What implies the best value for money?

That of the "best value for money" is the typical mantra in the world of public tenders. It is not just looking for the cheapest, or coña. It is more about fishing the offer that really suits the administration, mixing price with quality, service, experience ... is like juggling, but with others.

When a public entity launches a tender, not only looks at the price number. They look at a thousand things: does the supplier know what he does or is a rookie? Is customer service decent or are left in seen? Do products endure or break the first change? All of that adds points. In the end, the idea is to squeeze the budget and get the maximum possible juice, without then exploit them in the face.

And be careful, accepting the cheapest offer can be a shot in the foot. The cheap is expensive, the grandmothers said it and they were right. Sometimes what you save from entry goes out the window with quality problems, delays, or surprise invoices. So the companies that appear to these competitions have to catch the wave: it is not to lower the price to the crazy, it is to sell well that its offer gives the best balance between what it costs and what is worth.

And how do they demonstrate it? Well, curing the proposal. You have to teach the teeth: show experience, have a team that knows what it does, make it clear how to control the quality and, of course, detail the unbroken costs. Total transparency, because if the administration does not understand why it costs what it costs, they leave you out in a second.

Of course, each country and each contest has its roll. Sometimes the only thing that matters is the price, other times the quality is the queen and the price almost or paints. So before launching, it is convenient to investigate what they look for exactly and adjust the proposal to those criteria.

In short, if you want to win public contracts, forget the "cheaper is better" mentality. Here it is about having a head, preparing the proposal well and understanding what the administration really expects. It is not rocket science, but it does require strategy and knowing how to sell.