{"id":879,"date":"2021-06-17T17:33:12","date_gmt":"2021-06-17T17:33:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/network.demandstar.com\/?page_id=879"},"modified":"2022-01-28T19:41:01","modified_gmt":"2022-01-28T19:41:01","slug":"ten-tips","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/network.demandstar.com\/supplier-support\/ten-tips\/","title":{"rendered":"Ten Tips to Win Bids"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

See more Supplier Support<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top 10 Tips for Winning Bids<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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1<\/strong><\/strong>   Research Previous Awards for Pricing Qualified Suppliers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Go back several years. This will give you an idea of where to bid and make sure you don\u2019t leave any money on the table! This can give you a pretty good idea of where to price yourself to win this business. You don\u2019t want to underbid in 2019 by coming in at $50,000, and you don\u2019t want to overbid by coming in at $100,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

EXAMPLE<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Every two years, the City releases a bid for groundskeeping services. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2013, the job was awarded for $60,000; in 2015, the job was awarded for $70,000 <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

and in 2017, the job was awarded for $75,000.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2<\/strong><\/strong>   Know Your Competition<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While looking at bids, you\u2019ll start to understand who is bidding on which jobs. The government agencies that post bids want more competition. Especially if your business is minority\/woman\/veteran-owned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3<\/strong><\/strong>   Build Templates<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

By doing the research above, you will see what language has worked in the past. You can use this language to build a library that you can refer to often, which helps you save time (and money). Remember: there are 90,000+ different local governments, but they all basically need the same goods and services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4<\/strong><\/strong>   Only Bid on What You Can Deliver<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Everyone has heard \u201cyou only get one chance to make a first impression.\u201d The same is true for your business. Also: government buyers talk to each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5<\/strong><\/strong>   Start Small<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Focus on winning smaller jobs when you start out. This will teach you valuable lessons that will help you win bigger, more valuable jobs later, setting you up for success as you build your business. Consider working as a subcontractor for a General Contractor or another supplier in the beginning while you are learning the ropes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6<\/strong><\/strong>   Mix it Up<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Federal, state, city, and even other contractors, as well as your own clients, are all potential places to get into government work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7<\/strong><\/strong>   Know the Rules<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Really read and understand the bid, the process, and how to submit it. You don\u2019t want to spend hours putting together the world\u2019s greatest bid package, only to find out you didn\u2019t submit it correctly, on time, to the right place or in the wrong file format!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8<\/strong><\/strong>   Build on Your Successes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Every bid you win helps you win the next bid. Think of the score sheet included in some RFP\u2019s, where they will give you points based on your past experiences and other agencies you\u2019ve worked with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PRO TIP<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Price is not always the deciding factor.<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

9<\/strong><\/strong>   Look for Trigger Events<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Get a head start by looking ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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EXAMPLE<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If the City releases a bid for the architectural design of a new library, you can be sure that there will be bids coming for related products in the coming months to build out the library.<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n

EXAMPLE<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You are a lighting company, and instead of waiting to see which government agencies are looking to buy lightbulbs, look for agencies doing energy audits or assessments. This is usually a trigger for agencies to use the audit findings to bring their building up<\/strong> to current energy standards.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

10 Be Patient<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There is a beginning date, and an end date to bidding and winning government jobs. The process takes time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PRO TIP<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Automate! Connect directly with government agencies near you and save time and money <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

by getting bids delivered right to your inbox based on commodity codes that you select.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DemandStar_Winning-at-Bidding<\/a>Download<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

See more Supplier Support Top 10 Tips for Winning Bids 1   Research Previous Awards for Pricing Qualified Suppliers Go back several years. This will give you an idea of where to bid and make sure you don\u2019t leave any money on the table! This can give you a pretty good idea of where to… Read More »Ten Tips to Win Bids<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"parent":815,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"content-type":"","neve_meta_sidebar":"full-width","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"on","neve_meta_content_width":100,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"off","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"on","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-879","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nTen Tips to Win Bids - DemandStar | Government Contract Bids, RFPs & Procurement<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/network.demandstar.com\/supplier-support\/ten-tips\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ten Tips to Win Bids - DemandStar | Government Contract Bids, RFPs & Procurement\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"See more Supplier Support Top 10 Tips for Winning Bids 1   Research Previous Awards for Pricing Qualified Suppliers Go back several years. 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