This article includes videos and screenshots to guide you through the flexible PERSUIT process for creating a request.
Creating a request and selecting a template:
There are two ways to create your request: with a Template or to Start from Scratch.
On the PERSUIT Homepage, you will find the Templates carousel. Click on Explore Templates to be taken to a pre-filtered template library.
In any template you’re interested in, you can click the Preview button to review the template’s contents to ensure it’s the best fit for your matter.
After you’ve found the appropriate template, click Use This Template to apply it as the starting point for your request. You’ll then be directed to the drafting screen to continue the process of creating a request.
You can also choose Create Request in the expanded main menu to the left of any page.
It will lead you to the Templates page where you can either choose a Template for your request or click Start from Scratch found at the top right. Starting from Scratch skips the template selection process and allows you to build your request without any pre-built structure.
The homepage carousel also holds a Start from Scratch option at the end of it.
Draft the Request:
When you create a request by starting from scratch, you will first need to select the use case. If you've chosen a pre-existing template for your request, its use case label will be inherited.
The left hand sidebar shows the three main sections for you to complete:
1. Content (summary, pricing, questions)
2. Settings and Timeline
3. Invite
Content section
Summary
Provide a summary of your matter/project, and lay out your needs and asks. Look out for the placeholder text, showing where you need to make edits. You can also attach files in this section and change the name of the requester.
This video contains useful best practice advice.
As you make any changes, a small notification in the lower left corner will confirm that the auto-save feature is working. You do not need to proactively save your draft - the platform handles that. If you make any mistakes and need to undo a change, you can use the undo keyboard shortcut for any typed changes. Changes executed by clicks or dragging items cannot be undone automatically, and will need to be reversed.
Pricing
For RFPs, use this section to define and customize a scope of work. You have flexibility with a range of pricing items and fee types.
You can ask for both a total price as well as breaking out the scope of work by adding individual pricing items (and/or an hourly rate card) lower down the page. This is a best practice recommendation and will provide a clearer understanding of the cost drivers and improve the negotiation and evaluation process. It will also make the proposal drafting process much easier for vendors.
Questions
Use this section to qualitatively evaluate firms on e.g. strategy, experience, team. You should only ask questions that will influence your decision, so you may wish to edit or delete the original questions from the template.
You can also choose between different answer types to guide and limit firms’ responses. Being concise can often help to accelerate the proposal drafting and evaluation.
The Firm AI Usage Questions toggle allows organizations to systematically gather insights into a firm’s AI usage directly within the request process.
Our Diversity Module is an optional feature that enables you to capture insights into how your firm is prioritizing DE&I initiatives. It is a fixed set of four questions, and this structured data enables reporting in Insights, as well as benchmarking against peers with the Industry Comparison feature.
Settings and Timeline section
Timeline is for scheduling the proposal due date and (optionally) the Reverse Auction. We recommend giving providers ~5 days to submit their proposal, and using a deadline within working hours.
Require Firms to clear a Conflict Check before they see the full request information.
Tracking helps your team to organize and find requests, as well as improving reporting and analytics. You'll still be able to modify the tracking fields after sending.
The Scorecard is an internal, optional section to evaluate proposals. You'll still be able to create or modify the scorecard after publishing.
Invite section
Inviting multiple providers to your request is a powerful way to create competitive tension and identify the true market value of the work, whilst also strengthening your negotiation position. This would not be possible with single sourcing.
Who do you want to send the request to? You can enter contacts here before hitting the eventual send button. Learn more about using the invite field and firm contacts directory.
When a request invitation is sent to a firm, they immediately receive an automated Invitation email including a link to the request and an Add to Calendar feature for deadline reminders. A PERSUIT account will be automatically created for any new firm users, providing immediate access to the request and our platform.
Note: it is possible to invite firms after the request has been published..
Before sending
Use the Preview button at the top right to visualize what the invited providers will see.
View this article here for more information on how to export your draft request.
Ready to send?
Once you have reviewed the request, press Send!
VIDEO: Quick Tips to Drafting a Request
If you have any matter specific questions or need help building out the request, please reach out to support@persuit.com or your designated Customer Success Manager.
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