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Home » Blog

How to Win Tenders Blog

How to Re-tender for an Existing Contract

You have to re-tender for an existing contract. What do you do? Don’t worry, this guide to re-tendering will help. It explains what to do and how to avoid some common pitfalls when re-tendering. Follow these steps to increase your chances of keeping the contract.

Re-tender for an existing contract

How to Re-tender for an Existing Contract

The need to re-tender for an existing contract is a common reason for clients contacting us for help with a bid. They tend to fall into these categories:

  1. They have never had to submit a modern, more complex tender before and so are not sure how to approach it. Many clients have held contracts for years. They have won previous re-tenders which were price driven but not so complicated. This is typical of contracts involving public money falling in line with OJEU rules.
  2. A friendly buyer has recommended that they engage a tender consultant. Sometimes the buyer has seen a past submission which was not up to scratch. Or the buyer knows the client’s in-house resources / skills might not be able to create a winning bid.
  3. It’s a must win tender. If they lose it, it will hurt the business.

Whatever the reason, they want to win the tender and keep the contract.

The starting point is to follow tendering best practice.

This is obvious – do everything correctly and you increase your chances of winning! There’s lots of information about this in our blog. Start with how to answer tender questions and writing positive Tenders. Also, make sure that you avoid making the most common mistakes when re-tendering.

Apart from applying best practice, the following steps will help you win the re-tender:

Don’t Assume They Know All About You

It’s common for business owners to say to me “Our customer knows all about us, so we don’t need to write everything down.”. WRONG!

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New Public Procurement Thresholds for 2018

2018 EU / OJEU Procurement Thresholds

Procurement thresholds for public sector tenders are updated for 2018. Associate Consultant, Carl Rogers, is an expert on public procurement. In this post he explains the changes, the importance of contract values and the effects of Brexit.

Public Sector Procurement Thresholds for 2018

Timings

The new procurement thresholds affect new tenders from 1st January 2018 to 31st December 2019.

Why are Procurement Thresholds Important?

Public sector buyers must be aware of these thresholds. These are the values above which a European (OJEU) advert must be placed to ensure competition. Failure to do so can result in legal action being taken against the contracting body.

The procurement thresholds are applicable to public purchasing. This includes government departments, local authorities, NHS Trusts, utilities, housing associations etc. They cover the following:

  • The Public Contracts Regulations 2015
  • The Concession Contracts Regulations 2016
  • The Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016
  • The Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011

What has changed

The actual thresholds have increased slightly. This might be due to the fluctuating exchange rates compared to the last threshold renewal. The new thresholds are net of VAT and are as follows:

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Beginners Guide to Pricing Tenders

As part of our tender consultancy service, I often discuss tender pricing strategies with clients. This beginners guide to pricing tenders covers the most common topics we talk about when aiming for the winning bid.

You know your business, its costs, competitive pricing and your competition – if you don’t, act now! I cannot tell you what will be the winning price. But this guide to pricing tenders explains some the most important issues when bidding to win a tender.

Beginners Guide to Pricing Tenders

Beginners Guide to Pricing Tenders

General Pricing Strategy

Tenders almost always have price as part of their evaluation (see MEAT below). So, you must ensure that your company’s pricing is competitive in your market sector.

When undertaking a sales and marketing review with a client, pricing strategies are always on the agenda (part of the Marketing Mix). This is a much bigger topic than pricing tenders and is too broad to cover properly in this post but let’s look at some of the basics:

There are three elements to a price:

  1. Direct Costs are the specific costs incurred to provide the product or service e.g. staff, materials / sub-contractors and supervision
  2. Indirect Costs include premises, management, professional fees, administration etc.
  3. Profit is the difference between the selling price and (1) & (2)
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How to Write Positive Tender Responses

Writing positive tender responses will help you maximise the impact of your bids. A positive tone will shine through – as will any negativity. Therefore, you want to ensure that you avoid sounding negative and always be positive. You will appear confident and so encourage the markers to read your tender in an affirmative way. Hopefully leading to higher scores and therefore a win! This article explains 3 simple techniques that will help you achieve the right tone.

How to Write Positive Tender Responses

Answering Tender Questions to Score High Marks explains how to use the right language and style when answering tender questions. This includes:

  • Using benefits
  • Correct, complete and succinct writing
  • Writing in terms of ‘them’
  • Using the second or third person
  • Supporting evidence
  • Differentiating from the competition

We are now going to add some more subtle aspects to this ‘to do’ list by showing you how to write positive tender responses.

