It can be scary when faced with the prospect of parting with your hard-earned money and working with a total stranger on your tender response. So does the location of your tender writer matter? The answer is no — and yes.
NO - because relatability, experience, and proven ability should be your most important selection criteria when choosing one. YES - because it’s important that they are based in Australia (or at least have some solid knowledge of the Australian tender market and Government requirements).
TenderWise is a Queensland-based business, but I have clients spread across the country, and strangely enough, a relatively small percentage are in Queensland. Most of my clients are in WA and Victoria, so clearly, location is not an issue for them.
But there are certain requirements you must expect. My advice to all prospective new clients is to choose a bid tender writer who:
Relates well to you
Right from your first conversation, you should feel that the tender consultant is engaged, interested in what you have to say, asks lots of questions, and is generous with their advice. If the writer doesn’t seem interested in you from the outset, it’s probably likely that the same attitude will prevail throughout your association.
Is experienced
Ask them what they’ve done, who they’ve done it for, their approach, and how they can help you. It doesn’t really matter if your tender bid writer doesn’t have much experience in your particular sector. However, a seasoned tender writing professional will have experience across various industries. Why isn’t it very important? Because you are the subject matter expert in your business - your tender writer doesn’t need to know the finer details, but they do need to know how to turn your story into a compelling tender submission.
Has proven ability to perform and win
Every tender response writing business and all professional tender writers should be able to point you to testimonials (like these here) and put you in touch with existing clients who can tell you what the experience of working with them is like. It’s a good idea to ask how many of their clients are regulars so you can get a good feel for how much repeat business they have. Generally, a successful tender writing company won’t need to advertise their services since most of its business will come from existing clients and word-of-mouth referrals. Having said that, TenderWise does advertise (usually through Google Adwords) - but this is a pretty rare event, and my annual spend on paid leads is less than $300.
So, in a nutshell, location isn’t important, but relatability, experience, and proven ability are critical factors when hiring a tender writer.
If you need a hand with your tender submission, TenderWise is here to help. Just give me (Pauline) a call for a chat on 0400 514579 or contact us here.