What you need to know before writing a bid

I often get asked to review bid submissions after they have failed. Like most forms of rejection, the client can go through several emotional phases, in sequence or a mix of the emotions all at once: denial, anger, bargaining, acceptance and moving forward. Sometimes the client tells me they want to learn from their failed attempt and these reviews often start with a denial session - it must be their client, the request for proposal wasn't clear, or they already had someone in mind. It's ok - when I listen to these I can often get to the real issues. Ultimately, they are expressing disappointment and this can only happen if they are emotionally invested in winning in the first place.

So why do so many bids fail? It is simple really - only one can win and therefore the other must fail, and those doing the selecting have to find reasons for these other bids to be discounted from the selection process. In other words, they are looking for opportunities to rule you out.

With this in mind here are the main reasons I find that a bid hasn't won.

1. You submitted a non-compliant bid. 

Yes, this happens far more often than people realise. With a complex request for proposal and the increased use of online procurement and bidding platforms, non-compliant bids are quite easy to submit. Common errors include failing to upload documents and evidence requested e.g. copies of insurance certificates or selecting No instead of Yes on a qualification question such as "Can you confirm you have never been declared bankrupt?" These badly worded questions lead to the wrong answer/box being checked. To avoid a non-compliant bid, right at the start, read all documentation and pull together a list of all the requirements. There are often needs specified in covering letters and annexes not just in the invitation to tender - read them carefully.

A second variation of this is where the bidder fails to follow the specification or format required e.g. exceeding word count, using the wrong font, providing the answers in the wrong software format or even missing the bid deadline because they didn't realise how long it would take to upload, or their PC went down. 

2. Your solution does not address their problem. 

This can happen for several reasons including:

• You didn't communicate the value you can bring. The most common by far, as often we undervalue our skills and abilities, or we just haven't taken time to think about the value we offer. 
• You didn't understand their problem properly or made wrong assumptions. Read the documentation, ask questions of clarification (which may be shared with other bidders!). Do your research.
• Your story isn't coherent - different parts of your response written by different people. The story doesn't flow. Every part of your response must reinforce your differentiator (there is likely only one between you and other competitors).
• You've made assumptions because they know you. If it's not in your tender they can't score it. Spell out exactly who you are and what you offer.
• Complacency (see below)

3. Your evidence isn't good enough. 

Just telling the client what you can do for them isn't enough. You need to provide evidence. This can be particularly challenging when you haven't undertaken the work in the scope before or exactly as described. This is when you need to get creative and think outside the box a little. If you can, generate ideas with colleagues (or friends) of the type of evidence you can submit and then articulate it in the positive. Use the same example more than once if needed, emphasising the specific evidence the question is asking for; re-word and reshape it as required. 

It may be a case that the evidence doesn't exist e.g. "Do you have Professional Indemnity Insurance of £2m" Your answer might be "No", however a better answer is "Currently we have £1m of Professional Indemnity Insurance. We have contacted our broker and received a quote to increase this to £2m. If we were successful in being awarded this contract, we will accept the quote". Using this very simple example we are reframing the lack of evidence as an opportunity. By the way, make sure you did get a quote before making commitments like this! 

You have to be able to PROVE what you are committing to do in your proposal. Another good example "Describe the system by which you will control all maintenance activities". This could lead to a long winded response, trying to articulate the process you use. Instead why not just state "We use a controlled process involving electronic tracking and monitoring of activities. As an example here is a screenshot..." A picture paints a thousand words still applies.

4. Not answering the question (irrelevant answers and waffle)

Extremely common, especially when time is tight. As the saying goes, it's harder to right a short letter than a long one. When you review your proposal (and you should review it more than once), cut out the waffle and be ruthless - did we answer the question? We can often think we know what the question is getting at and therefore provide an answer to our assumed motivation, not the question itself. Here's a simple example and a poor answer. Q: How many vehicles will you need to make all deliveries? A: We believe our fleet is large enough to accommodate the delivery schedules specified. See, the question isn't answered. 

A better response is:

A: We estimate 4 vehicles are required to deliver the service. We currently have 8, and flexibility in the utilisation of the vehicles so do not anticipate renting any extra vehicles a time. Should it become necessary we will consider buying or renting additional vehicles.

Another example Q: How large is the market you are aiming for? Hmmm we don't know so ... A: We believe this market is scalable, as this would be a new product. We hope that it will develop into multimillion unit sales in 3 years. 

Complete waffle - full of hope and guesses. A better response: 

A: This is a new market and has yet to be quantified. Once product development has completed we will take it to the market and test to gauge the first and second year sales potential.

So, get to the point and answer the question, even when you don't know the answer. By the way, if you have lots of don't knows, chances are you shouldn't be bidding....

5. Complacency and 'incumbent syndrome'

It may be that you already have the contract and it's due for re-tender. Your client loves what you do and has never criticised.... and yet you lose. Sure, the competition may have priced cheaper, but there is usually a reason for that. They have only quoted what's in the scope. You know the clients want or needs more but failed to mention it. Best way to address this is use 'variations' or 'options'. Price the basic service they asked for then price the add-ons separately. That way the buyer can compare like for like.

Complacency is very common especially where the individual or team writing the proposal also deliver the existing service. Where's the innovation and new thinking? Perhaps you wanted to offer this to the client 6 months earlier (which would be better), but failed to do so. Still worth offering now. Are you following trends in the market? Why not propose setting up a separate innovations workshop with the client if you are successful. Don't bid for what you have always done, bid for what the client is asking. 

Linked to this are the tricky elements of lower scored peripheral questions such as 'environmental benefits' and 'social value' - do not dismiss them, the half point you might get could win you the contract. Again be creative. Small business in particular fail to describe what they do in their local communities as they see this as informal and 'just what we do around here'. A tender submission is the time to take credit for the role you play locally.

In summary, writing a good bid is good story telling, using information and evidence wrapped up in a clear narrative. 

You can download our free guide to Creating a Winning Bid here.

If you need help, engage a bid writer, whilst it costs money, what's the cost of losing the bid?

So there you have it. The 5 Main Reasons Bid's Fail. Very best of luck. 

For help writing bids you can contact us at enquiries@solar-flare.co.uk