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Need Help with Tenders or PQQs? Call 01634 404903 or use the Contact Form

If you just want some quick advice over the phone, we’ll always try and help! Call 01634 404903

What Do Our Clients Say?

“Recommended! Over the years they have successfully helped us on a number of tendering, sales and marketing projects; most recently providing some intensive tender training which has already helped to improve BeSure’s tendering success.”

Andy Garwood, Director
Besure Building & Maintenance Services Ltd
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“In a very short space of time Tony Zemaitis helped us to understand and deal with a very complicated tender. This helped us enormously and resulted in Chadwell winning a major contract – highly recommended.”

Nicholas Wassell, Contracts Manager
Chadwell Construction
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“They helped us to achieve very high scores in the PQQ, tender and presentation stages of two bids for a major housing association, this resulted in us retaining our two biggest contracts. Their support was invaluable and is highly recommended to anyone having to deal with major tenders.”

Keith Bicknell, Managing Director
BMH Contract Services Limited
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“Two of our biggest blue chip clients went to tender in quick succession. We really wanted to win these contracts so we searched the market for tender consultants in order to get some expert support. We appointed Zemaitis Associates who, I am delighted to say, helped us secure both tenders!”

Graham Alderman, Managing Director
Ulterior : Global Event Management
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“The training has been very useful. It is already being put to use and some quick successes have shown how we’ve improved our entire tendering process. I can certainly endorse their PQQ and tender training”

David Gannon, Director
Gowlain Building Group Contractors Ltd
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“Tony Zemaitis has been successfully providing a series of training seminars for our clients on Writing Winning Tenders. Delegate feedback is consistently high, and I would certainly recommend using his services.”

Graham Williams, Enterprise Development Manager
South East Enterprise
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“HMS has been successful with the tender for Maidenhead and Windsor Borough Council, and we would like to thank you for your valued assistance and support with the work to make this achievable.”

Carol Green, Director
HMS Decorative Surfacing Ltd
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“They really helped us pinpoint ways of improving PQQ and tender submissions. They also showed us how to manage the whole tender process more effectively. Very good.”

Martin Thorpe, Company Secretary
The Education Company
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“The in-house training on PQQs and tenders that you delivered was excellent. Feedback from the bid team was very good. The training day helped everyone to understand tendering best practice and we’ve already put some of your suggested improvements in place.”

Zoe Wilson, Business Development Manager
Ellis Building Contractors Limited
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“Highly recommended! In addition to great marketing advice and hands-on help with tenders, they have been very supportive. This has helped us develop our business and to win a prestigious contract with Tower Bridge.”

Heather Gilbert, Managing Director
Fizz UK Limited
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“Zemaitis Associates was recommended to us as a bid writing consultancy who could assist us with housing association tenders. Their tender planning guidance and bid writing helped the firm to win a brand new client on the first tender they were engaged in. The responses were a huge improvement on those we have been submitting prior to using their services and we are looking forward to working with Zemaitis Associates on future tenders.”

Sarah Jarvis, Partner
Sharratts (London) LLLP
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“Tony successfully guided us through a complicated high-value tender process. We scored over 90% at PQQ stage then secured a place on the KCC framework. The consultancy was professional, practical, responsive, and most of all – highly effective!”

John Healy, Managing Director
Coombs (Canterbury) Ltd
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“Tony has worked with Whyte & Co to help fine-tune our tender process and improve our bid writing. Most recently he supported us in winning a tender which enabled us to renew one of our biggest contracts with a London Council. This is a great endorsement of the value he can add to a business. “

Paul Whyte, Partner
Whyte & Co
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“Some more positive feedback for you; we’ve just won a 5-year cleaning contract following a successful tender bid. You’ll be glad to know we continue to apply the tendering best practice that you taught us all those years ago… and it really works! Thanks for your help.”

Mike Faraday, Managing Director
Carter & Faraday Associates Ltd
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“A complex tender at short-notice but Zemaitis Associates got stuck right in. I was pleased the way they quickly got to grips with our industry and the final tender response documents were fantastic! If your business needs some help with sales, marketing or tenders – talk to Tony Zemaitis.”

Brian McKee, Managing Director
HR Denne Ltd
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“Medway Council has held a series of Supplier Engagement Events and Tony Zemaitis has run all of the Tender Training Workshops as part of this programme. These have been provided in a highly professional manner and pitched in just the right way for the wide variety of businesses attending these events.”

