How to Improve your Tendering Strategy

Maybe you’re sat there frustrated that no matter how much effort you seem to put into your tender strategy, you still don’t seem to be getting anywhere. Trust me, you’re not the only one who feels like that. Sometimes it can seem like no matter what you do, tendering seems to be a game of luck and if the wind blows in the right direction you might win, or if only you knew the right people, you might stand a chance.

But, in fact, the very reason the tendering and procurement process was introduced was to eliminate any elements of luck or favouritism that might have been present in the purchasing of goods and services previously.

Whilst we know there isn’t one, single, winning formula that is guaranteed to win you the contract each time, there are practises you can adopt to maximise your chances of success. Whilst they are by no means guarantees, our team of tender experts in the Hudson Succeed Team have put together their four top tips for improving your tender strategy. Inculcate these four practises into your bid management strategy and you should be on the road to success in no time!

1. Planning is key

In tendering, as in life (my late grandmother would say) never, ever underestimate the value of good planning. Planning out your tendering strategy, setting goals and making these realistic and precise enough to be attainable, will stand you in good stead for your tendering efforts. Specifically:

Plan out the opportunities you want to go for – Don’t simply scan tender-tracking portals like construction tenders, creative tenders or facilities tenders, and select a few opportunities you think might be relevant. The trick is to be much more measured and precise than this. It might be tiresome, but it is important to read the requirements of each, ensure you understand what is expected of you, and factor the submission process into your diary. If you’re struggling for time, contact our Hudson Succeed team today who can take the process off your hands altogether.
Plan your approach – You won’t do yourself any favours by leaving it all to the last minute. Start early and plan out your approach. Look at each question, understand what is required of you, and take steps accordingly, i.e. updating insurances, H&S certificates etc.
Plan the time in to complete the tender – A rushed job stands out like a sore thumb. As well as understanding the requirements, understand how much time you realistically need to devote to each element, and factor this into your diary.
Plan who you need to work on it – You might find that some colleagues are better placed to work on certain elements of a tender than others. Factor an element of delegation into your tendering strategy. Indeed, you will probably find that your finance department is better placed to deliver finance questions than you might be. Hence, the effective delegation will expedite the submission process and give you a higher quality submission overall.

2. Evidence

We can’t stress the importance of evidence and examples enough. It is key to factor providing concrete examples into your tendering strategy. This way buyers will know you are a safe bet, that you can successfully deliver the works you are saying you can. And who can blame them? They want some solid evidence of your competency before they part with their hard-earned cash.

It is all well and good saying that you can do something, but it is another thing actually proving it. Where possible, it is a good idea to provide contact details along with evidence. For example, if you develop a bank of case studies to attach to tender submissions to showcase your ability, include details of a reference from each project. This is a good way to show buyers you are so confident in your abilities that they can contact your past clients to verify your abilities. And sometimes they actually might!

For more information check out our video “Evidence is Key” on Tender VLE, the UK’s first, free of charge, online tendering virtual, learning environment. If you’d like a hand compiling a bank of professional and detailed case studies to use in tender submissions, contact our Hudson Succeed team today who can guide you through our bespoke packages.

3. Less, not more

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that if you shoot enough bullets you will hit the target. It simply won’t work. Be careful, take your time, look at the requirements of each opportunity and only select ones that are within your reach, that you are confident you can deliver and which would be worth it if indeed you won.

We’ve seen clients bid for numerous pieces at work at once, rush the submissions as a result, and lose out on key contracts. Similarly, we have seen clients bid for so many contracts they can’t keep track and don’t look into them closely enough. As a result, they have ended up winning small jobs which are too far away to make them worthwhile or really profitable for the company but are contractually obliged to deliver.

4. Costing

It is important to fit some work on your finances into your tendering strategy. If you’re a company based in London, for example, make sure you vary your pricing across the country. Costing based on London rates for a job in Preston will probably lose you the bid. Make sure you take the time to understand the going rates for jobs in a given area. Do some competitor research and price a few pounds underneath the going rate if you can afford it.

Further Support

If you’re still not seeing success in your tendering and procurement efforts, contact our Hudson Succeed team today who can either guide and review you through a bid, answer your questions, or take the submission process off your hands altogether. Get in touch today to see how we can help.

Tender Improvement

We offer a dedicated service to improve your current tendering strategy and responses. During this programme, we will assess your previously produced content and suggest areas for improvement that you can apply to future tender responses.

Our team currently hold an 87% success rate so you can rest assured that your tendering strategy is in good hands. Get in touch to speak to a consultant about our Tender Improvement service.