How to make the most of your technical briefs?

After the price proposal, the technical brief is the keystone of the tender response file .

Whether you work in green spaces, security, transport or construction, you must not neglect it, as it represents your sales pitch, your expertise and your professionalism. In short, it answers :

• why choose you?
• What sets you apart from other candidates?

How do you write it to stand out from the competition and win the contract? Here's our advice!

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What is a technical brief?

Definition

This strategic document contains your technical and commercial proposal, and enables private or public decision-makers - the so-called contracting authorities - to assess the company's technical resources and skills, before deciding whether or not to award the contract.

You'll find the technical brief under other terms, such as :

• technical notice,
• technical bid,
• methodological note,
• explanatory memorandum,
• supporting memorandum.

"A true award criterion, the technical brief accounts for an average of 40% of the total score of a bid.

☝️ The document isprotected by industrial and commercialsecrecy, and cannot be divulged to competitors.

Who writes the technical brief?

The task is often entrusted to a technical writer, who compiles and structures the collaborative work of all the parties involved, i.e. :

• the project team
• the execution team
• the design office
• the site manager,
• the legal manager
• communications manager, etc.

How do I write a technical brief for a call for tenders?

Composition of the technical brief

There are no standard technical briefs, but the plan can be broken down as follows:

• presentation of the company:
  • company name,
  • contacts,
  • organization chart,
  • values and commitments (innovation, quality, respect for the environment, etc.),
  • know-how, specialties, expertise;
• the mission:
  • context,
  • mission objectives,
  • summary of the issuer's expectations;
• resources allocated to the project :
  • technical resources,
  • human resources,
  • safety devices,
• operating procedure (process and organization),
  • technical solutions,
  • organizational means,
• the proposal:
  • deliverables,
  • schedule,
  • budget,
  • pricing ;
• monitoring and evaluation procedures,
  
• customer and partner references,
• etc.

To find out what's expected, be sure to read the notices providedbeforehand :

• consultation regulations,
• the special terms and conditions (CCP).

Example of a technical brief for a call for tenders

In this video, which is confidential and therefore blurred, you can see an example of a technical brief for the construction industry, including the structure and layout:

8 tips for an effective technical brief

The quality of the writing is essential, as it testifies to the applicant's professionalism, diligence and motivation.

Simply copying and pasting an improved example of a technical brief found on the Internet, or recycling an old application, is not enough, and could even be dangerous.

This could lead to omissions and errors that could be detrimental to your business.

1. Be specific: don't unpack all your arguments, but develop those that are of interest to the client, according to the call for tenders.
   
   
2. Stick to the requested outline, otherwise structure it to make people want to read it . It will facilitate scoring and evaluation of the resources the company will deploy to carry out the contract.
   
   
3. Put yourself in the shoes of the organization looking for a service provider: the questions asked in the file will guide you.
   
   
4. In your introduction, summarize the challenges and needs of the client - in short, talk about them before talking about yourself.
   
   
5. Harmonize and present your headlines in the form of benefits for the customer: positive and attractive!
   
   
6. Illustrate your arguments with facts and similar success stories (examples of cost control, on-time delivery, customer satisfaction, etc.).
   
   
7. Pay particular attention to spelling and formatting. An effective technical brief must be :
   • clear,
   • airy,
   • concise,
   • objective,
   • balanced,
   • personalized,
   • adapted to the project.
   
   
8. Use commercial offer management software to improve productivity and quality.

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Professionalize your technical brief to showcase your expertise

Software for content and form

While content is decisive, form is always important, as it is the gateway to your proposal.

There are professional tools available to help you write and enhance your commercial offers, automating part of the process of responding to invitations to tender.

For example, software such as AOS, designed for professionals in the construction and real estate industries, enables you to manage calls for tender online, and in particular to produce precise cost estimates for a site budget.

For managing technical briefs and their content, there's Proposal Studio, a proposal management software package.

It helps bid writers and sales, development or bidmanagers to "convince in writing" by :

• capitalizing on winning pitches,
• respecting the graphic charter.

Key features include

• an intuitive text editor for customizing proposals ;
• a knowledge base for easy content management;
• merge fields to automatically include key market data in the application section;
• a collaborative module for sharing, validating and tracking bids.

Building a technical brief to win contracts

It's all about winning new customers.

Don't think of writing a technical brief as a waste of time, and don't concentrate solely on the price offer. Produce a persuasive document to prove that you're the best, on time.