Digital Advertising: What is the RFP process?

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In Digital Advertising, the RFP, or “Request for Proposal” is a formal process that happens between an Advertiser and a potential content partner where the advertiser requests a sales proposal based on a set of predetermined campaign goals and objectives.  Although RFP details vary, the RFP is typically put together by the Advertiser, or the Advertiser’s Media Buying agency, and includes the following information:

• Campaign Budget

• Flight Dates (Including Dark Dates, or Days the campaign is not live)

• Campaign Goals

• Campaign Objectives

• KPIs

• Brand Messaging

• Creative Mix

• Desired Platforms

• Target Audience

• Content restrictions

• Desired CPMs

• Campaign messaging

• Types of inventory desired

The RFP Process typically starts with the Advertiser or the Advertiser’s media agency sending the RFP to the content provider’s Digital Advertising Sales Team.  The content provider works to pull together all requested deliverables to sell through the deal and will work to provide the necessary supporting research and information for the proposed ideas and concepts that align with the advertiser’s goals and objectives.  If there is a large budget, a premium content provider may loop in their Marketing team to put together more custom, turnkey Sponsorships across several platforms and pieces of content.

Within the RFP, the Advertiser may request the below deliverables from the content provider to get more information prior to purchasing the deal:

• Sales Proposal Decks, including details about the sales opportunities presented in addition to research on how the opportunity aligns with the advertiser’s goals and objectives

• Media Plans for the opportunities presented (For more information about media plans, check out- “The Basic Elements of a Digital Media Plan”)

• Creative Specs for proposed plans (For more information about creative, check out “Digital Advertising and Creative Assets”)

• Screenshot examples of the proposed execution

• Any proposed deadlines for campaign launch 

After the proposals are submitted, there is typically a negotiation period.  During this time, the advertiser can go back to the content provider and ask for plan modifications, negotiate CPMs and other price points, and can iron out any other important campaign details prior to making the purchase with the content provider. After an RFP is sent, the content provider will work to put together a proposal based on the RFP details.

The goals of the RFP Process is very different for the advertiser and the content provider. 

• For the Advertiser, the goal of an RFP is to get as many details about a proposed execution as possible, along with any supporting details on how the proposed plan would help meet the advertisers goals and objectives.  When an Advertiser is sending out an RFP, they are typically sent it to more than one content provider so the RFP process is often used as a vetting process to see who has the best options for a particular execution given the campaign’s parameters

• For the Content provider, the goal of an RFP is typically to make the sale- while helping the advertiser meet their goals and objectives. 

After the RFP has been reviewed, vetted, and negotiated with the content provider, the advertiser will then decide on if they want to move forward with the proposed deal.  If there is an agreement to move forward with the proposed deal, both the advertiser and the content provider will work to sell through and execute the campaign (either via a Direct Insertion (DIO)), or through Programmatic channels.  (For more information about Programmatic, check out- “WTF is Programmatic Advertising?)

Budget minimums for the RFP process vary by content provider, however for large premium content partners the RFP process is typically reserved for campaigns that have higher budget ranges, typically at $50k-$100k+.