If you've ever had to drag answers out of busy subject matter experts (SMEs) for an RFP or security questionnaire, you know it can feel like herding cats. Loopio promises to help, but only if you use it right. This guide is for anyone who manages RFPs, security questionnaires, or any high-stakes questionnaire where you need input from people who'd rather be doing literally anything else. We'll walk through how to set up Loopio projects, get useful answers, and avoid the usual pitfalls.
Why Loopio? What It Actually Does
First off, Loopio isn’t magic—it won’t suddenly make SMEs want to answer your questions. What it does do is give you a central place to manage questions, assign them to the right people, and (hopefully) track it all without endless email chains. If you're not familiar, Loopio is a tool built for RFPs, questionnaires, and other pain-in-the-neck documents that need input from across your company.
If you’re hoping Loopio will write all your answers for you, slow down. It can pull from a library to suggest past answers, which helps, but you still need SMEs to review and fill in the gaps.
Step 1: Prep Before You Invite Anyone
Before you start pinging SMEs, do the upfront work. That means:
- Clean up your content library: Make sure past answers are accurate and not cobbled together from ten different years.
- Pre-fill what you can: Use Loopio’s library to auto-fill common answers. The less you ask SMEs to do, the more likely you’ll get a response.
- Clarify what actually needs SME review: Don’t assign every question “just in case.” Only tap SMEs for questions that truly need their input.
- Set realistic deadlines: SMEs are busy—don’t give them 48 hours for 80 questions unless you want junk answers.
Pro tip: If you assign people to review things they know nothing about, you’ll either get silence or “not my job” replies. Be precise about who gets what.
Step 2: Set Up Your Project in Loopio
Time to get your hands dirty. Here’s what actually matters:
- Create a new project: Import your RFP or questionnaire. Loopio supports a bunch of formats, but you’ll still want to double-check that the import didn’t mangle the questions.
- Auto-fill from the library: Apply Loopio’s suggested answers. Review them yourself—don’t trust the auto-fill blindly. Outdated or vague answers will just waste your SMEs’ time.
- Tag questions for SME review: Use Loopio’s assignment features to tag only the questions that need a real human response. Group questions logically (by topic, product, etc.).
- Assign directly: Assign questions to the right SME, not just a generic team or department. If you don’t know who owns what, ask around now—don’t guess.
What to ignore: Fancy formatting or custom workflows. Stick with the basics unless your team is already Loopio experts.
Step 3: Communicate (But Don’t Nag)
Getting SMEs to actually respond is an art. Loopio lets you send assignment notifications, but don’t just fire off the default email and hope for the best.
- Personalize the message: Loopio’s default assignment emails are easy to ignore. Add a line or two explaining why their input matters (and what happens if they don’t respond).
- Be specific: Tell them exactly what you need—“Please answer Q10–Q15 by Friday” beats “Can you take a look?”
- Set reminders, but don’t spam: Loopio can send automated reminders. Set these up, but don’t go overboard. Once or twice is plenty.
- Offer help: Let people know how to reach you if they’re stuck or unclear on what’s being asked.
Pro tip: If you have a Slack or Teams channel, announce the project there, too. Loopio emails alone can get buried.
Step 4: Make It as Easy as Possible for SMEs
Your SMEs don’t care about Loopio—they just want to get this off their plate. Make it painless:
- Minimize the number of questions: Only assign what’s necessary.
- Pre-fill with whatever info you have: Even if it’s just a draft, it’s easier for someone to review and tweak than to write from scratch.
- Group similar questions: If someone owns several related topics, batch them together.
- Be clear about deadlines: Add a buffer if you can—rushed SMEs write rushed answers.
- Avoid jargon in your instructions: Use plain language. “Please confirm if this is still accurate” is better than “Kindly validate the veracity of the following response.”
Reality check: Even with all this, some SMEs will still drag their feet. Don’t take it personally.
Step 5: Review and Chase Down Stragglers
When the deadline hits, you’ll probably have a mix of:
- Complete, useful answers
- Half-answered questions
- Radio silence
Here’s what works:
- Follow up directly: A quick DM or call beats another system notification.
- Check for blockers: Sometimes people are stuck on a question and just stop. Ask what’s holding them up.
- Escalate as needed: If someone’s a repeat offender, loop in their manager (but don’t do this over a single missed deadline).
What not to do: Don’t just “submit whatever you have.” Incomplete answers mean more work later when someone inevitably asks for clarification.
Step 6: Clean Up and Close Out
Once you’ve got answers, don’t just hit send and forget it.
- Review for consistency: Make sure the tone and details line up—SMEs may answer the same question in three different ways.
- Update your Loopio library: If you got a better answer this time, save it for next time. Future-you will thank you.
- Thank your SMEs: Seriously, a quick thank-you goes a long way. People remember who made their lives easier (or harder).
What Works, What Doesn’t, and What to Ignore
Works: - Assigning only what’s truly needed - Pre-filling with past answers - Clear, direct communication
Doesn’t: - Assigning everything to everyone “just in case” - Default system emails with no context - Hoping the tool will do all the work for you
Ignore (unless you’re a power user): - Overly complex workflows or custom automations - Fancy formatting or branding in your project
Keep it simple—Loopio is at its best when you use it to organize, assign, and track, not when you try to automate away all the work.
Pro Tips for Real-World Success
- Build a cheat sheet: Keep a list of who owns what area. Update it often.
- Keep your library tidy: Schedule time every quarter to update your stored answers.
- Set expectations early: Let SMEs know when these projects are coming down the pipeline, not just when you need something yesterday.
- Don’t be afraid to pick up the phone: Sometimes a 2-minute call saves 20 emails.
Wrapping Up: Keep It Simple, Iterate as You Go
Loopio can’t fix broken processes or force people to care, but it can save you a ton of time if you use it to cut out busywork and make things clear for everyone involved. Start small, focus on the basics, and keep improving your process each time. The less friction you create for your SMEs, the better answers—and the less chasing—you’ll have to do next time.