Seven questions to ask before tendering

We all know the term ‘busy fools’!  The term definitely comes into play when tendering for new business.  Seeing all those tenders coming through is like candy in a sweet shop.  But, knowing that you could deliver the work is one thing on paper you have to sound great too.

The best tip we can give you is to create a Tender Checklist.  This Tender Checklist will keep you on track when bidding for new work and should include a set of questions which are essential to knowing what to tender for, and what to walk away from.

Here are some sample questions that our Growth Director, Jill asks before submitting tenders on behalf of her clients.

DO YOU HAVE 3 STRONG CASE STUDIES FROM THE INDUSTRY YOU WANT TO WORK IN? 

Most tenders require sector-specific experience and usually require a minimum of three case studies.  Think carefully before submitting a response if you’re struggling to get the right level of experience from your bank of case studies.

DO YOU HAVE A SOLID FOUNDATION OF EXPERIENCE SIMILAR, TO THOSE IN THE INVITATION TO TENDER?

Look at the work you’ve done in the last three years and ask yourself, ‘is it relevant to the business project?’  If it isn’t it’s unlikely you’ll be successful, as another bidding organisation will specialise in this area and will be able to produce a winning bid.

IS THE TENDER MORE THAN HALF OF YOUR ANNUAL TURNOVER?

It’s hard to know the cut-off point for organisations when bidding for a contract, but the general rule of thumb is that you are unlikely to win any projects as an SME that are more than 50% of your turnover.

DO YOU MEET THE TERMS OF THE TENDER I.E. THREE YEARS REQUIRED ACCOUNTS?

If you’ve only been trading for 2 years but it is an essential requirement of the tender to have a minimum of 3. Disregard the tender and don’t give it another thought.

HOW STRONG IS YOUR TEAMS EXPERIENCE AGAINST WHAT THEY’RE ASKING FOR?

Think of your current and previous experience, if the management team are strong, with a proven track record, you could have a strong chance of winning the work.

TENDERING TIMESCALES – CAN YOU MEET THE DEADLINES REQUIRED FOR THE PROJECT? 

Think about the size of your team and the number of man-hours needed to complete the work and the tendering process. If it looks like 100% of your team will be working on the project 100% of the time, you’re unlikely to win it, it’s too risky for the client to give you the work.

IS IT POSSIBLE TO MAKE A PROFIT, BASED ON THE BUDGET ALLOCATED?

Many organisations tender for contracts not thinking of the profit margins should they win the work.  Look at the man-hours needed for the project, and add 20%.  If you’re still making a decent profit, go ahead and submit the response.

It’s important to understand that this advice won’t be relevant to 100% of the businesses reading this blog. We’re aiming this content at SMEs and businesses who are looking at developing a new revenue stream through tendering.

Click the link to find out more about our Tender Management Services and how our Bid Writers can support you.

Find more helpful tips and advice in our blogs. We cover topics including:

• How to win a tender
• What is a Bid Writer?
• The tendering process
• Writing winning bids
• 7 tips for tendering for contracts
• Tips for bid management
• Bid writing services
• The types of tendering procedures
• Writing bids
• Bid writing consultants
• Submitting a tender response
• And many more.

Our services

Tender Writing

Once you’ve found the perfect bid for your business, send it our way. Our Bid Writers can take care of the whole thing for you they’ll even submit it on your behalf. They’ll let you know what they need from you, providing you with a full Tender Writing breakdown.

Tender Ready

Our Tender Ready 4-week programme is perfect for businesses that have never tendered before. A Bid Writer will work with you to ensure you have everything in place to tender successfully. They can also help you better understand the tendering process. Tender Ready offers your business:

• A 12-month subscription to one Hudson Discover.
• Access to Global Bid Directors and Senior Bidding Professionals.
• An Organisation-wide Bid library, including 3 case studies, 5 CVs and policies.
• Additional flexible benefits.

Tender Improvement

If you’ve been tendering but aren’t seeing success from your current efforts, our Tender Improvement package can help. Our Bid Team will assess your previous responses and tender documents. They will work with you to improve for future submissions. This package includes a 12-month subscription to a Hudson Discover portal and additional tendering development services.

Tender Mentor

If you’ve written your own tender response and need it double-checked for errors, Tender Mentor can help. A Bid Writer will proofread your work for any inconsistencies, grammar or spelling mistakes. They will also ensure it’s in line with the specification before you submit. This can help you formulate a winning submission.

Additional support

If you only need assistance with PQQs or SQs we can help. Send the information over to us and we can provide you with a quote for the work involved.

Discover Elite

Upgrading to Discover Elite can help optimise your tendering efforts – even when you’re busy. Our two new time-saving tools can improve your competitor awareness and success rate when bidding for a contract.

The Ultimate Time Saver package offers your business:

• A maximum of five tender breakdowns per month.
• An annual subscription to a maximum of two Hudson Discover sector-specific portals. This option can help businesses that overlap two industries such as Healthcare and Technology, for example.
• Pre-market and award engagement notices monitored on your behalf.
• Buyer portal management, including registration, password management, downloading documents and assessing viability based on your bid or no-bid strategy.
• Weekly phone calls with your dedicated Account Manager to discuss viable tendering opportunities.

The Become a Pre-Bid Master package also includes:

• All of the above.
• Up to seven tender breakdowns per month.
• A Bid Strategy delivered by a Senior Bid Manager with a minimum of 5 years of experience. It will also be managed by our Global Bid Director.

Contact us to find out how we can help your business grow.