What type of client are you dealing with?

Organisations, like people, come in all shapes and sizes. In order to communicate with them effectively you first need to understand what type of organisation they are. I like to map them on a scale of 1-5 from 'creative' at one end to 'corporate' at the other. 

An organization that is highly creative is more likely to be open to new ideas, interested in innovation, and flexible in their approach. Think of Richard Branson's Virgin Group.

A corporate style organization is more likely to be interested in systems and processes, hard facts, documented experience and formal language. Think of a typical government department.

Where you place your potential client will help determine the “tone” of your submission. No point in extolling your creativity if that scares off the fact/process - loving client!

Did you understand clearly what was being requested?

A number of people have asked me about tips relating to my Answer the Question post. Here's a list of things to think about to show that you really understand what is being asked:

1. The purchaser usually has a picture in their mind about the ideal tenderer. From reading the tender request carefully, build up your own picture – does this describe your company?
2. Look beyond the questions that you are asked to answer and put yourself in the purchaser’s shoes. By focusing on just the questions you will miss many cues in the document itself.
3. Do your answers to questions demonstrate your understanding or are they just a collection of individual comments?
4. Have you answered all required sections of the Tender Document? Are all components requiring a signature completed? Ie: Statutory Declaration. You don’t want to lose a Tender by failing to complete the required information.
5. Don’t “overanswer” questions – make sure anything you write, or any documents you append – are relevant and add necessary proof.
6. Pay particular attention to requests for Certificates and Insurances. Without evidence of the required information it is unlikely that a provider would be successful. Once Insurance or Certification has been obtained it must be maintained and/or increased as required.

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I know you can do it - BUT tell me HOW you'll do it.

One of the biggest gripes I hear from procurers is that people making submissions often fail to tell them exactly HOW they propose to tackle the job. Yes, you've rabbited on about your experience but that's not enough to inspire confidence.

Make sure you show that you know how to put a project plan together. What unique systems and/or processes do you bring to the table? What will you put in place to ensure you finish the job on time and on budget? Have you a Communication plan in place that shows me how easy it will be to deal with you?

When people see the word "methodology" in an RFT they start to panic - but really it's just a big word for TELL ME HOW!

Answer the question!

Next time you are watching a politician in a television interview, listen carefully to what questions are being asked and then evaluate whether they answered the question or not.
In many cases you'll find that they completely avoid the question and give an answer that reflects their party's policy.
 I've seen the same thing happen in tender submissions. People are so keen to get "their" message across they don't pay enough attention to what is being asked. Rule number 1 is "always answer the question".
The challenge is to answer it in such a way that the purchaser gets what they want; but that you do it so that it positions your organisation as the one that can meet all the requirements better than anyone else.

Less is more

I've lost count of the number of times I've been asked "how long should I make my submission?"
For an answer, I'll quote David Ogilvy the eminent ad man who was a renowned copywriter. People often asked him about Copy length - should it be 1 page, a few paragraphs, what's the magic number?
In answer, he said that copy length was irrelevant, "use as many words as it takes to get your message across. Not a word more or less!"
It's the same when you are preparing a response to a tender request (or other submission). Evaluators are driven insane when they are confronted with mountains of paper. Even worse if it is "marketing bumpf"! Concentrate first on deciding what message you are trying to convey - what do you think the potential client's ideal supplier looks like? Once you have decided that, then look at each question you are asked and answer it making sure you reinforce your 'message' with every answer.
Too many words will hide the 'value' you are presenting, and too few will mean you haven't provided enough evidence to justify the message.
Tell me what you're offering; what the advantage is for me; and give me some proof of what you say.

Think differently about what you have

I used to teach a services marketing class at university and one day we were discussing Lovelock’s flower analogy where the core service is surrounded by supplementary petals. Someone asked what was more important – the core or supplementary elements of a service?

Of course, the obvious answer is that it’s the whole flower that has the value. Without the petals the core itself is not that attractive. Yes you have to deliver on your core service but it is often the way you arrange the supplementary elements that delivers true value for your customers.

Often when people are putting bids together they spend too much time (and space in the document) focusing on the core and not enough on the added-value they bring to the table (petals). When you are evaluating tender submissions from 50 companies you have a general expectation that most will be able to deliver on the core requirements so you look for people who can do it better, faster, smarter and the best price and minimum overall risk.

It’s not so much what those supplementary elements are, but the different combinations of them that can personalise the brand experience for the purchasing organisation.

Looking for a competitive advantage? Why not experiment with different combinations of petals. You could come up with something new just by thinking differently about what you have.

How to win tenders

I recently chaired the How to Win Tenders Summit in Sydney (organised by Association and Communication Events). The range of speakers was excellent and while most provided welcome reinforcement of key concepts in tendering, there were a few gems that I resolved to pay more attention to in future:

• Toby Travanner (www.tobytravanner.com) reinforced the need to "get clients to sell themselves". If you use your submission to show how different (in ways that add value in the clients' mind) you are, the client will become more engaged and actively look for reasons to work with you rather than looking for reasons not to!
• Virginia Loyola (Business Events Sydney) reminded me of the importance of knowing who will make the decision and how they will do it. This is particularly important when there is a panel involved. Does your submission appeal to the technical expert as well as the financial expert?
• Judy Hurditch (Intermedium) spoke about the importance of "writing in the language of government" when responding to requests from public bodies. She also talked about the 3 Pillars of Procurement that government organisations look at in evaluation: whole of life cost; degree of risk; fit to requirements. Make sure in your next submission you make an honest self assessment of how you stack up against each of them!