What is a bid?
To be successful in the bid writing process to secure contracts for your organisation, you must firstly understand what a bid is.
A bid is a formal proposal to supply goods or services at a specified price, usually describing how the contract requirements will be met. A supplier or contractor uses the bid as a formal offer to show how they will provide these services under certain conditions, in response to a client’s tender. The end client could be a local authority, housing association or a large government body.
A tender is the formal request from a client or buyer to these potential suppliers or contractors and will outline the scope of work, specifications and evaluation criteria, whilst a bid is the supplier’s (or bidder’s) response to the tender, in which they present their proposal, pricing and other relevant details.
There are several aims of a bid for an organisation, including:
- Securing a contract
- Demonstrating value
- Meeting client requirements
- Competitive pricing
- Building relationships
- Ensuring quality
- Facilitating evaluation.
You should always ensure that the tender is suitable for your company, from the scope of services and skills the contracting authority is looking for, geographical location and budget.
What is bid writing?
Bid writing is the process of creating persuasive and compelling proposals which answer the particular requests of a tender to assist you as you try to win a contract. Bid writing experts, known as bid writers, will craft detailed, well-structured responses that demonstrate the capabilities and experience of the bidder whilst also understanding the needs of the contracting authority. Bid writers are responsible for convincing the contracting authority that their organisation – or the organisation they are working with – is the best choice for specific tender opportunities.
Bid writers can sometimes be embedded into an organisation as part of their in-house team, but they can also work at external companies, like our team of bid writing professionals at Executive Compass. Our services can be requested by a business, for instance, our bid writing or bid review service.
Key aspects of bid writing include:
- Persuasive communication, helping to effectively communicate the value the supplier will provide, highlighting strengths and unique selling points, also known as bid win themes.
- Strategic planning, since developing your bidding strategy for public sector tenders means understanding the client’s requirements, analysing the competition and developing a strategy to win.
- Technical and commercial knowledge, which the bid writer will acquire from a client interview and other conversations with subject matter experts and then translate into a clear, concise narrative for the contracting authority.
- Compliance and quality, since bid writing involves adhering to specific and strict guidelines and regulations to ensure the client’s needs are met.
- Teamwork and collaboration, since bid writers work closely with other team members, like bid managers and subject matter experts.
How does the bid writing process work?
Since the difference between winning and losing a tender submission is often only a handful of marks, the bid writing process is important because you must adhere to a structured, tried and tested methodology and approach.
The bid process involves several key stages which should be completed effectively by an expert bid writer to maximise your chances of winning the tender:
- Understanding the opportunity and requirements, through reviewing the tender documents (like the Invitation to Tender and contract specification), researching and analysing the buyer and project or service, and answer planning to ensure all necessary points are addressed and the criteria is met.
- Drafting the bid content, using clear and concise language to incorporate evidence and data with persuasive writing to highlight the value of the company to the client and the specific tender, all while maintaining compliance.
- Quality review and submission, with internal reviews from someone who hasn’t been closely involved with the bid writing process or by an expert bid writer, proofreading and editing, followed by the all-important final submission.
- Post-bid activities, including getting feedback – like submitting a tender challenge for an unsuccessful outcome so you can learn from unsuccessful tender feedback – and encouraging continuous improvement for your organisation, or you may be asked to revisit the tender process in the form of post-tender clarifications.
Understanding how to manage your bid process effectively through preparing, planning and organising, understanding how to meet compliance rules, and reviewing your tender is crucial. Outsourcing your bid management with Executive Compass can take the pressure off your organisation, so you can focus solely on running the business.
