Elevate your bid win rate - 5 strategies to pursue for more wins

Legal and professional practices frequently use competitive tenders and proposals to secure work from new clients or maintain relationships with existing ones. However, bidding is an expensive and time-consuming process. Not to mention demoralising for teams stuck preparing an endless stream of poorly qualified bids with little chance of succeeding.

Here are 5 strategies to enhance your bid win rate.

1. Say no more often

There are many good reasons not to respond to RFTs/RFPs. Consider the following bid costs and weigh them against your chances of success:

• financial cost (production, delivery)

• opportunity cost for your team (doing billable work)

• morale cost of losing for your team

• risk of being seen as a “loser” by the prospective client and/or evaluators

• professional and management attention diverted to damage control

Use Bidtique’s quick bid or no bid qualification checklist to realistically assess your chances before investing too much time and resources.

Benefit

By judiciously choosing which bids to pursue, your team can focus their energy on opportunities with a higher likelihood of success, ultimately improving morale and conserving valuable resources.

2. Limit the scope of your bid

Time is always limited when preparing a tender. Critical decisions, such as bid areas, service delivery teams, and core elements, must be made early in the process. Conduct an environmental scan to assess the client, market, and competitive field. Understanding how your firm compares to competitors can significantly aid your decision-making.

For law firms, focus on specific areas of practice that align with your strengths rather than presenting yourself as a “full service” firm.

Benefit

Limiting the scope of your bid and ‘winning’ in areas you are truly expert where you can add value allows you to establish a strong initial service relationship with a new client and gradually expand your services as they become more familiar with your firm’s expertise.

3. Get organised early

Procurement processes often start months or years before the actual RFT release. Being ready early, especially for incumbents, is crucial. A well-prepared, evidence-based submission can separate winners from losers. Key evidence to prepare includes:

• professional profiles tailored to relevant areas of law and the client

• case examples and project lists

• statistical indicators

• policies relevant for your profession such as conflicts of interest policies and procedures

• flowcharts of key processes

• case studies or success stories

• client service credentials or quality processes

• references or testimonials from satisfied clients

Benefit

Early organisation reduces stress and allows your team to produce high-quality, tailored, persuasive submissions, giving you a competitive edge and increasing your chances of success.

4. Invest in a bid content library

A bid content library requires organisational buy-in and ongoing commitment. While it won’t automate all tender development, it can significantly improve efficiency by providing a 70% complete draft quickly, leaving only 30% for customisation.

Benefit

This approach maximises efficiency, reduces stress, and ensures consistency in your bids. It saves time, prevents reinventing the wheel, and allows your team to focus on tailoring each bid to meet specific client requirements.

5. Call in the professionals

If you’re concerned about your firm’s approach to tenders, bids, and proposals or overall win rate, it might be time to engage an expert. A consultant can provide fresh eyes on your bid qualification approach, overall strategy, process steps, actual bids, or content library.

Benefit

Without sounding totally self serving, engaging a consultant really can enhance your bidding capability, bring new insights, and improve your chances of winning critical bids, ultimately boosting your firm’s success and reputation.

By adopting these strategies, your firm can streamline the bidding process, focus on the most promising opportunities, and in time increase your overall bid win rate.

For help with all things tendering and bidding - please feel free to reach out.