FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
SLED RFP Strategy and Win Strategist FAQs
Straight answers from The RFP Success® Company on what a Win Strategist does, what it costs, and how to tell whether the team is the right fit for your SLED pursuit.
THE SHORT ANSWER
The RFP Success® Company is a SLED-specialist Win Strategist for service-based businesses chasing State, Local, and Education government contracts. We no longer write proposals for you or take them over. Our in-house team strengthens how your own experts present their work, using the proprietary 4x4 Framework™ and D.A.R.E. Method. The result is a 76%+ win rate across SLED proposals and $500M+ in client wins.
Anyone can help you submit a proposal. Very few can help you win one. RFP-expertLisa Rehurek
What is a Win Strategist?
A Win Strategist strengthens your team's proposals instead of writing them for you.
It is the category The RFP Success® Company built between two options that do not work for most service-based businesses:
- Hiring a firm to take the whole response over.
- Handling the response entirely in-house with no evaluator-side strategy.
Your team writes the response. Our in-house team applies the 4x4 Framework™ and the D.A.R.E. Method to sharpen how your expertise reads for the people scoring it. The win capability stays with you after the engagement ends.
How much do your services cost?
Engagements start at $3,500 and run up to roughly $12,000 for the most involved work. Pricing follows project complexity, not hourly billing.
- RFP Success® Mastery Audit: $3,500
- Win Strategy Review: $4,500 to $8,500
- Content Refinement: $6,500 to $12,000
- Play to Win Consult: $7,500
Nothing is priced like a full rewrite because none of it is a rewrite. Set against a single six- or seven-figure SLED contract, the math usually answers itself.
What is your win rate?
76%+ across SLED proposals, with $500M+ in client wins and a 92% down-select rate across 30+ industries. We hold to a simple line on it: we do not guarantee wins, and we do not inflate the figure to look better than it is. The win rate is the reason to start a conversation, not a promise that every pursuit closes.
What kinds of contracts do you support?
The team focuses on State, Local, and Education procurement: state agencies, counties, cities, school districts, public colleges, and universities. That focus keeps every review grounded in the evaluation patterns, buyer priorities, and proposal dynamics that shape SLED decisions.
Do you help with grant writing?
Will you write our proposal for us?
No. Your team still writes the proposal.
YOUR SUBJECT-MATTER EXPERTS OWN
Technical accuracy, because no outside firm knows your work better than you do.
OUR WIN STRATEGIST TEAM OWNS
How that content reads for evaluators. Proposal strategists and persuasive writers refine, strengthen, and sharpen the response, then hand it back to you.
We strengthen how your expertise is presented. We are not a done-for-you shop, and we are honest about that on the first call.
Do you guarantee wins?
No, and you should be wary of anyone who does. We do not guarantee wins.
WHAT NO CONSULTANT CONTROLS
Budget shifts, incumbent advantage, and other factors inside the procurement decision.
WHAT WE DO CONTROL
Whether your response answers what the evaluator scores: the explicit items on the scorecard and the silent ones the RFP never spells out.
That disciplined, evaluator-aware review is what the D.A.R.E. Method is built to deliver.
How is a Win Strategist different from AI proposal software?
AI proposal software provides a guided system that helps teams work more efficiently, organize their response process, reuse strong content, and create drafts faster.
A Win Strategist brings hands-on expertise, strategic judgment, and an evaluator-focused perspective to a specific opportunity. They help your team interpret what the buyer is really looking for, identify meaningful differentiators, strengthen your win strategy, and shape a response that is both compliant and compelling.
The right choice depends on the level of support you need. Software is ideal for teams that want a structured, scalable way to manage proposals internally. A Win Strategist is best when the opportunity is especially important, complex, competitive, or requires a more customized level of strategic guidance.
Can you help with our specific industry?
In most cases, yes. The RFP Success® Company has worked across 30+ industries. The case studies span transportation, healthcare consulting, technology, education, security services, and more.
YOUR TEAM BRINGS
The technical knowledge.
THE WIN STRATEGIST TEAM BRINGS
The evaluator lens: what State, Local, and Education evaluators score and how your expertise needs to meet it.
Browse the industries we serve to see where the proof is deepest. If your vertical is not listed, take the RFP Assessment. Our team will tell you honestly whether the fit is right.
How long does an engagement take?
Timing depends on the service and the pursuit.
- RFP Success® Mastery Audit: about two to three weeks to review up to three past proposals through the evaluator's lens.
- Win Strategy Review and Content Refinement: scoped to the live opportunity and submission deadline.
- Play to Win Consult: a deeper strategic engagement that takes from 4 to 6 weeks.
We do not promise a one-week turnaround. Meaningful work on a six- or seven-figure pursuit is not a rush job.
I'm not sure which service is right for us. Can you help?
START WITH THE RFP ASSESSMENT
See your proposal the way evaluators do.
Take the two-minute RFP Assessment and we will point you to the right starting place.