How Do I Respond to an RFP or Bid?

How do I handle an RFP or a bid? Every salesperson has struggled with this issue and I contend too much time is wasted on requests for proposals. This is one of the topics I explore in my book, High-Profit Selling: Win the Sale Without Compromising on Price.
Just because you have an opportunity to submit a bid doesn’t mean you should. Remember, the objective of the person putting the bid out is to get as many responses as possible. They want to use you and your time to help them negotiate a deal with somebody else! Before you respond to any bid, ask yourself these two questions: What gives me the right to think I will get this bid? And, how much influence did I have in shaping how the bid was written?
Before you even think about doing the work on the bid, know your strategy! Yes, you can submit