Event Tech RFP Template — 23 Questions to Ask Every Vendor (2026)
The 23-question event tech RFP template that separates serious vendors from sales-deck artists. Use for registration platforms, streaming providers, AV vendors, and networking apps. Free, plain-English, no signup.
Event tech vendors are excellent at marketing decks and terrible at written RFP responses. Use that asymmetry. A structured RFP with these 23 questions exposes which vendors can actually deliver vs which can only PowerPoint.
The 23 questions, by section
Section 1 — Vendor + reference fit (5 questions)
1. Years of operation + revenue scale Why ask: Vendors under 3 years have higher failure risk. Under €1M revenue = limited scaling capacity. Under €5M = limited support team.
2. Three reference customers of similar size + industry to us in the past 12 months — with permission to contact directly Why ask: References from "Fortune 500 clients" without permission to contact are sales theatre. Pin down 3 we can actually call.
3. Three customers who churned in the past 12 months + why Why ask: Vendors who can't or won't share churned references are hiding patterns. Honest vendors will share + explain.
4. Geographic + language coverage matching our event locations Why ask: US-headquartered vendors often have weak EU local support; APAC weak EU local data residency.
5. Insurance coverage levels (Professional Indemnity, Cyber Liability) Why ask: Vendors carrying <€2M PI / Cyber don't have the capacity to make you whole if they fail.
Section 2 — Technical capability (6 questions)
6. Detailed feature inventory matching our specific use cases (provided list) Why ask: Forces vendor to confirm features by case, not by adjective. "Yes we support hybrid events" is meaningless; "Yes we support 1,000 concurrent virtual streams with chat moderation" is specific.
7. Real attendee capacity tested in production (not theoretical maximum) Why ask: "Theoretical 10,000 concurrent" often means "tested at 2,000." Get the highest production-tested number.
8. Uptime SLA + actual uptime over past 12 months Why ask: 99.9% SLA = up to 8.7 hours downtime/year. For an event you can't afford 30 min downtime on event day. Get the actual track record.
9. Integration capabilities with our existing stack (CRM + marketing automation + finance) Why ask: Vendors say "we integrate with everything via Zapier." Zapier is fragile + adds latency. Native integration is what matters.
10. Data export formats + scheduled exports Why ask: Lock-in is the #1 vendor risk. Confirm you can export everything via documented APIs/exports.
11. Mobile app or responsive web (with screenshots) Why ask: 50%+ of attendees use mobile. "Mobile-friendly" claims often fail at scale. Get screenshots before buying.
Section 3 — Security + compliance (4 questions)
12. GDPR compliance: Data Processing Agreement template (provide for review) + sub-processor list Why ask: If they don't have a DPA, you can't legally use them in EU.
13. SOC 2 Type II certification (current report) OR ISO 27001 certification Why ask: Both are minimum security postures for SaaS handling customer data. Self-attested security is insufficient.
14. Data residency options (EU / US / regional) Why ask: GDPR + Schrems II make EU data residency increasingly mandatory. Confirm options before buying.
15. Incident response plan + breach notification commitment (timeline) Why ask: GDPR requires 72-hour breach notification. If vendor commits to notifying you in 5 days, you've already missed the regulator deadline.
Section 4 — Pricing transparency (4 questions)
16. Full price list (not "contact sales" — actual published or quoted pricing) for our event size Why ask: Vendors who refuse to quote until they've talked you into the bundle have something to hide.
17. Per-attendee pricing breakpoints + included features at each tier Why ask: "Starts at €5,000" tells you nothing. "5,000 attendees = €X, with feature Y included" is workable.
18. Implementation cost + timeline Why ask: Enterprise event tech often has €5-50k implementation cost + 6-12 weeks setup. Builds total Year 1 cost dramatically.
19. Contract terms (length, auto-renewal, exit penalties) Why ask: Auto-renewal traps + 12-month commitments hide real cost. Push for monthly billing or no auto-renewal.
Section 5 — Support + operations (4 questions)
20. Support model: who handles tickets (in-house vs outsourced), response times, escalation path Why ask: Tier-3 enterprise vendors often have offshore Tier-1 support with multi-hour SLAs. For event-day issues, you need named contact + 30-min response.
21. Onboarding + training scope (hours, format, documentation quality) Why ask: Vendors who under-invest in onboarding generate ongoing support costs.
22. Event-day support model (on-site, remote, hours covered) Why ask: Event-day failure mode requires real-time vendor support. Confirm what you're getting before event day, not after.
23. Roadmap visibility + feature voting Why ask: Vendors who hide their roadmap have weaker product discipline. Public roadmaps + customer-vote influence = healthier product.
How to score responses
For each vendor, score 0-2 per question: - 0 = avoided, vague, or non-credible - 1 = answered but partial / qualifications needed - 2 = specific, credible, with evidence
Total: 46-point scale. Use as one input to your decision (alongside demo, references, pricing).
| Total score | Interpretation |
|---|---|
| 38-46 | Strong contender — proceed to demo + references |
| 28-37 | Borderline — depends on what they did vs didn't answer |
| Under 28 | Walk away unless overwhelming reason to continue |
Common vendor red flags from RFP responses
- "Custom pricing" with no published baseline → they're price-discriminating; you'll pay 1.5-2× rate
- No DPA available → not GDPR-ready
- No SOC 2 + no ISO 27001 → security is unverified
- References require sales-rep introduction → they're cherry-picking
- Vague answers to capacity/uptime → product hasn't been stress-tested
- No mention of post-sale support model → expect to be abandoned after signing
- Auto-renewal mandatory with 90-day notice required → contract trap
Template (copy-paste this into your RFP)
[Vendor name]
Event tech RFP — [Event name + date]
RFP issued: [Date]
Response deadline: [Date] (14 business days)
We are sourcing event technology for [event description, attendee count, date range].
Please respond to the 23 numbered questions below. Indicate clearly when a question
does not apply with reasoning. Incomplete or evasive responses will reduce your
ranking in our evaluation.
SECTION 1 — VENDOR FIT
1. [years of operation + revenue scale]
2. [3 reference customers + permission to contact]
3. [3 churned customers + reasons]
4. [geographic + language coverage]
5. [insurance coverage levels]
SECTION 2 — TECHNICAL CAPABILITY
6. [feature inventory vs our use cases]
... (etc — all 23)
For each question, please provide: (a) direct answer, (b) supporting evidence (link,
screenshot, document), (c) any qualifications or exceptions.
Decision timeline: shortlist by [date]; demos [date]; contract signing target [date].
Please send completed response to: [your email].
Adapt the template to your specific tool category (e.g., for streaming providers, expand Section 2 with codec, bitrate, latency, redundancy questions).
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I just demo the product instead of doing this RFP? Demos show what works in best conditions. RFPs surface what vendors won't volunteer. Do both — RFP responses inform demo questions.
How many vendors should I RFP? 3-5. Below 3 = no real comparison. Above 5 = response quality drops because vendors triage low-probability deals.
What's the realistic response time for vendors? 14 business days for enterprise vendors. 7 for SMB. Less than 7 days = expect partial answers.
Should I share my budget in the RFP? Share a budget range (not exact). Helps vendors propose appropriate tier without padding for unknown spend ceiling.
How do I handle vendors who refuse to answer specific questions? Document their refusal in your scorecard. A vendor who refuses 3+ questions in this list isn't ready for a serious B2B engagement.