Tender Writing Help

Tender writing Help
 

Continuing with our tender writing advice we follow on from format to design of your tender.

Design
A well designed and laid out tender can make a significant difference to your tender writing success. There are never any official marks assigned in the tender guidance but there is significant evidence from psychology that proves that we are
influenced by the way tender documents look and that it plays a part in our decision making process.
 

My personal preference for tender writing margins are those within the standard template. The standard margins for a Word document are 1 inch at the top and bottom of the page and 1 ¼ inch from the left and right hand sides of the page. I know tender writers who decrease the margins and provided it is not too much the tender can still look ok. Imagine though if you decrease the margins of your tender, use size 10 font and over use bold!

Even when a tender is limited by the number of pages you can use it is not wise to reduce the margins too much. It makes the tender difficult to read and it does not look atheistically pleasing either.

Many people ask about the inclusion of photographs in a tender. My view is that you should use them if they add value and are relevant to your tender submission but not to include them just for the sake of it. If you are using lots of photographs in your tender it may be advisable to retain a graphic designer or similar to assist you with the design. Even when the photographs are relevant you should ensure that it is explained why. Tender evaluators, unlike tender writers, are not mind readers!

The headers and footers and contents list in your tender can also add value to your overall tender submission. Often, headers and footers are stipulated in the invitation to tender guidance but if not, use them to assist in the overall look of your tender submission. A small logo in the corner of the header can look good. Page numbers and company name in the tender footer should always be used as should a contents list.

A tender submission should always have a contents list as it acts as a roadmap for the contents and helps the tender evaluator navigate your tender document. Microsoft Word can create a professional contents list for your tender and should be used as a matter of course. How many levels of heading you want to include in the list will depend on personal preference and the importance of different elements within your tender.

Many tender evaluators complain about being unable to navigate through tenders and unable to quickly locate information. The contents list helps to overcome this problem. If you are writing a particularly large or complex tender you will probably need to provide a contents list for each section rather than just one at the front.
Next is: Tender writing & ensuring that the tender theme is consistent