Blog - UK Bid Writer

What do points make? Confusion, mostly

One of the most baffling aspects of tendering is the points and weighting system. I am still on my epic search for a clear and simple written guide that explains how weighting and points relate to each other and how they affect the bidder – until then, here’s my own very much condensed overview, which […]

Business Continuity Plans – What are they and why might you need one?

How would your business cope during a global zombie outbreak? What if aliens invade? In this post I explain Business Continuity Plans - what they are, what they're not, why you need to have one and what you should put in it.

You Couldn’t Make It Up!

Or rather, you shouldn't. Another important aspect of bid writing that – done well – will help you get the best out of your bid writer.

Experience Essential?

When I’m asked what exactly it is I do for a living, one of the best ways I've found to describe bids and tenders is ‘a bit like writing a job application but for a whole company’. It’s not entirely accurate; there are obviously many differences, but it’s similar enough to get my point across. I’d like to address one of those similarities today, because understanding it is crucial to success in tendering and because it’s something that I frequently find myself explaining to new or potential clients.

Are your policies ‘tender ready’?

You can be pretty sure that most PQQs will require you to provide copies of your policies and overviews of your working practices. Having your policies and procedures up to date and ready to go can save you a lot of time when you're busy working to a tender deadline. If you'd like a review of your current policies and a quote for bringing them up to date, get in touch.

SMEs Vs Public Sector Procurement

Building.co.uk highlights a new report by the National Federation of Builders about how current public sector procurement practices affect SMEs. I haven’t read through it all yet (I’m saving it for my Friday night entertainment), but the headline stats are pretty grim: ‘SMEs slam poor government procurement practices’ – article on building.co.uk The full report […]

Download Business Link’s entire guide to public sector tendering in one handy PDF!

More useful stuff related to public sector tendering, in the form of a handy PDF, which contains all the relevant guidance and advice Business Link provide relating to tendering in one document. Download it here.

Review of free e-course ‘Winning the Contract’ (LearnDirect course)

Many of my clients despair of the tendering process, particularly the seemingly endless hoops to be jumped through when tendering for public sector contracts. While researching what other resources are available ‘out there’ for my upcoming book (available in autumn 2012), I stumbled across a free e-course ‘Winning the Contract’ from LearnDirect. Before I recommend anything, I like to make sure it does what it says on the tin, so here is my review and a few comments:

Links to Government sites re SME procurement

A brief overview of those links from my previous post.

Confounded by confusing words? A list to ensure your meaning is clear

In any writing - but especially bid writing - it's important that what you mean isn't lost through what you say. I'm thoroughly enjoying Liz Broomfield's 'Troublesome Pairs' over at Libroediting - an explanation of commonly confused or abused words.

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