Writer
Introduction
Bid writing is a special writing that falls between creative writing and business writing.
Writing a winning proposal doesn’t need appealing paragraphs about your company’s culture or technical bullet points outlining your credentials and experience.
To demonstrate your company’s enthusiasm for the contract and its competence in
fulfilling the terms of the agreement, you must strike a balance between the two extremes. Both the content and style of your writing may convey this sentiment to the reader.
Definition of a Bid Writer:
Bid writers or proposal writers are skilled writers whose job is to get contracts for their business. They might work for one company or a freelancer who writes bids for many clients.
A bid writer’s main job is to write a document that shows a strong bid for money or a business deal. Learn more about the role of a bid writer in our blog post about what is a bid writer. They often have to do a lot of study and writing to do this.
Each expert bid writer has a distinct approach they’ve perfected through time, so there’s no one-size-fits-all template for creating winning bids.
Detailed Step to Start Your Bid Writing Career:
Many businesses try to win contracts in a bidding setting with much competition. Professional bid writers write bids that help their business win contracts.
If you’re thinking about becoming a bid writer, it might help to look into the steps you need to take to get there.
Here are the steps that are usually taken during bid writing:
Bid Opportunity Identification:
The bid writer looks at different sources, such as government websites, industry platforms, and private sector releases, to find appropriate opportunities matching their company’s knowledge and services.
Preparation and Planning:
Once a bid chance is found, the bid writer works with the sales, technical, and management teams to gather the necessary information, understand the client’s needs, and describe the scope of work.
Create a Proposal:
The bid writer put together the first draft of the proposal. This means bid writing describes the suggested solution, the project approach, the benefits and value proposition, and how the proposal meets the evaluation criteria listed in the RFP.
Collaboration:
Bid writers work with subject matter experts, technical teams, and other partners to make sure the proposal content is accurate and relevant. They might talk to people, get expert information, and use feedback from different areas.
Competitive Analysis:
Bid writers find out their rivals’ strengths and flaws and use that information to place their company’s plan as better.
Customizing the Content:
Since each bid is different, bid writing meets the wants and tastes of each client. This customization shows that you understand what the client wants, making the plan more likely to be accepted.
Proofreading and Editing:
Bid writers read and edit the proposal carefully to ensure it is clear, has correct language, punctuation, and makes sense. It is very important to ensure the plan is clear and error-free.
Graphics and Visuals:
Bid writers can work with graphic artists to make graphs, charts, and images that look good and help explain complicated ideas.
Compliance and Formatting:
The people who write bids make sure that the proposal follows the rules for style and filing given in the RFP. Compliance is important because a plan that doesn’t follow the rules could be turned down.
Final Review and Permission:
Before submitting a bid, writers ask management or important partners for their final permission. This ensures that the plan fits in with the general strategy of bid writing and the company’s message.
Submission:
Bid writers send their proposals by the due date, usually through online sites or other approved ways.
Follow-up:
After submitting a bid, the writer may attend buyer talks, answer client questions, and participate in bid explanation meetings.
Tips for Writing Successful Bids:
Gain insights into writing successful bids in our article on marketing content writer, Below are the useful tips suggested by Book Writing Founders UK:
Value Proposition:
Make it clear what your plan is worth. Tell the client how your answer will bring them real benefits, solve problems, and give them a return on their investment.
Differentiation:
Talk about what makes your business different from others. Show off your skills, useful experience, and unique selling points that make your plan more attractive.
Storytelling:
Use story methods to make your plan interesting and easy to understand. Share bid writing success stories, case studies, or reviews that show how well you’ve done in the past.
Measurable KPIs:
Always provide measurable facts when making a case. Use numbers, data, and metrics to show how your ideas will improve speed, save money, or bring in more money.
Clear and Concise Language:
Make sure your plan is easy to understand using simple, non-jargon language. Don’t make thoughts too hard to understand; keep the material flow reasonable.
Visuals:
Use well-made images to show how complicated ideas work. Use charts, graphs, and pictures to make the plan easier to understand and more appealing.
Risk Management:
Talk about the risks and problems that might come up with your plan. Show that you understand these problems and devise bid writing ways to deal with them.
Client-Centric Approach:
Make your plan about what the client will get out of it. Focus more on what the client will get from choosing your plan than what your company can do.
Work closely with subject matter experts and technical teams to work as a team. Their feedback ensures the plan is correct, possible, and technically sound.
Formatting and Layout:
Make sure your plan is easy to read and well-organized. Use headers, subheadings, bullet points, and lists to break up the information and make it easier to read.
Appendices:
Include appropriate appendices to give extra information that supports your bid writing proposal, such as business profiles, references, and certificates.
Thorough Review:
Go through several rounds of reviewing and editing to eliminate mistakes and problems. Mistakes that could have been missed can be found by someone else.
Adaptation:
Change your plan for each bid chance. Even if you have a template, you should change the content to fit the needs and words of the RFP.
Confidence and Resolve:
Write with confidence and resolve. Use confident words to show that you think your plan is good.
Proof of Concept:
If possible, offer to do a test project or proof of concept. This shows that you want to make sure the plan can be done and will work.
Avoid Making These Mistakes:
Ignoring instructions:
You could be kicked out if you don’t follow the RFP’s rules and standards.
Sending the same basic plan to multiple clients can show that you don’t care about them or understand what they need.
Lack of Proofreading:
Spelling and grammar mistakes can make your bid writing plan look less professional.
Overpromising:
Don’t make claims that you can’t keep. If you make promises you can’t keep, it will hurt your reputation.
Insufficient Research:
Your plan could be useless if you don’t know enough about the client’s business and problems.
Incomplete Information:
Ensure you’ve filled out all necessary parts and given all the information requested.
Inconsistent Formatting:
Maintaining a consistent bid writing and formatting style for a professional look throughout the proposal.
Leaving Out Visuals:
A plan with a lot of words can be hard to understand. Visuals break up text and make it more interesting to read.
Lack of Focus:
Stay on the bid writing topic and leave out information that doesn’t add to the main point of your plan.
Late Submission:
It will be thrown out if you miss the date for submitting your plan.
Conclusion:
Bid writing is both an art and a science. While there are best practices to follow, it’s also essential to adapt your approach based on the specific requirements of each bid opportunity. Continuously improving your bid writing skills and learning from successes and failures will help you become a more effective bid writer.
