RESOURCES
The Real Reason You Keep Losing Tenders (It's Not Your Price)
30–40%
Of a tender score is typically quality, not price
60%
Of failed bids cite poor method statements as the root cause
Public sector tender evaluations are scored. Price usually accounts for just 30–40% of the total. The rest is quality your method statements, staffing plans, social value commitments, and how clearly you demonstrate you understand the contract.
Most losing bids fall short not on price, but on vague, generic answers that could apply to any contract. Evaluators can spot a copy-paste response immediately and it scores accordingly.
The fix isn’t complicated: it’s specificity. Tailoring your response to the exact site, client, and scoring criteria. That’s a skill and it’s learnable.
If you’ve been told your price was too high, ask for the debrief. You’ll almost always find the score gap was in quality, not cost.