If you’re responsible for wrangling RFP responses, you already know the chaos: missed deadlines, outdated answers, last-minute scrambles. Loopio’s dashboards can help you get a handle on it—if you use them right. This guide is for RFP leads, proposal managers, and anyone who needs a clear, honest system for tracking progress in Loopio. No fluff, just what actually works (and what doesn’t).
1. Set Up Dashboards That Actually Help You
Let’s be honest: a dashboard that tries to show everything ends up showing nothing useful. The Loopio dashboard is flexible, but out of the box, it’s generic. Here’s how to make it work for real-life RFP teams:
- Pick key metrics first: Don’t just use default widgets. Decide what you actually need to see daily—like completion percentage, overdue tasks, or reviewer bottlenecks.
- Group by what matters: Organize by project, not just by user, unless you’re managing a huge team. For most teams, “Which project is in trouble?” is more useful than “Who’s behind?”
- Don’t overcomplicate: If you need to explain your dashboard to a coworker with a diagram, it’s too much. Stick to 3–5 widgets: overall progress, tasks due soon, stuck items, and maybe a list of recent changes.
Pro Tip: Ignore the temptation to track vanity metrics—number of logins, “average time in platform,” etc. These rarely help you ship faster RFPs.
2. Break Down RFPs Into Actionable Chunks
The biggest mistake? Treating the whole RFP as one giant task. That’s a recipe for missed deadlines and finger-pointing.
- Set up clear milestones: Break the project into chunks—first draft, SME review, compliance check, final review, submission.
- Assign owners (not just teams): Loopio lets you assign tasks at a granular level. Use it. “Marketing” as an owner isn’t specific enough. Assign to a real person.
- Use consistent naming: If you call it “Draft 1” in one project and “First Pass” in another, it’s hard to compare progress across projects.
What works
- Assigning every section/question to someone, even if it’s just “first review.”
- Using due dates, not just “ASAP.”
- Color-coding or tagging urgent or blocked sections.
What to ignore
- Over-customizing every project’s structure. Find a template that works and stick to it—consistency is more useful than creativity here.
3. Use Filters, Not Just Dashboards
Dashboards give a snapshot, but filters are how you actually find trouble spots.
- Filter by overdue tasks: This shows you exactly where things are falling behind. Don’t wait for a dashboard to go “red.”
- Filter by reviewer: See who’s swamped (or who’s not pulling their weight).
- Save your favorite views: Loopio lets you save filtered views. Set them up once, then check them daily.
Pro Tip: Don’t just use filters for yourself—show team leads how to use them, too. The more people spot problems early, the fewer fire drills later.
4. Automate Reminders, But Don’t Rely on Them
Loopio can send out automatic reminders for deadlines and overdue tasks. They’re useful—but they’re not magic.
- Set up reminders for key milestones: Don’t spam everyone with daily emails; people will tune them out.
- Personalize reminders: If you can, add a note or context (“Need compliance review by Friday—see comments on Section 3”).
- Watch for “reminder fatigue”: If people start ignoring reminders, try a quick check-in or team standup. Sometimes, old-fashioned human follow-up works better.
What doesn’t work: Relying only on automated reminders and hoping the dashboard will fix your team’s motivation or bandwidth problems. Some things still need a conversation.
5. Make Status Meetings Shorter (and Smarter)
One of the main reasons to track progress in Loopio is to kill the endless “where are we?” meetings. Here’s how to use your dashboard to make status updates less painful:
- Share the dashboard screen: Don’t go around the Zoom room. Just pull up the dashboard or a filtered view and walk through stuck items.
- Focus on blockers: Skip what’s on track. Zero in on sections that are overdue or missing owners.
- Update in real-time: As people commit to next steps, update Loopio on the call. Saves you from forgetting (and adds a little accountability).
Pro Tip: If someone is always “about to finish” a section, check the dashboard after the meeting. The numbers don’t lie.
6. Keep an Eye on Quality, Not Just Speed
It’s easy to obsess over completion percentages and deadlines. But if you’re just tracking “done” vs “not done,” you’ll miss quality issues.
- Track review stage, not just completion: Make sure you know which answers are first drafts, which are reviewed, and which are final.
- Spot rushed work: If a whole section goes from 0% to 100% in a day, double-check it. That’s usually a sign someone’s just clicking “done.”
- Leave feedback in context: Use Loopio’s commenting or notes features to flag answers needing improvement before they get out the door.
7. Don’t Ignore Manual Checks (They Matter)
No dashboard is perfect. Even in Loopio, some things slip through:
- Double-check attachments: Make sure all supporting docs are uploaded. The dashboard won’t always flag missing files.
- Look for skipped questions: Sometimes users mark things “N/A” just to clear their queue. Spot check sections that seem suspiciously fast.
- Review permissions: If someone can’t see their tasks, progress will stall and your dashboard will look better than reality.
8. Iterate—Don’t “Set and Forget”
Your first dashboard setup is not your last. Teams change, RFPs get weirder, and what you need to track will evolve.
- Check in monthly: What’s working? What’s just noise?
- Ask your team: Is there a dashboard widget nobody uses? Cut it. Is there a status they wish they could see? Add it.
- Stay flexible: Don’t get precious about your dashboard design. Simpler is usually better.
Wrapping Up: Keep It Simple, Check It Often
The best RFP dashboards don’t try to look impressive—they just help you spot problems early and move projects along. Don’t chase every feature or metric. Track what matters, ignore the rest, and be ready to adjust as your team’s needs change. Review your dashboard every day (or at least every other day), and you’ll stay ahead of the chaos.
Most important: Don’t let dashboards replace conversations. Use them as a tool, not a crutch. And when in doubt, ask your team what’s actually helpful—and scrap the rest.