Here are 5 things you need to win contracts for your business

Do you want to win contracts for your business but don’t know where to start?

When you first start tendering for work, winning contracts can be difficult. If your company has limited experience with tendering, how do you secure the bid?

To be successful in tendering, there are certain things you need to consider. Writing a winning bid takes a lot of skill and experience. However, certain things are absolutely crucial for tendering success.

This blog will tell you the top 5 things you need to win contracts for your business.

What does it take to win contracts?

1. Find the right tender

When you’re trying to win contracts, it’s important that you choose realistic tenders for your business. Don’t waste time and resources on a bid you’ll never win.

However, finding suitable tenders for your business can be difficult if you’re unsure what to look for. So, here’s some things to keep in mind when you’re deciding to bid or not to bid:

• Does the project align with your long-term goals?
• Do you meet the financial standing?
• Is it financially viable for your business?
• Have you got relevant case studies?
• Do you offer something unique in the market?
• Will you need to outsource any work?
• Do you have time for the project?
• Would you choose yourself for the contract?

There are many different ways to find tendering opportunities. Our sister company, Hudson Discover, houses 11 sector-specific tendering portals:

• Creative Tenders
• Construction Tenders
• Healthcare Tenders
• Facilities Tenders
• Logistics Tenders
• Research Tenders
• Technology Tenders
• Consultancy Tenders
• HR Tenders
• Hospitality Tenders
• Finance Tenders

In each portal, you’ll find all the tendering opportunities relevant to that sector.

2. Writing skills 

You might think it goes without saying, but the importance of this skill shouldn’t be overlooked. To win contracts, you need to have excellent writing skills.

Your tender response could be the buyer’s first impression of your business. So, you need to demonstrate your high standards, professionalism, and expertise through your writing. It’s not just about what you say in your response – it’s also about how you write it.

Your spelling and grammar need to be perfect. Anything less and the buyer might think you don’t care about the bid. Then you’ll never win contracts for your business!

Your response needs to have a clear and logical structure and flow from one point to the next. If the buyer has to jump through hoops to find your answers, you won’t win the bid.

3. Relevant experience

You won’t win many tenders without relevant experience. The buyer needs to see that you are capable of delivering the contract. Anyone can say they’re going to do something, so the buyer wants to see evidence of your past work.

Generally, they’ll ask for 2 – 3 relevant case studies that prove your business is capable of delivering the contract. Your case studies should include evidence of projects of similar size, scope, and nature to the contract at hand. You should also include any positive client testimonials that support your case.

If you can’t prove the buyer with 2 – 3 contracts, it’s still possible to win contracts. However, the projects you tender for will most likely have to change. Suppliers without experience are usually limited to smaller contracts. However, this is a great way to build experience, so you can bid for bigger projects in the future!

4. Time management skills

To win contracts, you need to have excellent time management.

Tendering for contracts is a lengthy process. You have to source the bid, read the specifications, write and proofread your response, and submit to the buyer. It can’t be done in a day! So, to make sure you thoroughly complete each step of the tendering process, you need to manage your time effectively. 

This is particularly important as you approach the submission date. The last thing you want is to spend time and resources completing a tender response, only to miss the deadline! Be sure to leave yourself plenty of time to submit. If the tender is due at 5pm, don’t wait until 4:58pm to submit. If the buyer’s portal crashes, your submission won’t count.

5. Industry knowledge 

When you tender for work, you’ll be faced with lots of tender-related terminology. To win contracts, you need to know and understand this jargon. If you don’t, you won’t be able to write a successful bid.

Here are some examples of the terminology you’ll come across when bidding for contracts:

• ITT
• PQQ/SQ
• RFP
• DPS
• Framework Agreement