Carl Rogers, Head of Category Management - Place & Projects
Medway Council
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“What I call ‘The Tony Zemaitis School of Improvement’ has really helped 3Way’s approach to dealing with sales proposals, RFPs and tenders. We now have better processes, better documentation and most importantly better success – Tony helped us win a multi-million pound contract for an international law firm. Any business wanting to improve their success with sales proposals, RFPs and tenders should speak to Tony.”

Anthony Webb, Managing Director
3Way
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“Zemaitis Associates supported us on two regional government bids – a tender and a framework agreement. From initial advice through to editing and copy-writing the service was excellent and has helped the charity win a substantial part of the tender and also secure a place on the framework.”

Fabrizio Donati, General Manager
Autism Sussex (Aspens)
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“From getting the company fit to tender through to actually winning tenders, Zemaitis Associates has helped M&R through every stage and we are extremely pleased with the results!”

Robin Snazle, Director
M&R Refurbishments Ltd
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“Your work with Grade One Commercial Cleaning Services Ltd has been invaluable in helping us win some important tenders. I would recommend the services of Zemaitis Associates.”

James Corrigan, Managing Director
Grade One Commercial Cleaning Services Ltd
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“We scored the highest marks in the PQQ, the second highest in the tender and won a place on a multi-council framework agreement. Thanks for your help – we couldn’t have done it without you!”

Martin Stanford, Managing Director
Stanford & Green Ltd
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“100% success rate! We engaged Zemaitis Associates to help us with three council tenders in quick succession. They helped us to maximise our scores and win all three contracts! I cannot recommend them highly enough.”

Colin Stead, Managing Director
Peart Access Ramps Ltd
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“When looking for tender consultants to help us with a pre-qualification questionnaire we selected Zemaitis Associates as they looked to be the best in the marketplace. I am pleased to say that Tony Zemaitis did not disappoint. Very helpful, practical advice and great value for money.”

Jas Denny, Director
HSAG Design Ltd
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“Zemaitis Associates is a good company to know. They have helped us to improve the way we tender for contracts and the way that we sell our services – both of which are helping Kites to grow.”

Andre Palmer, Director
Kites Children’s Services Ltd
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“Highly recommended! Zemaitis Associates helped us win a home-care contract with Suffolk County Council. It was a complicated tender which we really wanted to win so we engaged a tender consultant to help us. With their help, our score was the very best for every lot we bid for!”

Adrian Fairburn, Director
Primary Homecare Ltd (Cardinal Group)
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“Professional, practical and friendly advice; their expert knowledge and support helps us to fine tune our bids. Most recently this resulted in ITM winning high-value tenders with a Central Government Department and a County Council. Any company bidding for a major contract should speak to Zemaitis Associates.”

Guy Ridley, Group Managing Director
ITM Ltd
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“Brilliant work! You got us through the council PQQ with very high scores and then helped us to win all 3 lots at the tender stage. If you want professional, hands-on help with winning tenders then I recommend contacting Zemaitis Associates.”

Lance Ridden, Managing Director
Vokes Taxis Ltd
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“I had originally planned to spend half an hour with Tony and leave the rest to the marketing team. But such were Tony’s insights and no-nonsense practical advice that I spent the entire day engaged and genuinely excited about writing tenders, something which doesn’t happen very often! Using Tony’s techniques, we have already had our first tendering success. We’re looking forward to working with him on future tenders and using his years of experience to gain a competitive advantage.”

Don Turner, Managing Director
Spinning Clock Ltd
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“Thanks for helping us win the tender! We were new to tendering and you have made the whole process so much easier for us.”

Jonathan Myall, Partner
Jonathan Myall Music (Just Flutes)
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“Zemaitis Associates helped guide us successfully through an RFP which helped us retain an important Blue-Chip customer. Recommended.”

Derek Williams, Production Director
Mayfield Press (Oxford) Ltd
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“Getting the Medway Council contract was a huge win! We beat some of our biggest competitors to secure this prestigious contract. This was the first tender that you helped us with and I could see straight away how you improved our approach to bid writing. We are looking forward to winning more tenders with Zemaitis Associates.”

Dyl Kurpil, Managing Director
District Enforcement Limited
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“Your tender training has helped Q Care to improve its understanding, processes and qualification when dealing with all types of tenders and PQQs. Most importantly, it has helped us to achieve an excellent conversion rate! Thanks for your input and we look forward to working with you in developing our business even further.”

