In each tender document, you will find ‘mandatory information’ that is compulsory to complete as part of the tender proposal.

If you are unable to provide this information with your response, your proposal will not be accepted or evaluated.

Mandatory information typically includes:

• Business name
• Business number and/or ACN
• Business address and contact details
• Accreditation and or relevant licence information. For example, if you are a builder, you will need to have a building registration. 
• Insurance details, e.g. public liability and workers compensation.

To be eligible to win, it is strongly recommended that you have a registered business with the relevant licences and insurances to operate.

You may also be required to supply financial information about your business, including bank statements for 2-3 years. 

This is to show the client you have the necessary cash flow to support the contract delivery should you be successful. This is not always a requirement of every tender. 

For most tenders with the exception of Expression of Interests (EOIs), you will be required to submit a price with your submission.

This price represents the cost of delivering the contract requirements over the life of the contract term.

It is important that you understand  what a competitive price is for the product or service you are selling.

The tender document will require you to submit information to answer numerous questions about the key areas of your business. 

For example, there is almost always a question on your experience and past performance. You will have to provide information on at least two previous projects/contracts you have delivered that are similar to the one you are bidding for in scope and value.               

It is really important to consider if your company has the relevant experience and strong performance in these past contracts to be in the chance of success.

You will be competing against companies with a good track record, potentially including the current supplier. 

All tenders will ask you a range of questions covering key areas of business.

The tender client wants to know that you have business systems and processes in place. 

This will require you to gather a lot of information to respond. It is recommended that you understand these requirements before you start bidding to make the process easier and more efficient because of the time constraints of bidding.

The following information represents some of what you will need to respond to a tender:

• Experience and past performance – information regarding past project performance and possibly client referees. 
• People – who are your key people and what is their experience (CVs and organisational structure). 
• Methodology – a detailed description of how you will do the job, and potentially a program for delivery of the works.
• Quality, safety and environment – you may be required to submit policies, plans and procedures to respond to these questions to show that you have systems in place.

An average tender period runs for about three weeks from when the documents are released, to when they are due to be completed and submitted.

The deadline for the submission of the tender is normally a set day and time. Generally, this deadline is non-negotiable. 

The client who issues the tender sets clear rules and guidelines you need to follow throughout the tender process, as well as how you need to submit the tender.

In addition with complying with the tender rules, you will also need to submit a compliant tender that conforms to the tender requirements (the scope of works).

You will also need to review the contract and elect to agree or disagree with the terms. 

You will need to submit all mandatory information, pricing and answer all tender questions.

After you submit the tender (on time), you are scored on how well you answer these questions and how competitive your price is. 

Most people underestimate the amount of information they need to get together to complete a tender document and the time if takes to compile in a high-quality proposal.

That's because it's hard to judge how 'big' and complex the document is with limited experience. 

Preparing a tender takes time, effort and resources away from your day-to-day business.  

A lot of the information required needs to come from subject matter experts. For example, if it is a plumbing tender, generally a plumber will need to explain what approach will be required to complete the works compliantly.

You will also need to factor in the following 'jobs' to complete the tender:

• Pricing including getting quotes from subcontractors
• Review the contract
• Write responses
• Format final tender response.

There is a best practice professional standard of presentation that is considered.

This takes time, skills and resources to put together, and a dedicated focus and process to achieve the best quality response by the deadline.

Clients often conduct online due diligence on potential suppliers. 

A digital footprint will help a tender client to confirm the legitimacy of your business.

Also, ensure you website and online materials reflect the expertise in the area you're bidding for.
 

• Tenders are issued by all levels of government and many private businesses.
• Make sure you know which contracts you are going to have the greater success of winning and delivering.
• You will need to consider your company's experience, and how it relates to the scope and value of contracts.

• Review example tenders relevant to your industry to get an understanding of what type of contracts are on offer.
• Understand the document structure, the specification requirements, the required information, the contract, the evaluation criteria and payment terms.

• Compile written information about your company in one central source. This will help you as you start to tender. 
• Identify your company's strengths and points of differentiation that separate it from the competition.

• Training in the fundamentals of tenders and how to bid will save you time and money when preparing tender responses.
• Tender documents are complex and required a multi-pronged approach to deliver a quality outcome, on time.