RFPs on the Rise in 2022 Drives Demand for Automation Solutions

New survey reveals companies are adopting automation tools for efficient RFP collaboration

QorusDocs, an AI-powered proposal development software provider, released findings from its latest annual report that reveal companies saw a year-over-year increase in requests for proposals (RFPs) in 2022 compared to 2021. This influx in RFPs is driving the need for automation solutions that provide efficient collaboration and seamless integration into Microsoft 365 to support the creation of and responses to more RFPs per year.

Companies saw a year-over-year increase in RFPs

Despite the economic, geopolitical and business challenges during 2022, 54% of survey respondents reported an increase in RFPs this year, compared to 2021. The use of proposal management software had a positive impact on creating and responding to RFPs. Fifty-seven percent of those surveyed who use proposal automation software experienced boosted win rates, with a median increase of 25%.

Revenue attributed to winning RFP responses for new business represented an average of 40% of annual sales in 2022, up from 34% in 2021. The share of RFP revenue from existing business also rose in 2022, with the average sales from existing customers’ RFPs increasing from 37% of total sales revenue in 2021 to 50% in 2022.

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Streamlined collaboration is essential

Creating effective proposals and responding to RFPs requires significant resources, time and team participation. Without a way to efficiently collaborate on responses, the proposal process can become a logistics nightmare and costly for organizations.

Consider the following survey findings:

• On average, 22 people–including proposal/bid, sales, business development, client services and marketing teams–are involved in responding to requests for documents (RFx)
• It takes companies six eight-hour days on average to complete just one request
• Organizations develop an average of 20 responses per month
• 25% of businesses were unable to complete one-third to two-thirds (30%-69%) of RFPs they received in 2022
• 26% of companies report losing an estimated $1 million or more in annual revenue from unanswered requests, with 9% losing more than $5 million

“With QorusDocs, our sales team has a one-stop shop for all sales and go-to-market collateral, helping accelerate the deal cycle and boost win rates,” said Dave Frederickson, EVP of sales at Long View Systems. “Plus, our proposals and sales teams have been able to increase productivity, eliminating the need to hire more resources.”

Companies leveraging proposal management software are able to streamline the proposal process, improve vital cross-team collaboration and reduce the overall time spent on proposals:

• 71% of companies agree that proposal software increases the quality of proposals
• 77% of companies agree that it increases the ability to turn in timely responses
• 64% of companies agree proposal management software makes it easier to collaborate on proposals
  

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Microsoft is the landslide application winner

As companies execute digital transformation strategies, the proposal management software market is seeing a rise in adoption. In 2021, the market value reached $1.8 billion and is expected to grow to $7 billion by 2031, showing the growing need for flexible, user-friendly and effective solutions that can be integrated with popular platforms like Microsoft 365.

Half of the proposal, bid and sales professionals surveyed utilize Microsoft Word as their primary application when creating proposals and RFx responses. Furthermore, 80% of respondents primarily use Microsoft applications to complete requests: Microsoft Word (50%), Microsoft Excel (16%), and Microsoft PowerPoint (14%).

These findings show that users want to spend as much time within the familiarity of Microsoft 365 as possible when working on proposals. As a result, it’s critical that companies implement proposal management software that is integrated with Microsoft 365 to efficiently develop responses to RFPs.

“Our customers are developing thousands of proposals per year, making collaboration and access to efficient tools essential,” said Ray Meiring, CEO and co-founder of QorusDocs. “Proposal management software like QorusDocs is purpose-built to work with technologies like Microsoft, helping companies streamline material development and, therefore, enabling them to complete more proposals per year, boost win rates and increase revenue opportunities. As RFPs continue to increase year over year for businesses, effective digital tools will continue to be critical for streamlining the proposal process and securing new revenue.”

Methodology and sample size

For this year’s survey, QorusDocs solicited responses from professionals in proposal, IT, business development, and C-suite roles who are involved in creating proposals or responding to RFPs, RFIs, DDQs or security questionnaires. The cohort encompassed companies of varying sizes from multiple industries and across a wide range of revenue levels. The majority of respondents represented the technology, professional services and financial services industries, with 25% of surveyed firms generating more than $100 million in revenue (2021).