RFP Writing Classes

Our RFP Writing Classes teach you how to craft compelling, compliant proposals that win contracts. Learn to analyze requirements, structure proposals, and communicate value effectively, boosting your chances of success.

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Course Overview

Our RFP Writing Classes are designed to equip professionals with the skills needed to create persuasive and compliant research proposals, in response to an RFP. Whether you are new to proposal writing or looking to enhance your skills, our Request for Proposal writing classes cover every step of the process. 

Learn how to analyze RFP requirements, structure your responses effectively, and communicate your organization's value clearly. By mastering these techniques, you'll significantly improve your chances of winning more contracts. Our expert instructors provide practical guidance and industry best practices to help you excel in your RFP submissions.

Learn how to highlight your company’s unique strengths, differentiators, and competitive advantages and how to effectively present technical solutions, methodologies, or service offerings in a way that is easy to understand, even for non-experts.

 

INDIVIDUALS

$895

Online self-paced practicum course available for individuals. Plan, draft, and edit an actual response to an RFP with instructor written feedback and live coaching.

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GROUPS

Online self-paced course and instructor-led virtual or onsite training can be customized to match your team's RFP response. Group discounts apply.

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This Course Includes:

  • Ten detailed lessons of RFP response training, including substance and syntax.

  • Downloadable resources and training materials to maintain the practical skills learned throughout the training.

  • A list of job aids and resources to continually hone writing skills.

  • Detailed, individualized written instructor feedback on your RFPs.

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Skills gained in this course:

  • Fully understand the RFP Requirements.

  • Learn to express strategic positioning clearly.

  • Verify compliance and completeness. 

  • Improve clarity with succinct, engaging, and correct language.

  • Use correct grammar and punctuation to emote professional proposal writing.

  • Reduce time writing by at least 25%.

Individual written feedback for every student

The online, self-paced version of this course is a practicum course. You will plan, draft, and edit your actual response to an RFP with written instructor feedback and a live coaching session.

Instructor-led group training, whether virtual or onsite, includes interactive exercises and detailed instructor feedback. 

Our feedback includes both subjective and objective feedback, in addition to a personal grammar diagnosis and additional helpful resources.

Objective feedback:

  • Is your RFP response based fully on the reader's needs and perspective?
  • Does the RFP response follow all instructions and include all required information?
  • Does the reader have all the information needed (and none that is not needed) to achieve the objectives?

Subjective feedback:

  • Is the proper use of active voice or passive voice being used?
  • Is word choice clear and strong?
  • Can you cut any unnecessary words?
  • Are there any grammar errors?

Flexible RFP Writing Classes Deliveries to Match your Needs.

Online course for individuals or groups

Participants will plan, draft, and edit an actual work RFP in this course. You will receive instructor written feedback on incremental planning exercises for your RFP response and a live coaching session to review the final RFP writing. 

Virtual instructor-led course for groups

Virtual training allows for highly engaging instruction, exercises, and discussion in a professional setting.

Learners complete activities in breakout rooms with their colleagues, construct and deconstruct actual RFP responses, and are encouraged to participate in discussions and ask questions.

Onsite instructor-led course for groups

In-person training is highly interactive, with many individual and shared activities. Groups work together at your location to deconstruct and plan actual RFP responses, deep dive into individual writing concerns, and plan strategic content.

Who Should Enroll in Our RFP Writing Classes

All of these positions—and more— should train to improve their RFP responses to ensure they can effectively communicate the company’s value, meet client needs, and win contracts by presenting a cohesive, strategic, and competitive proposal.

Executives (CEO, COO)

Especially for high-value contracts, executives need to understand how to evaluate and refine RFP content to ensure the proposal aligns with strategic business objectives, is competitive, and effectively positions the company for success in securing major contracts.

Proposal Writers

Proposal writers need training to ensure their writing is clear, persuasive, and aligned with the client's specifications. This training helps them craft compelling narratives that directly address client pain points and highlight the company’s strengths.

