How to Build a Bid Asset Library That Helps You Win
Building and maintaining an asset library is without doubt, one of the most effective ways to consistently present top-notch bid submissions.
In this article I'll take you through the benefits of an asset library and the resources to start collecting now, so they're ready for your next tender response.
Reasons to start building an asset library
Anyone who has put together a business proposal or tender submission will know the same problems tend to arise. These look like:
A lack of case studies and accompanying imagery
No up-to-date people bios or CVs
No documentation of your quality or H&S systems
When preparing a bid, it often becomes a mad scramble to find information, source imagery or draft material from scratch. And when it's rushed, it can show in your tender. That's why an asset library is such a valuable resource.
Benefits of an asset library are far reaching
It's a library of verifiable evidence. Evaluators don't just read your claims, they check them. This kind of evidence can be extremely hard to pull together at the last minute. Now you can have it all in one place.
It saves you time and energy. Having assets on tap makes every tender more efficient, with clear evidence and data ready to share.
Information is valuable elsewhere. Proposals, reports, staff onboarding, marketing….an asset library serves multiple areas of your business.
How to start building your asset library
Start with the basics. These vary from industry to industry, but the following are commonly expected in a tender response:
Executive summary: a customer-focused summary that captures your capability and unique value proposition.
Case studies: gather relevant case studies and imagery. Include the scope of work, who was involved, the challenges and solutions.
Team bios: a one-page bio for each key team member, with a photo. Cover their background, projects they've been involved in and recent highlights. For example, a project manager could highlight their on-time delivery record on a projects they’ve worked on.
Health and safety and quality documentation: your policies, certifications and evidence that your systems work in practice, such as audit results, EPDs or training records.
Sustainability criteria: this is a big topic, and as I discussed in my article on Sustainability: It’s A Pass/Fail Score For Many Council Tenders, you could include iwi and community involvement, apprenticeships and career pathways, recycling programmes (with supporting data) or certifications such as EPDs or ISO.
Infographics: think about which graphics could explain complex methods simply. A stakeholder engagement programme or quality assurance framework, for example, can be turned into a graphic that has more impact than a page of text.
Testimonials: a highly effective way to weave in credibility from previous clients. Make it a habit to ask for a testimonial when a project finishes, and get permission to publish it.
Your asset library will evolve – keep it current
Expired certificates, staff who have moved on and old or unfinished case studies aren’t helpful. Build a plan into your business development around :
Review your library every three months and update it.
Assign an owner to manage it.
Make it an agenda topic of your meetings to discuss.
Review previous tenders (wins and losses) and find the gaps you can build on.
Asset libraries are an important business resource
Every bid has different requirements, but an asset library gives you a solid set of resources to draw from. You don't need everything on day one. If you have nothing yet, make a list and make a start. It's an investment that gets more valuable with every tender.
