Many Opportunities Are Won Before the Tender Closes

Most contractors have experienced it. In fact, in over two decades of estimating, I’ve seen and heard of contractors spend hours reviewing drawings, pricing their labour, calling their suppliers, checking the scope, and then putting together their competitive quotation.

But then the tender day arrives, they submit their bid, and then nothing. Time goes by and what originally felt like a very competitive bid turns into radio silence.

No call backs to say thank you for their submission. No feedback to share why their bid wasn’t successful. The natural reaction is often to assume their price was too high. Yes, sometimes that's true; but often, it isn’t.

Over the years, one often overlooked thing has become clear: many projects and opportunities are influenced long before the tender closes.

We’ve found that the contractors who consistently get hired tend to stay visible. They communicate with the GCs, they ask questions, and they follow up. That's one reason bidder outreach has become such an important part of the estimating process. A quotation sitting in someone's inbox doesn't create an opportunity if the right people never see it. Taking the time to identify active bidders, confirm contact information, and ensure quotations reach chief estimators and project teams can dramatically increase visibility during a tender.

We all know construction is a relationship business, but relationships aren't built exclusively on golf tournaments, charity events, and steak dinners. More often, they're built through consistency. Showing up, returning calls, submitting organized quotations, answering questions, and following through when you say you're going to do something!

Familiarity matters because success in construction often comes down to being known.

We’ve seen many subcontractors focus entirely on producing a number and assume the rest will take care of itself. The strongest contractors treat bidding as a process rather than an event. Strong contractors stay on top of drawing revisions, review addenda carefully, communicate scope clearly, and answer questions quickly. Strong contractors make themselves available.

Part of that process involves staying on top of tender activity from start to finish. Drawing revisions, addenda, bidder list updates, and last-minute scope changes can all influence how a quotation is received. Missing one of those details can mean the difference between being considered and being overlooked.

A quick conversation before tender closing can uncover information that never appears on a drawing. Some of the most valuable information exchanged during a tender isn't found in the plans at all. The conversations The Construction Estimator has with estimators often reveal concerns about scope gaps, scheduling assumptions, specification interpretations, or competitive pressures that may influence how a number is evaluated. A follow-up call after submission can provide valuable feedback for future bids. Sometimes a scope clarification makes the difference between being carried and being overlooked.

Good estimating produces a number but great estimating, well, great estimating creates confidence!

The lowest number doesn’t always win. Chief estimators aren't just evaluating price because they are also evaluating risk. They want to know the subcontractor understands the project, can perform the work, and won't create problems after they awarded.

We’ll say it again…the lowest number doesn't always win. It’s not always the bottom-line, it is the the bid that creates the most confidence that often does. And every quotation submitted is an opportunity to build that confidence.

Over time, those opportunities add up. Your company name becomes familiar, relationships begin to form, you are recognized and sometimes even sought out at events, and when the relationship is built, then phone calls get returned. Bid invitations become more frequent and the process starts working in your favour.

One lesson that has become clear over twenty years is that opportunities are often lost long before a tender closes. Sometimes the issue isn't pricing. Sometimes the quotation never reached every contractor bidding the project. Sometimes the contact information was outdated. Sometimes the right estimator never saw the number. Thorough bidder outreach and follow-up help reduce those missed opportunities. Every additional conversation creates another chance to be considered, and that’s just one of the areas The Construction Estimator can help your business!

That's when bidding becomes more than pricing. That’s when bidding becomes business development.

That is where many contractors find value in having The Construction Estimator as their dedicated estimating partner. Producing accurate quantities and pricing is only part of the process. Tracking bidders, distributing quotations, monitoring addenda, following up with estimators, and gathering feedback all require time. Time spent on those activities often translates into more visibility and more opportunities to bid future work.