What Not to Do When Preparing Your Bid

You should be warned that looking to establish a name in the government contracting business is not a walk in the park. Preparing the bid proposal alone can prove to be very stressful especially for those businesses taking their first few steps. With so many requirements to be accomplished and a long list of people involved in the process, committing a few errors here and there should not be a surprise. So here are some reminders on what you should avoid when writing that very important proposal:

• Do not start writing your bid without doing your research first. How well do you know the agency awarding the contract? How well do you know your competitors? Is your business up to par to deliver the agency’s requirements? Understanding the market and the players in government contracting should be your initial step in this business endeavor.  
• Do not leave out any required information. It should go without saying that since you’re preparing a very important document, double-checking the entire proposal is a must. Being a newbie in the government contracting business should not be an excuse for you to omit information especially those blanks labeled “required.”
• Do not provide inaccurate price quotes or make major mistakes in your calculations. Remember that you will have to provide evidence of the prices you are claiming to go with your products or services so every single item (be it a delivery fee, a product cost, or a service charge, etc.) should be accurately quoted. Make sure to double-check all calculations involved in your proposal and all numbers are correctly inputted.
• Do not stray away from the regular bid package format or miss listing critical information in their proper place in the bid proposal. While it could be cumbersome to be answering every question or filling every blank in the bid forms, you would be doing the evaluators a big favor if you keep up with the norm and help them find all that they’re looking for in just the regular places in the bids.
• Do not miss the deadline. Because your bid proposal is your ticket to being able to participate in the lucrative business of government contracting, common sense should dictate that you set aside ample time for you to prepare and submit a well-prepared bid proposal. Your timeline for bid proposal preparation should always include extra time to accommodate those unexpected delays. Note that missing the submission deadline alone can be one big reason for the evaluator board or agency to disqualify you and reject your bid right away.

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