Project Managers

Project managers often contribute to the technical aspects of an RFP response, such as timelines, resource allocation, and deliverables. Learning how to write strong responses ensures they accurately communicate the feasibility of proposed solutions, timelines, and team capabilities.

Business Development Managers

Business development managers are responsible for identifying growth opportunities, and responding to RFPs is a crucial part of this. They need to know how to craft responses that position the company as the best partner for long-term success.

Sales Managers

Sales managers are key players in securing new business and must understand how to write strong RFP responses to align sales strategies with the client’s needs. Effective RFP responses allow them to clearly articulate the company’s value proposition, differentiate the offering from competitors, and ultimately win more business.

 

Marketing Managers

Marketing managers often assist in shaping the messaging and positioning of RFP responses to align with broader brand strategies. Training helps them ensure that every response reflects the company’s brand voice and unique value.

Schedule a call to find out more about group training options

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Certificate of Completion

Participants will earn a personalized digital certificate after finishing RFP writing classes. This can be displayed on a LinkedIn profile, downloaded to print and hang, or mentioned in a résumé.
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Course Structure

This RFP response course teaches participants to craft clear, concise, and persuasive proposals. Effectively address client needs, showcase company strengths, and follow a structured, professional format. Gain skills in tailoring responses to specific audiences, ensuring compliance, and highlighting unique value propositions to stand out from competitors.

Getting Started

An Introduction and Self-Assessment

Review the objectives and breakdown of the course content. Share specific course goals, and tell us about the typical RFP responses you write.

Lesson 1

6-Steps to Effective RFP Writing

Learn a practical framework for effective RFP writing. This six-step process helps you understand the strategies needed to write a clear RFP response. This process will allow you to spend 25% less time on every proposal you write. This applies to all RFP responses, including compliance-based, no-bid responses, standard, and supplementary responses.

Lesson 2

RFP Writing Planning

Learn to analyze the audience for your RFP response and consider the decision-makers and stakeholders who will be reviewing it, such as procurement teams, technical experts, and executives.

Identify their priorities—procurement might focus on compliance and pricing, while technical teams may scrutinize your solution’s feasibility, and executives will look for strategic alignment and ROI. Government proposal writing focuses on compliance.

This is the foundation to successfully tailor your content to address these different concerns by presenting precise, concise technical details for experts, competitive pricing and value propositions for procurement, and a compelling narrative for leadership to demonstrate how your solution supports their broader business objectives.

 

Lesson 3

RFP Writing Structure

Structure is critical in an RFP response because it ensures clarity, organization, and ease of navigation for the reviewers, allowing them to find the information they need to evaluate your proposal quickly.

Learn to organize well-structured RFP response strategies that mirror the format of the RFP, ensuring that all requirements are addressed in the correct sections,

A clear, logical structure improves readability and flow, making it easier for decision-makers to assess your solution and increasing your chances of selection.

Lesson 4

Summary and Value Proposition Statements

Learn to craft resonant "so what" value proposition statements that provide a concise and compelling overview of your key strengths, solutions, and value propositions that hook your reader.

These summaries help decision-makers quickly grasp how your proposal addresses their needs, particularly for stakeholders who may not have time to read every response detail.

Summary statements and the executive summary serve as roadmaps for the rest of your response, ensuring that your core messages are communicated effectively and consistently throughout.

Lesson 5

RFP Examples with Various Tools

RFP responses can feel overwhelming because of many variations and writing styles. Review examples of typical RFP responses using the most common format and tools.

This lesson also examines important considerations when writing an RFP response from a template.

Lesson 6

Persuasive Techniques

Learn to use compelling language, strong evidence, and a focus on the client’s pain points.

Master techniques such as persuasive headings and subheadings, emphasizing benefits over features, using case studies or testimonials, storytelling, illustrations, and addressing potential objections directly to make your response more convincing. 

 

Lesson 7

Format Considerations

Learn to enhance the overall user experience for RFP evaluators, ensuring that critical information is easily accessible.

