20 RFP questions to ask any potential wellness vendor

Request for proposals and/or information (RFP) are a key component to vetting potential vendors for important services, including digital wellbeing programs. There are hundreds of options out there, and RFPs are a common way to sort through the options and narrow in on a vendor that best fits the company needs and objectives.

What do RFPs ask about?

While many ask pointed questions about specific services provided by the prospective vendor, most RFPs also ask generic questions about general offerings from the vendor. Things like health challenges, incentive management, integration capabilities, activity tracking, and biometrics all fall within the “commonly asked questions” category.

For the vendors filling out the forms, the process can take days, if not weeks, to settle among various subject matter experts and legal teams. Time committement aside, the questions should encourage vendors to think outside the box with it comes to their own innovative roadmaps and client offerings. For example, if a company desires health contests that can be fully tailored to fit the needs of each member, Sonic Boom does offer that (and more), but this should also be a functionality that’s commonplace within the industry.

Common RFP obstacles

From a digital wellbeing vendor perspective, a common theme we encounter is many companies don’t seem to know what they need. In 2023, most are aware of the importance of wellbeing at work, but many still struggle with the how and what of the details. This can often result in lengthy RFP questionnaires and ask general questions, rather than exploring the unique capabilities that can elevate their chosen program. For example, rather than asking about available health content, ask how it’s presented to the member. Another example might be asking about communication mediums. Rather than inquiring about a vendor’s capability around sending emails, ask about the cadence and connection to the overall wellbeing strategy. Ask about strategy, not functional capabilities.

20 RFP questions to ask

Here’s what we recommend inquirying about during your first, next, or final round of wellbeing vendor searches:

1. Can health contests be tailored specific to the member’s needs?
2. What’s differentiates your strategic approach to boosting wellbeing from the rest?
3. How do you improve social connection among employees that may work in various locations?
4. What are your top-5 incentive design components that see the highest engagement?
5. Are there any limitations to integration with other third-party vendors?
6. What’s the biggest area of improvement for your platform, and why?
7. How accessible is your member support team to members?
8. Describe your account management approach in one paragraph.
9. What are top-3 examples of how to you encourage better wellbeing among members each day?
10. Can you provide a visual of a “day in the life” of a member in your app?
11. What languages, other than English, does your solution support?
12. How long is the implementation period, and what does the client need to provide during this time?
13. What level of tailored content and experience is available across your platform?
14. Why does your incentive management setup work?
15. How often do you release major feature updates annually?
16. What limitations, if any, are there for healthy contests?
17. Do you offer health coaching?
18. Can you provide a content calendar?
19. Can members track their healthy activity within the app? Explain how this works.
20. How do you accommodate members with limited access to computers and phones during the work day?

To connect with our team and see how we would respond to the above questions, request a quote here.