Today's blog is all about re-bidding for work as an incumbent supplier. It is vital that you dedicate the appropriate time and resource to completing all tenders to the best of your ability, especially if you are the incumbent supplier and your are bidding to retain the contract for your business.
If you are at all complacent about bidding for existing work, you leave yourself very vulnerable to the possibility of a competitor snatching the contract from under your nose. You need to ensure that not only is your response fully compliant to the specification and tailored to the client's needs, but that you have also included as much evidence as possible regarding the success of your current service delivery.
Rival bidders can state how well they WILL do the work if appointed, but only you as the incumbent supplier can evidence how effectively you DO the work already. Being able to demonstrate that you are already capable of delivering the works through previous experience onside is a huge advantage that you have over your competitors. The onus is on you to make sure you capitalise.
Here are some of our proven tips to help you bid for existing work effectively:
1) DO NOT BE COMPLACENT - You cannot afford to assume that just because you are successfully delivering the contract already, that you will be chose to supply again. Despite the fact you may be providing an excellent service, if you haven't effectively articulated this within your tender, you will end up losing marks.
2) TELL THEM EVERYTHING - When writing your bid, do not rely upon the buyer's existing knowledge of you as a supplier. They can only mark what is written and submitted, so do not count on any assumed knowledge on behalf of the client, as this will not form part of the evaluation criteria. It is therefore essential to tell them everything they want to know and more. Add value to their specification and demonstrate that even though you are performing well currently, you have identified methods in which you can improve the service.
3) PRICE TO THE SPECIFICATION - Getting your pricing submission right is a vital component of the tender process, so the appropriate time must be dedicated to completing this compliantly. You must make sure that you price the requested works for the new contract in accordance with the buyer's specification. DO NOT price according to the works you currently deliver. Make sure you have studied the pricing submission document in detail and have completed in full adherence with the contract requirements.
In summary, AVOID COMPLACENCY AT ALL COSTS. If you are not prepared to complete a retender to the best of your ability, you can bet there will be a company who is, causing you to lose vital existing work on your portfolio. Should you currently not have the capacity to dedicate time to the tender process, please feel free to call us to discuss your options and see how we can help 01384 279568 or email Georgina.Bock@klickbusinesssolutions.co.uk
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