Tender work

Writing tenders

A tender is a sales document that is marked like an exam. It has to answer every requirement, in the order the authority asks, and it has to do so within the space given. That craft is what we sell.

What we write and what you write

We take the parts that can be written for you: drafts of quality and environmental management systems, company presentations, descriptions of organisation and delivery, and the filling in of templates and free-text answers in the procurement system.

You take what only you can: reference assignments, CVs, work samples and what you know about how the delivery actually works. We give continuous feedback on your texts, tied to the requirements and the evaluation model, not to how it sounds.

During the collaboration a database is built up of references, CVs and recurring documentation. The next tender therefore never starts on a blank page.

Writing in Swedish

Swedish procurements are run in Swedish. The documents are in Swedish, the questions and answers are in Swedish, and the answers are expected in Swedish. Translating an English text afterwards rarely works, because the wording has to follow the requirement, and a requirement translated loosely is a requirement answered loosely.

We therefore write in Swedish from the start, from your material and your interviews. You read and approve in English if that is your working language, and we go through what each section commits you to before anything is submitted.

How the work is done

Once we have found a procurement worth bidding for, we set a project plan: what is to be produced, by whom and by when, plus a kick-off meeting. Then we write in parallel, you and us.

Around a week before the deadline we review the entire tender. Two bid specialists read the documents once more and check against every requirement. The day before the deadline we upload into the system and double-check. The last step is yours: log in and submit.

Four errors that sink tenders

If you write it yourselves

You usually have around a month. The best advice we can give is to start in time and work on it dedicatedly. This is how to get a good start:

  1. Print the entire set of tender documents. Get out a highlighter, a notepad and a pen.
  2. Shut yourselves in a room where you will not be disturbed. Read the documents cover to cover, mark everything that is a requirement and write down every question that comes up.
  3. Get out the calendar. Mark the tender deadline and the last day for questions. Plan when each document is to be produced, and place it so that working on the material has time to raise the questions before the question period closes.
  4. Submit the questions.

Then you know what has to be produced and when. The most common error we see is that the work starts too late, and then it is the formalities that go first.

Need help with your next tender? Get in touch and we will look at the documents together.

Other services

Tender work

Public procurement – how to win more Swedish contracts

Tender work

Reviewing tenders before submission

Analysis

Market and competitor research

Next step

Shall we look at your next procurement?

Tell us what you sell and which market you want into. We will say what we think of your chances, and what it would take to get you there.

Book a free consultation

You speak directly with the person who would write your bids.