Philip Gregory, CEO
Q Care Ltd
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“As Lawtech grows, it looks to win higher-value, more complex tenders. Tony Zemaitis ran a series of four in-depth tendering workshops for our bid team to help us develop our tendering process to meet this challenge. Gaining additional points within bids is the difference between success and heroic failure – this was the key target of the workshop. Team feedback was very positive, and we’ve already seen significant progress in our PQQs and tender submissions. We look forward to working with Tony in future to continually improve our bids.”

Leigh Renak, Financial and Customer Service Director
Lawtech Ltd
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“The first time that we engaged Zemaitis Associates was to support us with a tender submission for Brent Council. We hadn’t worked for Brent before, but Tony helped us create a great bid and I am pleased to say that we won the contract. Fantastic!”

Darren Holmes, Director
Crown Promotions & Removals Ltd
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“Zemaitis Associates delivered a successful one-day workshop for us on tendering. Client feedback from the day was good and we are happy to recommend this service to others.”

Chris Burr, Client Services Manager Gateway for Business
The Centre for Engineering and Manufacturing Excellence (CEME)
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“Thank you for delivering the bespoke PQQ and Tender training recently. Feedback from the team was extremely positive and everyone said that they benefited from it. We look forward to working with you again in the near future.”

Ang Bloomfield, Human Resources Manager
AV Danzer
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“The input that Tony Zemaitis gave was extremely useful. Not only have we won a major tender but we have also improved our skills and knowledge for future bids.”

Gary Thomas, Director, England South
Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years (PACEY)
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“I owe a debt of gratitude to Tony Zemaitis who helped us through the whole tender process (PQQ, tender and short-list presentation stages) which resulted in BPE winning a framework agreement supporting a major site investment programme with a key client. Thoroughly recommended!”

Mike Brown, Managing Director
BPE Design & Support Ltd
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“Excellent. Tony Zemaitis has worked with BSW helping the company to improve its tendering process. This has resulted in us winning a very prestigious and sizeable contract!”

John Bellière, Executive Chairman
BSW Building Services Limited
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“The tender training and evaluation feedback have proved to be highly successful! Following the training, we’ve radically changed and updated our style of writing and upgraded our whole tendering process. This has resulted in a dramatically improved hit rate on both Pre-Qualification Questionnaires and Tender Submissions across the industry sectors in which we operate (building, civil, rail). Also, I would state that the team engaged with your positive attitude and found your feedback on previous submissions to be very constructive.”

Alan Leigh, Technical & Business Development Manager
Walker Construction (UK) Ltd
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“A big thank you to Zemaitis Associates! You have really helped us win some important PQQs and tenders. Highly recommended.”

Mel Atkins, Managing Director
Ex Events incorporating The Finishing Touch
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“We wanted you to be the first to hear the good news. We have just been awarded the NHS contract! We cannot thank you enough for all your hard work and input into this process. Thank you ever so much for everything and for all your patience.”

Fafe Mudzingwa, Director
Chenash Homecare Specialists Ltd
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“The PQQ & tender training went down very well with the team and we’ve already had our first success applying your techniques! Improved qualifying has helped us to focus on better opportunities, the bid team are now all singing off the same hymn-sheet and so we are working much smarter. If you want to improve your tendering success, I can highly recommend speaking to Zemaitis Associates about their PQQ & tender training.”

Rob Kennedy, Security Operations Manager
The SES Group
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“When it comes to traversing the tricky, twisting paths of the tender process there is no better guide than Tony Zemaitis. His knowledge of the subject is unparalleled and he delivers guidance with a calm authority that is as helpful as it is pitch perfect to the needs of the client. Wholeheartedly recommended.”

Christian Mahne, Director
Mahne Creative Media Ltd
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“Tony Zemaitis brought clarity to the tendering process and provided great hands-on support helping us to meet a tight deadline. His depth of experience and gentle manner enabled him to point out the subtle changes in approach needed to make an enormous difference to the final submission. An asset to any business faced with a daunting tender process.”

Gerrie Hudson, Client Director
INVOLVE
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“They provided great advice and excellent hands-on support in helping the charity with a very important tender. Most importantly, we now have a far better understanding of how to tender.”

Janice Howard, Finance Director
Autism Initiatives Group
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“The training on PQQs and tenders was excellent, and it will certainly help us to improve our bids. Highly recommended.”

Sue Holmes, CEO
Medway Mediation
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