A well-formatted response aligns with the structure and requirements set forth in the RFP, which helps decision-makers quickly find and evaluate the sections relevant to their expertise, such as technical details, pricing, and compliance.

Consistent formatting with clear headings, bullet points, and organized content ensures that the proposal is logical and easy to follow, reducing the risk of confusion or misinterpretation. A professional and polished format also reflects positively on your company, demonstrating attention to detail and respect for the client's evaluation process.

The lesson also covers formatting standards that ensure consistency, readability, and adherence to RFP compliance guidelines.

 

Lesson 8

Clarity and Tone

RFP responses are often long, complex, and densely informational. Clarity ensures that your response is a pleasure to read, with clear and concise language that presents your information succinctly.

This lesson teaches the four clarity strategies that sweep away 80% of bloat to ensure that your sentences are clear, easy to read, and engaging.

With clean sentences honed with clarity techniques, learn to overlay a confident, competent tone. 

Lesson 9

Grammar and Syntax

The stakes are high in RFP writing, and correct grammar and punctuation are essential to delivering accurate, professional, and compliant proposals.

Errors can lead to misunderstandings, project creep, and vague deliverables by altering the meaning of key information. Proper grammar reflects professionalism and enhances credibility.

Each participant received a grammar diagnosis and correction strategies.

Lesson 10

Feedback and Guidance Wrap Up

The self-paced online version of this course concludes with a live one-on-one coaching session with your instructor to review the RFP response you planned, drafted, and edited in the course.

Instructor-led group courses conclude with detailed resources. All participants receive individual writing feedback.

What Will Writing Look Like After This Training?

clarity-icon
Complex information is conveyed clearly.
time-icon
Writing time is significantly reduced.
organized-icon
Well-organized, relevant content is included.
format-icon
Designed and formatted to be easy to read.
bad-news-icon
Disagreements and bad news are professional.
writing-icon
Writer’s block is avoided through planning.
readability-icon
Tone and readability are considered.
persuasion-icon
Persuasion is clear and effective.
professional-icon
Competent, clear, and professional.
grammar-icon
Grammar errors are identified and corrected.

Meet the Mentors of RFP Writing Excellence

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Elisabeth O'Quinn

Elisabeth has a unique combination of business and business writing acumen, with an extensive background in writing, editing, and content marketing management.

She has supported a wide range of businesses, writing blog articles, white papers, presentations, and editing business documents. She has supported many of our clients with rave reviews of her writing feedback, helping countless participants with their technical report writing skills.

Elisabeth lives in Georgia with her cat and rescue pup. In addition to writing, she loves traveling with her twin sister, learning German, and creating watercolor prints.

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Grace Cuddy

Grace provides individual executive business writing coaching to senior and bilingual clients and leads instructor-led group training for our clients. She also supports our instructor training and mentoring program.

She is an expert in business writing and loves to help students improve their technical writing skills.

She is bilingual in English and Spanish and has a keen sensitivity to global writing. She has a strong background in corporate communication and management and successfully developed cross-functional writing and communication processes in a large corporate team. She has also helped professional engineers and firms develop professional training programs.

She enjoys yoga, travel, and dance. She splits her time between New York City and Madrid.

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Katie Almeida Spencer

Katie is an experienced Business Writing and English as a Second Language instructor, business English writing coach, and teacher trainer. She taught Business Skills and Academic Writing at the University of Massachusetts Boston.

She is very skilled at evaluating both the substance and language of business documents. Her writing critiques, instruction, and coaching have received stellar evaluations from our clients at Chartis Consulting, DuPont, Shell, Southern Middlesex Opportunity Council, and the World Wildlife Fund.

She holds a B.A. in Journalism from the University of Rhode Island and an M.A. in Applied Linguistics from the University of Massachusetts Boston. Her areas of expertise include business writing and technical report writing, proposal writing, English courses, and syntax and non-native writing.

