The challenges of scaling up and winning bigger business – and how Proactis can help

Winning new business is difficult.  Often it’s most difficult for new and emerging companies to challenge the established order, especially if they’re doing things in a different way.  As businesses expand and develop, they begin to examine different avenues, moving away from ad-hoc smaller pieces of work to looking at more formal access routes to substantial contracts.  

Here we arrive at the wonderful world of bidding, proposals and tendering (you’ll see these terms being used interchangeably, but don’t worry they all mean the same).  As potential contract sizes get larger, the demands placed on prospective bidders become ever more arduous and detailed, formal submissions are required for public and private sector buyers alike.  

As you might expect, larger companies have more resources to dedicate to business development and specifically to bidding for work.   A recent survey of bid professionals showed just 20% worked in organisations of less than 100 employees and only 12% were the sole responsible resource in the organisation*.  

Unfortunately for smaller organisations, research has repeatedly shown a direct correlation between the level of resource employed in preparing proposals and success rates.  The good news for developing organisations is that there are some relatively easy steps to take to improve proposals.  A recent industry study shows that nearly half of all procurement professionals believe suppliers are letting themselves down with their proposals and that they are of poor quality.  With the general standard being low, smart thinking and some effort can make a big difference.

If you are at the stage where you are or soon will be submitting proposals as part of your business development strategy then we would like to support you.  As a commitment to helping exciting fellow Scottish businesses within the Fintech community, we are offering a day of expert bid support to a limited number of organisations completely free of charge.

This support could be analysis of current bid strategy, support with a live bid or a review of a past proposal.

To discuss your free expert support, contact Andrew Watson, Bid Consultancy and Training Manager at Proactis Tenders Limited - Andrew.Watson@proactis.com.

Proactis Tenders Limited is one of the UK’s leading procurement companies. Its team of specialists has extensive knowledge and considerable experience in providing a range of eProcurement systems and services to buyers in the public sector. It also offers a range of services to private companies from all sectors throughout Europe who are seeking new business opportunities. 

*APMP UK Compensation Report 2019