Did you Know #DYK: 3 Fundamentals you need to Know about Business Opportunities

Business Opportunities in 3 Steps

 

Sometimes you have to start at the end to get to the beginning.

I have always found that worked better for me. Like anything worth it, there is a price to pay. So I wanted you to know from the start what most people would tell you at the end. You can have the Open Quotes subscription for R60 per month (which is the equivalent of two double cappuccinos a month).

Stick around and let me tell you three fundamental steps to finding and getting more construction work.  Yes, I am talking Tenders, RFQ’s, Bill extracts and finding Awards. All that good stuff. So here we go….

Open Quotes

Step 1

Respond to RFQ’s Online

 

If you are in our Construction directory, you may well receive RFQ’s from Buyers when they are Tendering. You can price back via email, fax (does that even still exist??) or do it online and gain a host of other benefits.

Aside from the benefits in the abovementioned picture, you can access Drawings, Specifications, and Bill extracts. You also have our handy calculator to add your rates when pricing online with the ability to stipulate whether labour is included in pricing. You can add comments to the Buyer as well as attach additional documents if you wish.

When you are in your account, your pricing is only visible to you, so what you price is confidential but still available 24/7 online via your secure password. Pretty neat hey? This means you can pretty much price anywhere quickly and efficiently and beat the deadlines, leaving you with extra time to get life done.

Think of all the trees you are saving too! No need to piles of paper that are easily blown away by the aircon in Summer.

A screenshot from behind the scenes gives you a bit of insight into your future pricing platform.

Got it? Step one – Check!

Step 2

Be in the Know

You heard it here first!

The power is in your hands. Now you can be like the Batman, Spiderman or Hulk of finding new business opportunities.  You have an area on your Dashboard reflecting the most recent Bills that are being priced by Buyers that match your trades. From here you can price online, download the Bill and Drawings/Specifications too.  Or if you are not keen, delete the opportunity from your Bills being priced Dashboard. You can use this to your advantage by proactively pricing to these Buyers to gain new work that you may not even have known about previously. You can also contact them and network. Let them know who you are and what your Company provides. It’s no longer passive marketing, but an active approach. All laid on a silver platter before you. Go get em, Tiger!

Got it? Step two – Check!

Step 3

Knowledge is Power

The Awards section. Yes indeed. Knowing who you can approach is all important. Now not only do you know that, but you can send your prices directly to them! Exactly. The Power is once again in your very eager and proactive hands. To price, all you have to do is identify which award matches what you can provide and click on it. You will recognise the distinctive pricing pages along with the options to insert your T&C’s, notes and documents you may need to send.

Got it? Step three – Check!


Funnily, as knowledge goes, it really isn’t all that difficult or complicated. It basically comes down to converting opportunities. Who better than to do it than you? The one who has the experience, passion and drive to succeed.  So take the opportunities and run with them. Run Forest Run! Go get those business opportunities and lock them in.

Like I said at the start, sometimes it is easier to start at the end. You can have this all for R60 per month fee.

 

 

If you are keen to find out more, you can fill in the form below and we will contact you. Easy Peasy 🙂

Mail Me More Info on Open Quotes

 

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About Carmen Barends

Social Media adventurer exploring new frontiers and learning how to survive. Tongue in cheek and mischief are the order of any good day topped with a sprinkling of laughter.

Understanding the Tender Process in Africa

 

Leads 2 Business : Understanding the Tender Process in Africa

 

Understanding the African Tender Process is not much different from the South African Tender process (see link to previous blogs referencing SA Tender Process).

 

In general, tendering follows the following (simplified) process:

  1. A need for a service is identified.
  2. Approval is obtained from the necessary entities.
  3. Documentation (including Bid Documents, BoQ, Drawings, Specifications, etc.) is prepared and approved.
  4. Advertising of Tenders.
  5. Receipt and opening of tenders.
  6. Evaluation of Bids.
  7. Awarding of Bids

Procurement can be achieved via the following methods:

Single Source (also referred to as Direct Contracting), Requests for Quotations (RfQ’s), Two-Stage Tendering, Request for Proposals (RfP’s), Restricted Tendering, Open Tendering, Prequalified Tenders. (For an explanation of the methods, please see http://procurementclassroom.com/procurement-methods/).

Of course, each country will have its own Public Procurement Regulations, rules and laws that govern the procurement process. Furthermore, each institution may have its own policy that is applied over and above the country’s regulations. Each advertisement will identify the forms and documents that will be required for that specific bid.

Some things to bear in mind specific to understanding the African Tender Process are the following:

There might be language barriers: depending on which country is advertising the bid, it might be advertised in another language (not English). Some bids will include a copy of the bid documentation which has been translated to English, but in the cases where they do not provide translated documents, it might be necessary for a translator.

When needing to contact the specific institution, ensure that you have the right dialing code for the country you are trying to contact.

It might be easier to communicate via email and this will ensure that there is also a paper trail of any queries raised and answered, in which case, the correct email address is a necessity.

 

[tweetthis]Communication with the right people and always confirming the details is essential.[/tweetthis]

 

 

For some tips on tendering, please have a look at the following articles:

http://www.miningreview.com/tender-process/

http://www.esi-africa.com/tender-process-17196/

About Cecile Van Deventer

I joined the L2Q Team in 2006, as a L2Q Support Assistant and have been the HOD since 2010. I supervise L2Q Bills, Daily Tender Bills, Control Lists and Directory.