In an ultra-competitive market for legal services, receiving a request for proposal can feel like getting an invite to an exclusive party. But a midsize firm that RSVPs to an RFP too hastily is likely to end up all dressed up with nowhere to go.
Could it be that RFPs have gotten a bum rap? According to business development professionals, law firms that find the RFP process to be arduous and unproductive may simply be doing it wrong.
Dawn Sheiker, Director of Client Relations at Morris James, discusses the RFP process with Zach Needles, reporting for Law.com's Mid-Market Report. In this two-part series, Dawn, Zach and other leading business development professionals address best practices for RFP responses, mishaps made by procurement offices as well as firms, and the advantage that midsize firms have in competing to win business.
“You’ve got to customize RFP responses,” Dawn said. "Morris James approaches every proposal it decides to undertake as an opportunity to show how we think. This is our chance to shine, and not just send PDFs of our website,” she continued, noting that she’s seen situations in which a client’s go-to outside counsel took an RFP for granted and lost the work to hungrier competition who put more effort into their proposal.
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