PR agency RFP template (copy-paste)

Send every candidate identical context, questions, pricing, and criteria. Require assumptions, exclusions, evidence, owners, and dependencies. Ask for thinking to assess judgment without requesting an unpaid campaign.

Send identical company context and response rules

Company decision

• Company context. [name, URL, product, market, stage, locations]
• Business condition. [problem, opportunity, deadline, baseline]
• Stakeholder objective. [audience, desired change, measure, target, date]
• Known constraints. [legal, regulatory, technical, reputation, timing, budget limits]

Evidence and ownership

• Available evidence. [data, research, product proof, approved customers, prior results]
• Company owners. [executive, budget, day-to-day, fact, legal, security, account, asset]
• Company inputs. [experts, approval time, systems, analytics]
• Disclosure limits. [public, confidential, restricted, specialist review required]

Scope boundaries

Mark each opportunity type in scope, out of scope, or proposed by the candidate:

• Required services. [strategy, media relations, executive communications, crisis readiness, measurement, other]
• Excluded services. [work the company retains or buys elsewhere]
• Markets and languages. [locations, local capability, hours, translation]

Procurement rules

• Budget range. [range; treatment of expenses and third-party costs]
• Response format. [page limit, attachments, currency, taxes]
• Selection process. [questions, finalists, references, decision, start]

Require evidence and assumptions in every response

Ask each candidate to answer in this order:

1. Diagnosis. What problem is worth solving, which assumptions need validation, and which requested work would you change or decline?
2. Opportunity map. Which types do you recommend, who controls outcomes, and where do payment, eligibility, or disclosure apply?
3. Scope. List phases, deliverables, exclusions, acceptance criteria, dependencies, and change triggers.
4. Team. Name strategy, delivery, review, specialist, backup, subcontractor, and location roles.
5. Evidence. Give comparable starting conditions, periods, team contributions, work, outputs, audience response, outcomes, limits, and NDA constraints.
6. Measurement. Map objectives to baselines, sources, outputs, audience response, outcomes, impact indicators, cadence, and causal limits.
7. Operating model. State approval, escalation, quality-control, documentation, and company-response assumptions.
8. Security and data. Describe access, incidents, subprocessors, AI training, retention, return, deletion, and evidence.
9. Risk and conflicts. Disclose competing clients, affiliates, referral or publisher payments, insurance, regulatory limits, and case-study rights.
10. Commercials. Complete the pricing and exit fields; explain assumptions and exceptions.
11. References. Provide comparable references or alternative evidence under confidentiality.

Do not request pitches, announcement copy, crisis statements, or a complete campaign. Evaluate how the candidate validates and governs those decisions.

Price the full obligation and the exit

Require one pricing schedule:

• Core fee. [monthly, project, setup, minimum, payment timing]
• Included capacity. [deliverables, roles, hours, other limit]
• Variable charges. [expenses, tools, distribution, subcontractors, markups, taxes]
• Change pricing. [out-of-scope, rush, markets, crisis]
• Term mechanics. [initial term, renewal, notice, price changes, pause, cancellation]
• Exit delivery. [work, timing, fee, files, permissions, accounts, data return or deletion]
• Nontransferable items. [provider tools, databases, stock licenses, third-party contracts]

Compare the response with the scope-of-work standard, term-and-exit guidance, and what the company keeps.

Score evidence separately from presentation

Set weights before proposals arrive and record evaluator conflicts. Sample 100-point allocation: diagnosis 20; scope and opportunity logic 20; team and operating model 15; evidence 15; measurement 10; security and risk 10; commercials and exit 10.

Score written responses first. Use finalists and references to test gaps consistently. Record evidence, concerns, owner, and rationale. Use the agency vetting scorecard and reference-checking guide.

Funding disclosure. PressFriendly responds to PR RFPs and benefits commercially when companies hire agencies. Buyers should adapt the criteria and score us against the same evidence, ownership, security, pricing, and exit requirements.