Bids for government and corporate work can be a great way to drive your business growth. However, they require significant investment of strategic effort and valuable resources in order to be the winning bid.
Running winning bids is a science, which requires you to investment in your bid capability with multidisciplinary teams across your executives, pre-sales and sales teams, solutions architects, legal and other supporting governance functions.
Bids & tenders represent a deep pool of potential opportunities, if you know how to approach growing your business with winning bid strategies and execution plans.
We discuss 8 strategic levers to maximize the probability of success in your bids and tenders.
Do not proceed past go
Like in monopoly.
Do not proceed past Go, if you have not qualified the bid opportunity.
The foundation: Qualification
This is a foundation to success making sure your organisation has robust sales and opportunity qualification established. Only bid or tender should proceed, over agreed amounts, if they have been qualified. Establish your super robust governance process before any bid is allowed to commence.
This single entry point will save your organisation lots of unnecessary time and effort.
This single governance step massively improves your opportunity cost and likely win rate
1. Understand the Ask?
Once your bid is approved to proceed, appoint a bid manager, run a formal kick-off, make sure everyone reads the bids, & understands the essential ask and requirements,
i.e. “Understand the Exam Question” in the bid documents.
2. Assemble the right team
In order to respond effectively, it is important to assemble the right team of executives, bid teams, sector SMEs, and solution practitioners.
Each member should bring their expertise to the table, ensuring a comprehensive and well-rounded response.
3. Define a compelling win strategy
Before diving into the bid process, it is crucial to define a clear win strategy. Determine your unique selling proposition and focus on how it sets you apart from the competition.
This will help you craft winning submissions.
Then make sure, your win messaging is clearly articulated in your response.
4. Build a compelling story
Your bid should tell a compelling story based on your win strategy. This story should be consistently expressed throughout the bid, showcasing your understanding of the client's needs and how your solution addresses them.
5. Effective Bid assurance.
It is crucial to answer the exam question and carefully scope every commercial obligation stated in the tender documents.
Assurance is key to demonstrating your attention to detail and your commitment to meeting the client's requirements.
Bid Assurance will make sure, you understand and respond to all obligations in the bid.
Legal once told me a trick, everywhere you find a verb, you usually find an obligation.
6. Tell the customer’s story
Customize your solution and delivery story to align with the specific operating context of the customer's organization.
Use specific custom personas to demonstrate how your solution will benefit them in their unique environment.
7. Seek strategic opportunities:
Actively listen and watch for bid and tender opportunities through formal channels like government websites, as well as informal channels.
Being proactive in identifying opportunities will give you a competitive advantage.
8. Implement end-to-end bid management:
Bids need to be carefully managed from start to finish. This includes setting clear timelines, developing solutions and pricing plans, conducting thorough reviews, and obtaining necessary approvals.
Executives that invest in bid management
capabilities have a higher success rate.
By following these eight strategies, you can significantly improve your chances of winning bids and tenders, driving business growth for your business.
Effective bid management increases
the chances of success by 20 to 40%.
Good luck
