Sales Humor’s Post

Did you enjoy our webinar on the power of pre-RFP selling? Watch the video now - and follow Xait for more thought-provoking ideas and efficiencies!

🔎 Fact: Businesses that thoroughly understand their ideal customer profile and rigorously meet all bid requirements are significantly more likely to win contracts. Taking the time to review past bids, register for notifications, and ensure compliance with all criteria can make all the difference. Don’t just bid - bid to win. #BusinessSuccess #WinningBids #CustomerProfile #BiddingStrategy

Still Waiting for the RFP or Tender??? If you're a potential vendor and you want to be considered, you need to reach out now. Share your insights, ask questions, and build a relationship. By the time the RFP or Tender drops, it might be tool late. 🤔 How do you do that? Join us for our latest webinar: "How Salespeople Can Win More RFPs and Tenders ... and How Proposal Teams Can Help" on November 13th at 11AM EST. ➡️ Join Cheryl Smith, Xait's senior proposal specialist, and David Seibert, sales and proposal pro, and author of "The Sales Manager's Guide to RFPs" and "Proposal Best Practices," for actionable strategies and tips you can use to secure a competitive edge! Secure your spot! https://hubs.la/Q02XP0330

Another must-have in any sales stack is 1up for automating RFP questionnaires Try it for free here — https://hubs.ly/Q02v8HJv0

Sales teams, what do you do when you get that "Nightmare RFP" ? We asked Pradeep Nayar, Global Bid Manager @ WalkMe™ how his team avoids this scenario. Here's his advice: - Spend more time with your rep to really understand the context. - Focus on quality of the response package. - Automate as much as you can. Got any advice to avoid a painful RFP? Drop it in the comments ↓↓

The likelihood of your deal closing increases every time it gets revised. That's the latest data in our state of proposals. Why do revisions matter? It could be that it signals more engagement? It could also tie into reciprocity (if you do something for me I'm more likely to want to reciprocate). Either way, your ability to close deals is impacted by how you engage with buyers at the proposal stage. Don't leave it to chance - there's still so many vendors who email a proposal and then wonder why prospects don't get back to them - present it in person or have a meeting booked in the calendar to walk them through it after they've seen it.

𝟲𝟳% 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝗶𝗱𝘀 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲. But is this actually down to rates and margin? Or is it down to individual variance in work estimating & scheduling (WBS)? If you're selling services you need to get as close to a calculator / building block approach as possible 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 not just pricing. If everyone on your presales team is putting a wet finger in the air and using their own guessodology, that's a problem. You need a single, consistent methodology. THEN you can rule out individual variance in work estimating as the problem. It's also then much simpler to fine-tune effort and pricing. If your IT services company doesn't have that methodology, you're leaving a lot of revenue on the table while incurring high presales costs. Join my event "How to squeeze more juice from your RFx responses" on October 30th to hear and discuss how an RFx methodology helps drive bid wins up and costs down. >> 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 << Another eye-watering stat tomorrow and every day this week! Source: Loopio RFP Response Trends & Benchmarks Report 2024

Want to win more RFPs? Request a Demo Today Winning more RFPs is all about having the right tools and processes in place. With RFP Ninja, you can streamline your responses, collaborate easily with your team, and submit winning proposals faster. See how it works and how it can help your sales team handle RFPs more efficiently. Request a demo today to see RFP Ninja in action and learn how we can help you win more bids with less stress! https://lnkd.in/gcphe7_i

Are RFPs and RFQs Costing You More Than You Think? And yes, I know what you’re thinking, “You’re in sales, of course, you’d say that!” But, be honest, they often miss the mark, start the project in a bad way, and cost you more! 1️⃣ They don’t bring out the best in the people responding. You get generic answers ticking boxes. 2️⃣ They drive up your costs, not down. Why? Vendors often build in buffers. 3️⃣ You pigeon hole the conversation so you don't get the full picture. The truth is, a well-structured conversation with potential vendors often delivers: ✅ Better understanding on goals and expectations. ✅ Solutions tailored to your challenges. ✅ Cost savings by avoiding ambiguity and excessive buffers. (True story - I've known vendors to put 40 - 50% buffer...yes, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘄𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗱...so how much did the others put?!) It’s time to rethink RFPs and RFQs for your business.

Are you sitting comfortably? Well then let’s begin! Once upon a time in late 2023, Customeric Consulting was approached by an IT Consultancy client who had never bid before. This client had previously won business through word-of-mouth and contract extensions. They wanted to grow their business and explore bidding. Customeric worked with the client during 2024 to review and finesse all of their bid collateral and key messaging. When a much-anticipated bid dropped, we worked with the client’s team to jointly answer all the questions, pulling on our existing knowledge of their business and the content which was already pre-finessed. On the basis of a strong, high-quality bid which clearly outlined our client's 'magic' (what differentiated them from the rest), our client was short-listed amongst a hugely competitive field and invited to presentation. On bid decision day, our client – who had never bid before – WON!  And not only did they win, but they won both Lots available! So, the moral of this story is… Invest in your bid planning! Engage with Customeric early and before your highly anticipated bid drops, and hopefully you too will grow HAPPILY EVER AFTER 😊 THE END? Or will you get in touch and let us help you to win! jennifer@customericconsulting.com stuart@customericconsulting.com enquiries@customericconsulting.com