So you and your team have just submitted a bid...
You’ve been working on it for weeks. What do you do now? Before you’ve even discovered the outcome of your submission, there is plenty you can do to improve your future success rates.
Review your bid procedures
Immediately, while the proposal for your most recent tender opportunity is still fresh in your mind, evaluate your procedures. Did your team work well together? Even if they did, overall, were there any niggling issues or problems with communication, for example, which affected the tender process?
Now is the time to review the responsibilities of each member of your team, and ensure they are understood. Similarly, do any checklists or procedures need to be updated? Did every member of the team have access to the information they required, when they required it? What can you put in place now to make your next bid easier? Note down any problems that occurred and any possible solutions going forward.
In the longer term, take the time to regularly review and update your documentation. Ensure CVs, insurance documentation, policies, accreditations, memberships and any other documents you might be asked for are up-to-date and stored together for easy utilisation next time round. Similarly, make sure your reference contact details are correct and updated.
Ask for feedback on your bid
Whether or not your bid is successful, ensure you request feedback from the authority and review it carefully. If you were successful, congratulations; but use the feedback to refine your next bid. For example, feedback may give insight into your competitors, allowing you to compare and contrast your own business going forward. You may have lost points for something you do, but merely failed to mention – you will know to include the information next time.
Build a bid library
As you bid more frequently, you will start to build up your Bid Library. Thornton & Lowe are frequently asked to help develop and refine a core bid library of information. Once compiled, you can then spend time tailoring your information and adding value, rather than having to find the information in the first place. After each bid, your library must then be updated with information, including feedback.
Consider professional bid support
It can be very disheartening to be unsuccessful. Bidding is a continuous cycle of reviewing and refining information and if you are unsuccessful repeatedly, perhaps it is time to consider various options. Could you, or members of your team, benefit from our Bid Training? Perhaps you may consider recruiting interim or permanent bid writers, with the expert help of our Bid Resource division? Or could our Bid Writing team help you? Thornton & Lowe offer a range of options, from a Bid Review up to a full Bid Management service. Whatever your requirements, please contact Thornton & Lowe today on 01204 238046 or email us on hello@thorntonandlowe.com/
