Author: Andrew

I am the Bid Consultancy and Training Manager for Tenders Direct, and use my experience as a bid consultant to oversee their training and consultancy services. I’m a fully qualified member of the Association of Proposal Management Professionals, and have worked on bids in the UK and Middle East – winning contracts valued up to £1BN. My specialisms include bid strategy, bid writing for complex projects and contract management. Outside of work, I am qualified as a mediator to further improve my communication skills and ability to help parties reach amicable agreements. I also love outdoor pursuits such as rock climbing, trail running, hill walking and kayaking. More recently I discovered (in lieu of more expensive forms of premature mid-life crisis) callisthenics.

Planning Your Winning Tender Submission

Improve your bid writing skills with Tender Direct’s tender submission guide. With information on bid planning, consultancy and training available here.

What makes an effective bid writer?

Do you have the skills needed to be an effective bid writer?
No matter what size of business you operate, Bid Writers play a vital role in determining whether or not you will win new work.
In this post we look at the skills every effective bid writer needs to master.

The 9 Step Tender Writing Process

Do you have an efficient process for writing tender proposals?
If not, you could be setting yourself up for failure. Our 9 step process guide details the most efficient way of planning your proposals, helping you to focus on what is needed and avoid dreaded rewrites.

Could you be overlooking key details?

Not answering questions properly could be the reason you’re not winning contracts. It’s an incredibly common bid writing mistake and one of the main causes of harsh feedback from buyers.

In his final post in the series of ‘Top 5 Bid Writing Mistakes’, Andrew Watson addresses the error of ‘Overlooking key details’ and provides guidance on how to avoid making this mistake.

Have you considered how pricing fits into your bid strategy?

Setting prices too high could prevent you from winning contracts, but setting them too low could mean missing out on a bigger profit.
In this post we look at why you need to be strategic with your pricing, and offer guidance on what you should consider when setting your prices.

What are my chances of winning a tender?

People frequently doubt their chances of winning tenders, and in some cases these doubts prevent them from bidding at all. If you have been unsuccessful previously, don’t let it get you down.
In this post I offer some advice to help improve your confidence and your win rate.