These are the top 4 sites to find freelance RFPs

Last year, I found over 100 great, high-value design RFPs (requests for proposals).

They ranged in project size and type, but all of them had the following characteristics:

1. Budgets of $5,000-$70,000
2. Looking for graphic, web, or UI/UX design and development
3. Published on my Referral Newsletter​

(Don't look now, but for the next day or so you can join my Referral Newsletter and get these RFPs delivered to you each week without lifting a finger. To keep the newsletter exclusive, we only open registrations twice per year – so now is the absolute best time to join.)

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Now, the majority of these RFPs were found on just a few different websites. And I bet you at least one of them daily.

But before we get to that...

I'd like to address something that many freelancers have bring up:

"Are RFPs even worth pursuing?"

This is a question I used to ask myself too.

One day, I came across a book on running a design agency by Mike Monteiro. This section on RFPs stuck out to me:

“There are many good organizations that have to go through an RFP process to hire anyone. And those are good jobs to go after. People who tell you they don’t go after RFPs and people who tell you they don’t have meetings are both lying to you.” – Mike Monteiro

This changed how I thought about RFPs, and as a result, how much revenue I was bringing in each year. I invite you to do the same.

If you're not sure, do yourself a favor, take 5 minutes to read this article, then decide. I promise you'll be a lot better informed as a result.

Now, one of the first questions people have about RFPs is:

"Where do I find them?"

1. Linkedin

As we went through in yesterday's email, LinkedIn is a great place to find high-value RFPs.

One of my favorite things about LinkedIn is you can often connect with the proposal writer / decision-maker directly on the platform, instead of jumping through hoops and dealing with third-party job boards.

This saves you a lot of time and detective work. If you want to hear about a real 6-figure project that one of my Referral Newsletter customers landed on LinkedIn, listen to this interview.

The gist is this: when Joey found a company he wanted to work with, he looked up the person in charge of hiring on LinkedIn and sent her a message through the platform.

She replied right away with exact information they wanted to see in a proposal, and specified a deadline. Joey then asked the decision-maker about her company’s budget and once she revealed the number, he was able to send a proposal that fit the bill perfectly.

Guess who wont the gig?

Not only that, but Joey’s firm even landed a bonus project on top of the original request. This is the power of LinkedIn.

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2. Google

There are millions and millions of new sites indexed on Google every day. As a result you can find dozens of companies and organizations requesting proposals directly on their website if you know how to use Google.

(Click on the 16 minute video walk-through above on how to use Google to find awesome gigs.)

Basically, you'll want to set your search up for success in the following ways:

• Limit your search to just pages posted in the last month.
• Use the keyword: “type:pdf” to only show PDFs.
• Use the keyword: “RFP” or “Request for Proposals”
• Use the keyword: “website design” or whatever your specialty is

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3. The RFPDB

The RFPDB is a great resource and co-op where agencies share RFPs with one another. There’s a web development section that I’ve found is good for 1-2 great RFPs each month.

On RFPDB you can purchase credits to exchange for RFPs.

This comes out to about 5 RFPs for $10 and I’ve found I usually have to go through about 3 RFPs before I find a good one on there - so budget accordingly.

4. Facebook

A ton of organizations and companies have also taken to Facebook to promote their RFPs.

Like LinkedIn, you’ll have to sort through lots of content marketing and irrelevant spam – but it’s usually worth it as you can find 2-3 good RFPs per week.

Unfortunately, I rank them last because of their clunky UI but once you get a hang for working around their system, you'll start to find some gems.

Again, these 4 sites alone generated 100+ high-quality website design RFPs in 2020.

Once you know where to source RFPs and how to respond to them, the process starts to flow seamlessly. And you secure a base of steady projects that pay your asking rate.

But since finding RFPs takes about 3-5 hours per week, I created a Referral Newsletter for busy freelancers and agencies that just want to get the best stuff curated for them.

If your time is important to you, I suggest you try it now.

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If you try the Referral Newsletter right now you can get 50% off your first month. We only open the doors for a few weeks each year, so claim your spot before it's too late.

The promo ends on Friday April 08, 2022 and it's not coming back.

I look forward to seeing you inside,

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