#147 How to answer tenders the right way with Patrick Dalvinck, Co-Founder & CEO of Sequesto

I personally hate tenders / RfPs / RfIs, with a passion.

Because they often lead nowhere if you are out of control.

Patrick interviewed 200+ companies on that after experiencing similar pain over 20+ years, which is why he co-founded Sequesto.

Here is a great 5 point tender checklist that emerged from our podcast:

1️⃣ Can I even win?

Many tenders are written for your competitors and already pre-decided.

(Why) Did you (not) know about a tender before receiving a request.

2️⃣ Would this contribute to my core business?

Answering tenders is often cumbersome and therefore costly.

You don’t want to involve your team for non-core business activities.

3️⃣ (How) Am I uniquely positioned to win?

You should be crystal clear why a customer should select you.

If you cannot make that argument, how should a buyer?

4️⃣ Is the timeline aligned with my internal capabilities?

Tendering is not a “let’s quickly do this game”.

Large companies have a dedicated team for this for a reason.

If you need to rely on external resources already here, be cautious.

5️⃣Is the tender stating the customer’s pain specifically enough?

If the problem is not framed clearly, you cannot craft a specific solution.

In this case strive to better understand before asking to being understood.

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