Putting across a bid proposal is a tricky task and one must make sure that you can differentiate yourself from the competitors in developing an attention-grabbing bid. Government organizations aspire to get the best possible outcome of the procurement so it is in the own interest of the Bid Manager, Suppliers, and Contractors to submit the most accurate and well-informed bid proposal. A very critical part of the bidding process is drafting the bid proposal. It is crucial to invest an ample amount of time in it doing the research about the contracting government organization and what they are expecting from the tender.
What Are The Elements Of A Bid Proposal?
There are many tenders issued by Government organizations and proposals can vary for different organizations and project requirements. Certain elements are more or less present in every Bid Proposal such as
-
- Supplying agencies contact information
- Supplying agencies contact information
- Scope of the job
- Purpose of the proposal
Details of services and goods to be provided by the supplier or contracting agencies
Information about value-added services
Price information
Additional terms and conditions
Estimated Project Timeline
Signature of both the parties
What to keep in mind before drafting the bid proposal?
Keep A Personalized Approach
Address the contracting authority by the name. This will signal the Government organization that you have gone through the details of the tender document and did not just go about copy-pasting responses for every project. Moreover referring by name helps to build a personal connection. Like every Tender, each buyer is different and has different expectations from the contracting authority. So take your time to read the tender documents and tailor your response as per the particular bid. If you have any problem comprehending a particular question do take the liberty to ask.
Information About The Project
Tender documents are the guide that has all the critical information about the project like the Government’s requirements, Procurement Procedures, Evaluation Criteria, and Contract awards. Study the Tender document bit by bit to make sure you can cover every aspect of the project and put forth a persuasive proposal stating how your skills and resources will be able to deliver quality results.
It’s About Them Not You
What differs a bad bid proposal from a good bid is how you hit the balance between presenting your skillset and details about the project. Too much information about you or simply putting down irrelevant skills would not help you bag the deal. Instead, few examples of similar projects that you have worked on along with specifying why you are the best fit for the job will help you grab the attention of the contracting authority.
Promote the benefit
While drafting a tender proposal it is important to site the Cost, Timelines, and Requirements of the project. It is important to outline the benefits that government organizations will derive from you. A well client-focused tender has a better chance of winning than the one that lacks the effort in understanding your needs and providing a solution for the same. It is crucial to do the research on what the government agencies are seeking out from the contracting authority and try to come up with more than one alternative idea for the same.
Remember to focus on the fact that your solutions are beyond the scope of the project.
Try to put forth an additional positive impact that your bid offers to the community or businesses in general.
Put Yourself In The Buyer’s Shoes
A more emphatic approach towards drafting a tender proposal is to put yourself in the shoes of the buyer. Ask yourself questions like What is important to the client? How can you add real value to the specified requirements? What are the benefits that you might look at while selecting a tender proposal?
If you think your bid proposal will be able to give impressive answers to these questions and put a long-lasting impact on the minds of the decision-makers that you are good to go.
Proofreading is Key
The bidding process includes dealing with strict timelines, intense pressure, and multiple management of the resource. More so than none there exists grammatical or unattended errors in the proposed draft that will put down your company’s image. We cannot stress enough on the exercise to proofread and edit the proposals before sending them out. Given the high volume of bid proposals that governments receive one cannot afford to take a chance on making silly errors and reduce their chance of winning.
Professionals Behind The Scene
Choose your team as per the strengths of the professionals that can work together and share the common goal i.e winning the government bid. It is important to create a team that is organized and collaborative that can complete the job efficiently. Before heading on the tender proposal draft it is important to clearly define the roles and responsibilities of each team member and ensure all of them are on the same page.
Remember your team can make or break the deal so choose your people wisely.
The cheapest Bid always wins is a myth!
When you bid for a project you ensure that you will incur a cost and it is crucial to place a reasonable ‘quote’ for the services that you ought to offer. Underpriced bids not only lead to incurring losses for the business in the long run but also reduces your credibility. Value for money is an important criterion in tender Evaluation so one should put across a clear estimate to carry on with the bidding process with authenticity.
Elements of a clear ‘quote’ cost breakdown include
Hourly Wage
Material Cost
Opportunity Cost
Overhead Cost
Manpower
As long as you can justify the price that you have put up you are all set.
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