Questions to Include in an RFP for a Video Project

by Tim Lewis | Sep 18, 2018 | EduSocial Blog, Strategy, Tools, Uncategorized | 0 comments

The need for video in today’s business environment is ever increasing. To help you evaluate and determine the best organization to produce your video, you may consider releasing an RFP (Request For Proposal). A video RFP should solicit the following information.

Background

In order to begin the project, it helps to first convey some basic background information:

Describe your organization
What does it do and why does it exist
Products, markets, and size

Purpose

You should also convey a clear understanding of the purpose of the video project:

Describe the purpose of the video or series of videos and what it’s expected to convey.
Describe the nature of the content. Provide details on desired outcomes, take-away messages, and importantly the tone.

Critical Details

The most critical part of any project is the details. It is important to have a thorough understanding of the scope, roles, and responsibilities. Here is a list of information to gather:

Who is the contact person?
Describe where the video will be used or what is the context? Any secondary uses?
How many videos are estimated to be completed and how long are they expected to be?
What is the call to action at the end of the video(s)?
Describe the audience for the video. Any secondary audiences?
What is the deadline for completion of the videos or term of the contract?
What is most important: cost, quality or creativity?
When is the proposal due?
What is the maximum budget?
How will the video be treated? IE: animated graphics, talking head interviews with b-roll, cinematic, etc.? Do you have an example or inspiration video?
Is the final video for broadcast, internal only or web use?
Are any deliverables needed besides .mp4 web-ready video files?
Are there any other requirements like captioning or foreign language versions needed?

You should also request at least three relevant work samples and possibly references. This is usually enough information for most corporate or non-profit video proposals or RFPs. However, if you are a government organization or large corporation, you may need additional details as part of your RFP process.

Detailed RFP Process

Here are some questions we often ask or are required when responding to government proposals:

Is the cost proposal to be included as a separate page and envelope?
Should the responders include sample videos? Are you looking for anything specific in these examples?
What is the treatment for the video? If no treatment is determined, should the responders come up with a creative treatment for the video?
Are there any required affidavits or certificates to be included?
What are your exact requirements/elements to be included in the proposal? Is there a limitation on the number of pages?
Is there insurance or other requirements?
What is the timeline for award notification?
What is the RFP process and schedule?
How should the proposal be delivered? Is email OK?
Is there any specific experience you are looking for in the winning proposal? IE: years in business, references, bios of team members, experience, reputation, etc?
What are the sample tasks required by the project? IE: Creative idea, scripting, shooting, editing, etc.
How will the RFPs be evaluated or how will you choose the winning proposal? IE: what are your criteria for choosing the winner?
Do the videos need to be 508 compliant?

Issuing an RFP can be the best means of sourcing a qualified video production partner. By giving the production company details, you will be providing the necessary information needed for a meaningful quote. Now that you have a complete list of questions to ask, the responses you receive should help inform your decision.

Author: Tim Lewis

Tim Lewis is the owner of Mastcom, a certified veteran-owned Minneapolis video production company that uses cinematic storytelling and animated motion graphics to produce engaging narratives for business communication. We work with business and government communicators to create corporate videos, marketing videos, animated explainer videos, promotional videos, meeting and event videos, training videos and other types of videos.