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RFI RFP RFQ: which document to send, and in what order
The RFI RFP RFQ sequence asks three different questions: who is out there, how would you solve it, and what does it cost. Sending the wrong one wastes a buying cycle.
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The RFI RFP RFQ sequence exists because a buyer needs three different things at three different moments: a view of who could possibly help, a proposal for how they would do it, and a price for a specification that is already settled. Using the wrong document is the most common procurement mistake, and it is expensive in a way nobody notices — suppliers answer the question you asked, so a premature request for pricing produces numbers nobody can compare.
What each document in the RFI RFP RFQ sequence does
- Request for information: market discovery. You do not yet know who the credible suppliers are or what approaches exist. Short, no pricing, no scoring that matters.
- Request for proposal: you know the problem but not the solution. Suppliers propose an approach, and you evaluate method, capability and commercial terms together.
- Request for quotation: the specification is fixed and comparable. You are buying a defined thing and price is the main variable.
Choosing the right one
Ask what you would do with the answers. If you cannot name the evaluation criteria, you are not ready for a proposal and should be sending an information request. If you can specify the deliverable precisely enough that two suppliers would quote the same scope, you do not need a proposal and a quotation will be faster for everyone. The failure mode in both directions is the same: asking suppliers to do work that cannot influence your decision, which is how a bidder list quietly shrinks over the years.
Never run an information request as a disguised competition. Suppliers share information with each other and notice, and a market that concludes your process is decorative will stop investing effort in your tenders.
Running the sequence well
- Decide which document you need by writing the evaluation criteria first — if you cannot, start with information.
- State the timetable and stick to it; slipping your own dates is the fastest way to lose good bidders.
- Ask only for what you will evaluate, and say how each section is weighted.
- Run questions and answers in one place, with every answer shared with every bidder.
- Keep the scoring record, because a losing bidder may be entitled to feedback or a review.
- Debrief unsuccessful bidders honestly — it is cheap and it keeps them bidding next time.
Ettex Docs holds the three templates so a buyer is not drafting from scratch under time pressure, and the question log plus scoring sheet sit alongside in Sheets. Where an award is challenged, that paper trail is the answer — the same material a tendering process has to produce anyway.
Frequently asked
Can you skip straight to an RFP?
Often yes, when the supplier market is known and the problem is clear. The information stage earns its place when the market is unfamiliar or the possible approaches differ fundamentally.
What is the difference between an RFQ and a purchase order?
A quotation request asks for a price against a specification; a purchase order is the instruction to supply at an agreed price. The quotation feeds the order, not the other way round.
How long should bidders get?
Enough that a good supplier can respond properly — commonly two to four weeks for a proposal, less for a quotation. Short deadlines filter for availability rather than quality.
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