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Bailey Lang headshot

Bailey Lang

Bailey is a professional writer, editor, and accountability coach with more than a decade of experience. She began her career in marketing communications for a global HR outsourcing company before taking a detour into academia. 

She earned her MA in rhetoric and writing at the University of Findlay and then completed her Ph.D. in rhetoric and writing studies at Bowling Green State University. Along the way, she wrote and published a book, numerous peer-reviewed journal articles, and more. 

Read more >>

Course feedback and testimonials

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Highly technical RFP writing training focused on crafting summary statements of technical specifications.

View our course evaluations on Survey Monkey.

 

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As someone who is so entrenched in the engineering and the details, this was a chance to take a step back and think about my work and how I communicate with others. I came to the session truly thinking it was silly for me to be there. You changed my mind about the importance of my writing and interpreted your lessons in a form that makes sense to me. I now have a logical process for "engineering" my writing.

Solutions Engineering Director

Dematic
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My sales team is closing more business because our proposals are written to capture business. Huge improvement. 

VP of Sales

TransUnion
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Grace's comments were to the point and spot on. She gave me precise criticism. This gave me the perspective and knowledge I needed to write better RFP responses.

Account Manager

Nouryon
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I will be able to write more direct proposals using less wording in less time.

Engineering Director

Dematic

Become a Better RFP Writer

Sign up today or schedule a discussion to become a stronger RFP writer.

INDIVIDUALS

$895

Sign up today and learn how to write persuasive, compliant, and tailored responses to RFPs. 
Enroll now

GROUPS

Customized and flexible online, virtual, and onsite courses, workshops, and classes guaranteed to improve responses to RFPs. 

Schedule a call

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an RFP writing class, and who is it for?

An RFP response writing class is a specialized training program designed to help professionals craft clear, persuasive, and strategic responses to Requests for Proposals (RFPs). Responding effectively to RFPs is essential for businesses looking to secure new projects or contracts. In this course, participants learn how to structure their responses, highlight their strengths, meet specific RFP requirements, and address client needs, all while maintaining a compelling and professional tone.

This class is ideal for professionals in business development, sales, technical engineering, or any role involved in creating RFP responses. It's also beneficial for those new to the RFP process or looking to refine their approach to increase win rates.

Can I customize an RFP writing class for my organization?

Yes! Our group training is always customized to match your organization’s documents, unique value propositions and solutions, and the requirements of your RFPs. 

Can I take the RFP writing class online?

Yes. Our RFP online writing class is a practicum, which means participants plan, draft, and edit an actual RFP response with written instructor feedback at key junctures and live coaching to review the final proposal.

Will I receive certification upon completing the RFP writing class?

Yes. All participants receive a certificate of completion when they successfully complete the class.

Are there any prerequisites for taking an RFP writing class?

No. This course is suitable for both professionals who are new to responding to RFPs and also skills proposal writers. We customize the training and feedback to your level.

How can RFP writing skills benefit my career?

RFP writing skills are invaluable for professionals across many industries, as they directly impact an organization’s ability to secure new business and build client relationships. Mastering RFP response writing can make you a critical asset to your team by improving your ability to communicate complex information clearly, persuasively, and strategically. This expertise not only enhances your organization’s chances of winning contracts but also demonstrates your understanding of client needs, attention to detail, and ability to align with broader business goals.

For career growth, proficiency in RFP writing can set you apart, opening doors to roles in business development, sales, project management, and beyond. As you develop a reputation for producing high-quality, effective proposals, you’ll gain visibility within your organization and industry, expanding your professional network and positioning you for leadership opportunities.

Can I get one-on-one coaching in an RFP writing class?

Yes, our online practicum delivery of this course includes one-on-one coaching. Instructor-led group training includes coaching exercises for the full group, smaller breakout groups, and paired coaching. 

How do I enroll in an RFP writing class?

Groups should click here to schedule time to discuss your group’s goals and proposal requirements. Individuals can enroll directly here.