Everything you should know about using tender search engines

If this is your first time using tender search engines, you probably have some questions. But worry not, we are on hand to help you. That’s why we’ve put together this blog, to help you effectively use tender search engines.

About our tender search engines

Tender tracking is a full-time job as there are thousands of websites publishing opportunities every day. Keeping track takes so much time out of your day.

That’s why we developed Hudson Discover, our sector-specific, tender search engines.

Hudson Discover houses 11 sector-specific bidding portals.

• Creative RFPs & Bids
• Construction RFPs & Bids
• Healthcare RFPs & Bids
• Facilities RFPs & Bids
• Logistics RFPs & Bids
• Research RFPs & Bids
• Technology RFPs & Bids
• Consultancy RFPs & Bids
• HR RFPs & Bids
• Hospitality RFPs & Bids
• Finance RFPs & Bids

Some popular services examples from across different industries include domiciliary care, digital services, cleaning and refurbishment.

Our Opportunity Trackers manually source tenders from over 1,000 sites each day. They then upload them to the relevant portal and tag them with industry-driven keywords. This makes tender tracking even easier, with no reliance on CPV codes.

The benefits of using tender search engines

Filters

The filtering section makes it much easier to source opportunities on our tender search engines. You can filter your search by dates, budget, location, and keywords. This allows you to find the right opportunities for you.

Email alerts

We appreciate some days you may be too busy to log into our tender search engines. Don’t worry about missing tendering opportunities, we’ve got you covered. You will receive an email alert when relevant tenders are released, saving you even more time.

All the UK’s tenders in one place

You’ll find every available tendering opportunity out there all in one place on our tender search engines. You can also access private sector tenders and unique opportunities on our portals. This saves so much time and makes finding opportunities easier.

Deciding which tender is right for you

As previously discussed, there are thousands of opportunities on our tender search engines. Not all the opportunities in your industry will be right for you. It’s worth spending time reading a tender thoroughly to see if it’s a suitable opportunity for your business. Here are three things to consider when deciding which tenders to bid for:

1. Can you deliver the contract?

Before starting your tender response, decide when you are able to deliver the contract, should you win it. If you won’t be able to deliver the contract, don’t bid for it. It will be a waste of your money, time, and resources. Some things to consider include:

• Do you have enough staff to deliver the contract?
• Are you able to deliver in that location?
• Do you have the right accreditations

2. Do you have the right experience?

When bidding for tenders, you will usually be asked to provide 2-3 relevant case studies. The buyer wants to see previous examples from similar projects you have delivered. Your examples must be relevant to the tender you’re bidding for. The buyer wants to know how you dealt with challenges you were faced with previously. Always back up your points with evidence.

3. Can you provide a competitive quote?

When tendering for work, you need to consider the cost of your products or services. Your pricing should be fair, accurate and competitive. If you price your work too low, the buyer may question if you are legitimate. However, the buyer will choose a cheaper bidder if your price too high. Try to get the balance right.

However, in the public sector, buyers have to consider more than just price. They award contracts to the Most Economically Advantageous Tender (MEAT). This means they need to consider aspects such as your social value responses, policies, and procedures as well.

We’re here to help

We hope you have found our blog on tender search engines insightful and helpful. If it still seems baffling, we have a range of services that can help you.

Hudson Succeed

Hudson Succeed is our bid writing consultancy division, offering tender writing services and support to businesses of all sizes. Our Bid Writing Team has over 60 years of collective experience and proudly hold an 87% success rate.

Our tender writing services gives organizations at various stages of growth a chance to succeed with tendering. Hudson Succeed can help if you’re completely new to tendering or aren’t seeing success from your current tendering responses.

RFP Mentor

If you’ve written a tender response and want someone to double-check it for errors, then Tender Mentor is for you. One of our Bid Writers will proofread it for any grammar or spelling mistakes. They’ll also check it’s in line with the specification before you submit.

RFP Writing

If you’ve found the perfect tender for your business, but don’t know where to start – send it our way. Our Bid Team will take care of it all for you, providing you with a full Tender Writing breakdown. They’ll let you know what they need from you and even submit it on your behalf!

RFP Ready

Our RFP Ready program is designed for those who are completely new to the tendering process. This program works with you to ensure you have everything in place to tender successfully. The program also includes bid writing support and a 12-month Discover subscription to a portal of your choice.

RFP Improvement

If you’ve already been tendering for work, but aren’t seeing success, our Tender Improvement program can help. During the course of the program, our Bid Writers will assess your previous submissions and supporting documents. They’ll then give you feedback and guidance on how to improve.

Both Tender Ready, and Tender Improvement offer:

• A 12-month subscription to the sector-specific portal of your choice.
• Access to our Global Bid Director and Senior Bidding Professionals with 60 years of bidding experience.
• A dedicated Bid Consultant with the program, lasting up to three months.
• The development of an organisation-wide bid library. This includes 3 case studies, 5 company CVs and 8 policies.

The business landscape has changed drastically over the last year. As a business development consultancy, we believe it’s crucial to offer businesses sustainable solutions for expansion. That has never been more appropriate than it is today.