rates for three days before and three days after the conference. Any hotel rebate request should be listed in this area.
Host’s Requirements – Ask the host to provide various things for the conference, including meeting space and sponsorships.
Site Information – List previous sites, including cities, hotels, convention or conference centers, and dates.
Bid Procedure – List your requirements for the potential host to complete as part of the bid process, including site inspections and other pertinent information.
Contact Person – Include detailed information: your company’s name, address, phone and the email address to which a bid for the conference should be sent.
The Request for Proposal is not only your sales tool, but a potential tool in “selling” your event to the host’s management. The more time you spend upfront providing detailed information to your potential customers the less time you will spend answering questions later on.
Joe Cappuzzello is responsible for the development and implementation of RFPs for five associations that all focus on the small to mid-level markets that Small Market Meetings covers.
Cappuzzello is responsible for locating host cities for the annual Small Market Meetings Conference, as well as for BankTravel, African American Travel, Going on Faith and Boomers in Groups travel conferences. He is the president and CEO for each of these organizations. He can be reached at 330-337-1027 or at jcappuzzello@grouptravelfamily.com.
