The bid review process: refining the bid

Consistency and proof reading

MJL can check the consistency of terminology, writing style, grammar and punctuation.  For example;

• use the active, not the passive voice: ‘we will produce a monthly report’, not ‘a monthly report will be produced’
• positive tone: not ‘we aim to deliver services’ – use will, not shall
• ‘and’ not ‘&’
• ‘Coordinate’ not ‘co-ordinate’, ‘subcontractor’ not ‘sub-contractor’
• Use of capitals: Overuse of Capitals is Distracting for the Reader and Beaks Up the Flow of a Sentence
• Full stops.  Use plenty. They keep sentences short.  This helps the reader.

Formatting

The appearance of you bid if the first impression your potential customer gets.  So, it needs to hook them in and encourage them to read on.  No matter how compelling your words may be, they will be wasted if they go unread. MJL uses five key formatting techniques to help the reader to read your words.

• White space: to create mental breathing space, making the whole document more pleasant to read
• Pairing fonts: using one kind of font for the headlines and another for the body text to deliver an appropriately expressive presentation of text
• Using headlines and subheadings: providing sign posts and summarising the story of the bid whilst breaking up large blocks of text.
• Careful use of lists and tables: an effective way to draw the eye and easier to write but can be harder for the reader and can make the bid disjointed.
• Draw attention with boxes: a space to put information that you know will interest the reader or does not easily fir into the natural low of your main text.

Evaluation of response

Has your response been written to get the highest score based on the evaluation criteria?  This is the most important aspect of bid writing and if you don’t get the highest score, you don’t win.  MJL can review your submission against the evaluation criteria and improve your chances of winning.

We will go through what you have written, sentence by sentence to ensure you answer the customer’s questions and can give them reasons to want what you are offering.

We will look at every sentence and make sure that every feature, attribute, or piece of information you provide is put into the customer’s context.

We'll be pleased to provide you with more details about our services. Contact us on +44 7855961774+44 7855961774 or use our contact form.