Do I need an account or to share my email?

No. The generator runs in your browser. Drafts are kept on your device or for the current tab only, and nothing you type is sent to ecommerceguide.com or to suppliers.

What if I do not know the answer to a question?

Mark it as unknown. Unknown is different from no or zero: the RFP asks suppliers how they would establish the fact, and your private checklist lists it as a question for colleagues.

Can I keep my budget private?

Yes. Budgets and internal costs are private by default. You choose whether the supplier version shows no figures, ranges only, or all figures.

What is the difference between an RFP and a discovery brief?

An RFP asks for a priced proposal for defined work. A discovery brief, or request for information, is for earlier stages: it keeps unknowns explicit and asks suppliers how they would resolve them before scope or price is fixed.

Create an ecommerce RFP.

Build a clear brief for a new platform, a replatforming project or an ecommerce partner. Download your RFP, supplier questions and comparison sheets.

An RFP is a document you send to potential suppliers so they can propose how they would do the work and what it would cost.

Start your RFP View an example

Your answers stay on your device. The generator runs in your browser: nothing you type is uploaded or stored on our servers, there is no account, and nothing goes to suppliers unless you send the files yourself. Site analytics count page visits, steps reached and downloads, never what you type.

Choose where to start

01Choose a platformDefine your requirements and compare ecommerce platforms. Which product and operating model fit the business?02Plan a replatformScope the migration, integrations, launch and support. Who should deliver the move, and how?03Hire an ecommerce agencySet out the work, team, budget and expected deliverables. Who should build, support or grow the business?04Hire an ecommerce SEO partnerDefine the search work, evidence, implementation and reporting. Who should diagnose, advise and/or execute SEO?

I need help working out the scope produces a discovery brief, or request for information, when it is too early for a priced proposal.

Example output

The first sections of an RFP generated for a fictional UK homewares merchant choosing a platform: 800 products, about 1,500 orders a month, platform undecided.

Open the full example

Draft

Request for proposal: Hollowfield Home platform selection

Platform. For ecommerce platform vendors.

Buyer: Hollowfield Home (fictional)
Issue date: Not yet issued
Revision: 1
Generated: 2026-10-20 09:00 UTC

1. Executive brief

Hollowfield Home (fictional) invites proposals for the following work package: Platform (software).

What prompted this project: The current hosted platform needs developer time for routine merchandising changes, and its checkout cannot offer the delivery date choices customers ask for. Without a change, seasonal ranges keep launching late.

Priority outcomes: Publish a new seasonal range without developer help; Offer named-day delivery at checkout; Reduce time staff spend on manual order edits.

How ready are you for proposals?: Ready for proposals
How settled is the choice of future platform?: Undecided

2. Business context

How do you sell?: Direct to consumer (B2C)
What do you sell?: Physical products

Which countries, languages, currencies, brands and storefronts are in scope?

Country or region	Language(s)	Currency
United Kingdom	English	GBP

How many active products and sellable variants exist?: Active products: 800 products; Sellable variants: 2,400 variants (estimate)
What are normal and peak order volumes?: Normal: 1,500 orders per month (observed, last 12 months) (estimate)
Do customers hold gift card, store credit or loyalty balances with you?: No

Which categories, brands or markets matter most commercially?

Category, brand or market	Why it matters
Trade customers	Possible future B2B channel. Not part of launch scope.

Priority outcomes

Outcome	Baseline	Baseline status	Target	Target status	Unit	Period
Publish a new seasonal range without developer help	·	Unknown	·	To agree	·	·
Offer named-day delivery at checkout	Not offered	Known	Offered for mainland UK	Agreed	·	From launch
Reduce time staff spend on manual order edits	About 10 hours a week	Estimated	·	To agree	hours per week	·

Customer and staff tasks to demonstrate

Task to demonstrate	Who does it	Sample conditions	Expected outcome
Merchandiser publishes a seasonal collection with 40 products	Merchandiser	·	Live without developer involvement
Customer chooses a named delivery day for a sofa	Customer	Large item, mainland UK	·
Customer service edits an order after payment	Customer service	·	·

3. Current environment and constraints

Systems in scope

System	What it does	Status	Criticality
Accounting system	Financial records	Must stay	Important
Warehouse management (3PL)	Picking and dispatch	Must stay	Critical to trading
Product information spreadsheet	Product data	Needs assessment	·

What platform, edition or version and storefront approach do you use today?: Legacy hosted platform (fictional) on a standard plan with a theme from 2019

11 more sections in the full document.

What the pack contains

File	For	Contents
RFP (Word)	Suppliers	Context, scope, requirements with stable IDs, timetable, commercial instructions and evaluation criteria. Editable in Word.
Supplier response workbook (Excel)	Suppliers	One row per requirement, a pricing schedule, delivery plan, team, assumptions, references and clarification questions.
Evaluation workbook (Excel)	You only	Criteria and weights, eligibility gates, scoring with coverage, and whole-life cost with incomplete quotes labelled. One per work package.
Buyer checklist (Word)	You only	Open decisions, conflicting inputs, estimates to confirm, private budget notes and who should review the brief.
Print view and JSON backup	You	Print or save the supplier RFP as a PDF from your browser. The JSON backup restores your draft and contains private answers.

Every file in a pack carries the same project reference, revision and status, and requirement IDs match between the RFP and the workbooks.

Which journey to choose

Choose a platform: Which product and operating model fit the business?
Plan a replatform: Who should deliver the move, and how?
Hire an ecommerce agency: Who should build, support or grow the business?
Hire an ecommerce SEO partner: Who should diagnose, advise and/or execute SEO?
I need help working out the scope: What needs to be resolved before a firm proposal?

Combined projects use one draft. A platform vendor, an implementation partner and an SEO partner each receive their own document with the same business context, priced and scored separately.

Useful to have to hand

The problem you are solving and what happens if it is not solved
Your current platform and the systems connected to it
Product, variant and order counts, even as estimates
Markets, languages and currencies in scope
Dates that cannot move, such as peak trading or contract end dates
Whether a budget exists, and whether you will share it

None of it is required to start. Anything you do not know can be marked unknown.

How your answers are handled

The generator runs in your browser. Your answers and generated documents are not sent to ecommerceguide.com.
Drafts are kept on this device or for the current tab only. Device storage is not a cloud backup; clearing browser data removes it. Download a backup to keep a copy.
Site analytics record which step you reach and whether a download worked, never what you typed.
Nothing is sent to suppliers. You choose who receives the files.

Frequently asked questions

What is an RFP?: A request for proposal is a document you send to potential suppliers so they can propose how they would do the work and what it would cost. Sending every supplier the same document makes their proposals comparable.
Do I need an account or to share my email?: No. The generator runs in your browser. Drafts are kept on your device or for the current tab only, and nothing you type is sent to ecommerceguide.com or to suppliers.
What if I do not know the answer to a question?: Mark it as unknown. Unknown is different from no or zero: the RFP asks suppliers how they would establish the fact, and your private checklist lists it as a question for colleagues.
Can I keep my budget private?: Yes. Budgets and internal costs are private by default. You choose whether the supplier version shows no figures, ranges only, or all figures.
What is the difference between an RFP and a discovery brief?: An RFP asks for a priced proposal for defined work. A discovery brief, or request for information, is for earlier stages: it keeps unknowns explicit and asks suppliers how they would resolve them before scope or price is fixed.

Guides by type of RFP

Looking for suppliers? Compare ecommerce platforms, find ecommerce agencies or find ecommerce SEO partners.