COVER THEME | BUYER INSIGHT
DOING THE DEAL
Professional buyer Tim Ussher provides the fourth and final feature in his series, this time advising on tendering and negotiating with buyers
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his feature is the last in a series running over four consecutive editions of Winning Edge. The first article asked if sellers really are doing everything they should to impress buyers and highlighted a key question for sellers to ask their prospects: “What do I have to do to win this contract?” The second feature aimed to improve our level of understanding of the buyer and their drivers, and also the importance of information and preparation. The third piece discussed those all-important meetings with the buyer, and explained how to pitch to them. In this fourth and final instalment I provide some guidance on tendering and negotiating with buyers. THE TENDER The tender or request for a proposal/quotation (RFP/RFQ) is the buyer’s advanced tank regiment. It prepares the battlefield, clears away unwanted suppliers, narrows down the field, starts to select worthy opponents, gets the buyer a view of what’s in front of them and gathers intelligence ready to then face the troops in the final rounds of hand-to-hand combat – the pitches and face-toface negotiations. I often tell my business, “the more we tender, the more we’ll save” – this is a simple fact. There is always a better deal, product, contract, service and/or price to be had by the buyer when they run a tender. Let’s remember that few buying departments still use the tender to decide the award (ie. the somewhat old-fashioned “sealed and final offers”). The tender process merely serves as the first round of “paper negotiations” and shortlisting. To summarise, it: l Allows simple comparison of numerous potential suppliers, terms and services 28 WINNING EDGE
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l Provides a mass of valuable information l Tests the worthiness and overall fit and suitability of each supplier l Outlines the supplier’s desire to win, provide innovation, and offer continuous improvements l Enables the buyer to start conditioning suppliers with their rules and desired outcomes. The tender is a very powerful tool for the buyer, so a submission for it must be equally impressive. It presents the first formal opportunity for sellers to start winning: Quality of response Make sure your tender response is of a high standard in terms of look, feel and content. It represents both you and your company and will be judged by a number of people alongside many other responses. Make yours stand out, while also closely following instructions. Conditioning This is a key, yet often overlooked, part of the process for both the buyer and the supplier. Buyers will include hints and tips throughout their communications, presentations and meetings to start aiming high and get suppliers thinking big. So the supplier should in turn condition the buyer – plan what messages you want the buyer to get. Tailoring Buyers have the ability to award millions in spend for contracts. So when we send out a tender we’d like to feel it’s been given special attention and treated as pretty important. Do not tell buyers you’re too busy to give the tender full focus, nor accidentally leave displayed the name of another potential customer from a previous version... Tailor your response carefully, include the buyer’s company logo on pages, and describe how your vision and goals complement those of the buyer. The goal Know the judging criteria, score weightings and
“There is always a better deal, product, contract, service and/or price to be had by the buyer when they run a tender”
ISMPROFESSIONAL.COM
23/07/2017 17:58
