For businesses applying for tender can be a complicated process that involves many documents, deadlines and negotiating a final agreement. A crucial step in the filing of a tender submission is writing an expression of interest. Writing an effective expression of interest will make your application stand out while also saving you time and money.
A successful application of tender can mean a lot for your business and will help it make a mark in your industry. In this guide, we’ll explain what an expression of interest for tenders is, what a tender is and the steps you should follow when writing your expression of interest for tenders.
Read along!
What is an Expression of Interest for tenders?
An expression of interest is a document that a company writes in response to a tender process. The information you should include in an expression of interest is information that will express your company’s interest, suitability and availability for a specific project.
The term tender refers to when a business makes an offer to an organisation to perform work for them in exchange for money. The process of tendering involves government and financial agencies inviting bids for medium to large-scale projects, and these bids must be submitted within a certain period of time to be considered for acceptance.
An expression of interest is one of the primary documents that agencies, particularly government agencies, use to respond to prospective tenders. Based on the information that is provided in an expression of interest, agencies can also eliminate respondents who don’t have the capabilities, both technical or financial, to undertake the proposed work.
All agencies must act within the procurement guidelines whether they are a local, state or federal agency. It’s important for you to understand the tender procurement process on a local, state or government level as tenders vary depending on the jurisdiction in which you’re seeking the tender.
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How to write an expression of interest for tenders
Step 1. Let opportunities find you
The tender process is complicated, and you need to know where to look to access these opportunities. Tender advertisements/processes vary depending on whether you’re applying for a tender on a local, state or national level. For example, Waverly Council, a Local Government Agency located in NSW, advertises their tender offerings on their website and the Local Government section of local media.
To ensure you don’t miss out on any tender opportunities, you should make sure you subscribe to tender notifications for your industry in your local, state and national area. Through subscribing, you’ll ensure you’re notified as soon as new opportunities arise. Furthermore, you’ll make sure you don’t miss out on tender opportunities with large potential that would help your business expand.
Alternatively, there are multiple resources you can use to search for tenders. These include the following:
- In NSW, you can use the NSW government’s eTendering website to view current tenders and search for future, current or past tenders
- You can use the Australian Government’s AusTender website to view and search for tenders that have been published by Australian Government agencies. This website allows you to enter the industry your business operates in so that you’ll be notified of tender opportunities that match your business
- You can also use tendersearch to search for tender opportunities nationally. Through this website, you can search for tender opportunities within specific industries such as construction, civil, IT & Software and Plant and Machinery. Additionally, you can search for tenders in a specific location
- You can search for tenders using AustralianTenders within specific regions in Australia or specific industries
Step 2. Find and review the tender
After you find a tender that you wish to write an expression of interest for, you should make sure you carefully review it. For you to effectively review tender documents, you will have to invest a significant amount of time and resources. You should also carefully consider whether you can meet the contract’s requirements when reviewing the tender to ensure your best chances.
Furthermore, you should keep in mind that agencies use expressions of interest to determine which companies are qualified to meet the proposed contract. Therefore, expressions of interest are also used by agencies to dismiss unqualified companies that can’t meet the technical or financial requirements of the proposed contract. Therefore, you should ensure that the following points are addressed in your expression of interest:
- All sections of the request for tender, quotation or expression of interest document
- Local Councils, State Government or Federal Government’s Conditions of Tendering requirements
- Tender Selection Criteria
- All specifications and conditions of the relevant contract
- You need to confirm that you’re able to provide the product or service in accordance with the relevant council’s terms and conditions
- Yoy need to carefully consider conditions such as price variation and also delivery requirements
- You need to ensure you or your business don’t have any disqualifying factors such as conflicts of interest. These can include actual or potential conflicts of interest
Furthermore, make sure you note the deadline for submitting your expression of interest. Writing an expression of interest can be time-consuming. Therefore, you should make sure you have enough time to prepare an effective expression of interest, so you avoid rushing to write it and submitting it last minute.
Step 3. Tips on addressing the selection criteria
The selection criteria in an expression of interest is used by agencies to identify the key areas they want to be addressed. Therefore, you should use the selection criteria as a guideline to create your offer based on the available criteria.
When you are addressing the selection criteria, you should make sure to include specific examples of how your product or service will add value to the agency. Furthermore, you can also outline how only your company can meet the agency’s specific needs. As a result, the agency will evaluate your application against their evaluation criteria during the review process.
Step 4. Make sure you include all relevant details
Before you provide your expression of interest, you should double-check whether you have included all the relevant details that are required. This step is crucial because agencies will most likely disregard applications that do not include all the required details. The details you must make sure you include in your expression of interest are the following:
- Australian Business Number (ABN)
- Your company profile
- A capability statement
- Whether you intend to subcontract
- The price for each product or service you are offering, and an indication of whether these are fixed or variable (e.g. based on exchange rates or consumer price index variations)
- Any conditions affecting the price
- Delivery details and charges
- A proposed schedule indicating milestones and also delivery dates
- Whether goods or services are periodic or recurrent
- GST and other taxes
- Applicable insurances
- Intellectual property rights (where relevant)
- A description of any variations you propose in meeting the conditions of the contract
Step 5. Proofread your expression of interest
After you have drafted your expression of interest, you should make sure you proofread the document. Furthermore, you should also ensure that your document has met all the requirements of the tender. Most importantly, you should make sure your document is thorough and accurate, as this will increase your chances of success.
What is the difference between an expression of interest and tender?
The primary difference between an expression of interest and a tender is that an expression of interest refers to just one step of the tender process. Through providing an expression of interest, a company just expresses to an agency that they are interested in providing a good or service to a specific project. Whereas a tender requires greater detail, such as how much the project will cost the agency and how long it will take.
Conclusion
The tender process can be difficult to navigate as there is a lot to consider. Nonetheless, it’s an opportunity that can be extremely beneficial for your business. Through this process your business will obtain a constant stream of work. Additionally, it will make sure your business creates brand awareness in your industry.
If you’re unsure about how to write an effective expression of interest for tender, you should hire a lawyer for legal advice and to obtain additional information.
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