How to Bid for a Tender: 6 Myths That Stop SMEs Winning Contracts (2026)
You want to learn how to bid for a tender. You might have some basic undersanding. However, most of the things that put businesses off tendering are not true. The idea that only large companies win, that cheapest price always takes the contract, that government contracts are only for insiders — these are persistent myths that have no basis in how public procurement actually works in 2026. And the organisations that believe them are handing competitive advantage to those that do not.
This guide addresses the six most common myths about how to bid for a tender in both the public and private sectors — and what the reality behind each one means for your business. For the complete guide to how the tendering process works, see our pillar guide to tendering for contracts. For the step-by-step breakdown of producing a winning submission, our guide to how to write a bid covers every stage.
Public Sector Tendering Myths
Myth 1: “SMEs aren’t wanted in public procurement”
The reality: SME participation in public procurement has been a stated policy priority for over a decade — and the Procurement Act 2023, which came into force in February 2025, introduced the most significant package of SME-access measures in UK procurement history.
Under the Act, contracting authorities must now consider barriers to SME participation when designing procurement exercises, are required to publish pipeline notices giving suppliers advance visibility of upcoming contracts, must use open frameworks that allow new suppliers to join at defined intervals rather than only at inception, and are required to report publicly on their SME spend as a proportion of total procurement spend. Direct public sector spending with SMEs reached a six-year high in 2025 — with local government alone spending £29.1 billion directly with smaller businesses in that year.
Beyond the legislation, many public sector buyers operate explicit SME supplier development programmes, break large contracts into smaller lots to improve accessibility for smaller organisations, and maintain approved supplier lists for below-threshold contracts that SMEs can join relatively easily. The Procurement Act 2023 and its SME provisions are covered in full in our dedicated guide. Our guide to government contracts for SMEs covers the complete entry strategy.
Myth 2: “The cheapest bid always wins”
The reality: UK public sector contracts have not been awarded purely on price for many years — and the Procurement Act 2023 has moved even further away from cost-led evaluation. Contracts are now assessed against the Most Advantageous Tender (MAT) standard, which requires buyers to evaluate quality, price, and social value together rather than defaulting to the lowest cost. Our guide to the most advantageous tender covers the evaluation framework in full.
In most public sector service contracts, quality accounts for 60–70% of the total evaluation score. Social value carries a minimum mandatory weighting of 10%, rising to 30% in some categories. Price accounts for the remainder. This arithmetic means that a supplier offering significantly lower quality responses at a cheaper price will lose to one offering excellent quality responses at a higher price, as long as the price differential is not so extreme as to overcome the quality gap in the weighted scoring.
For SMEs specifically, this evaluation structure is an advantage. A smaller, more agile organisation that can demonstrate specific, locally relevant social value commitments, direct senior involvement, and a tailored delivery methodology can score higher on quality and social value than a large incumbent relying on generic responses — and can win at a competitive but not necessarily the cheapest price point.
Myth 3: “The incumbent always wins when a contract goes out to re-tender”
The reality: The incumbent has one genuine advantage — familiarity with the contract requirements. They know what the buyer values, what the challenges of the contract look like in practice, and what delivery standard is expected. That familiarity can translate into stronger evidence in their submission. But it is not decisive, and it is not a barrier.
What matters is evaluation scores — and evaluation scores are determined by the quality of the written submission, the strength of the evidence, the competitiveness of the price, and the relevance of the social value commitments. If a new bidder’s submission scores higher across these criteria, they win the contract. This happens regularly across UK public procurement. Requesting buyer feedback and debrief information after every contract you have lost to an incumbent is the most direct way to understand what you need to do differently in the re-procurement exercise when it comes around again.
Under the Procurement Act 2023’s transparency requirements, buyers must now publish more detailed information about their award decisions — making it easier for new entrants to understand why they lost and what the winning submission demonstrated that theirs did not.
Private Sector Tendering Myths
Myth 4: “There are no rules governing private sector tendering”
The reality: Private sector procurement is less regulated than public sector procurement — but it is not unregulated. Private sector buyers are bound by general contract law, competition law, anti-bribery legislation, and sector-specific regulatory frameworks. For significant private sector contracts, common law principles of equal treatment and transparency apply — a private buyer cannot, for example, use a competitive tendering process as cover for a predetermined decision without exposing themselves to legal risk.
What private sector procurement does not have is the prescriptive procedural framework of the Procurement Act 2023 — the mandatory publication requirements, the standstill periods, the formal challenge mechanisms, and the social value obligations. This gives private buyers more flexibility in how they run their procurement processes. But the underlying commercial and legal obligations of fair dealing still apply. Our guide to the types of tendering procedures covers the distinction between public and private procurement frameworks in detail.
Myth 5: “You need inside connections to access private sector opportunities”
The reality: Private sector opportunities are less consistently published in public procurement portals than public sector contracts — but they are not hidden behind exclusive networks. Private companies publish tendering opportunities on their own procurement portals, on trade association platforms, through supply chain registration systems maintained by major contractors, and — for the largest private sector contracts — on Find a Tender Service where they exceed the relevant threshold.
Relationship building is genuinely more important in private sector procurement than in public sector procurement — private buyers have more discretion to weight existing relationships in their evaluation, and supplier development through prior contact is more commercially significant. But the idea that private sector tendering is exclusively relationship-driven and inaccessible without inside connections misunderstands the market. Many large private sector organisations — utilities, housing associations, NHS foundation trusts operating as semi-commercial entities — run open, structured procurement processes that are accessible on merit. Our guide to how to find tender opportunities covers private sector procurement channels alongside public ones.
Myth 6: “Private sector tenders are too informal to be worth taking seriously”
The reality: The largest private sector procurement exercises are as rigorous and competitive as any public sector ITT — with structured evaluation criteria, multi-stage procurement processes, and formal scoring methodologies. Major private sector buyers — large infrastructure contractors, retail chains, financial services organisations, energy companies — run ITT, RFP, and framework procurement processes with the same level of professional discipline as public sector buyers, because the commercial stakes demand it.
What differs from public procurement is the format flexibility. Private sector buyers can use ITT formats, RFPs, RFTs, or simplified proposal formats depending on what suits the requirement — without being bound to the specific procedures required by the Procurement Act 2023. You are also less likely to face a mandatory pre-qualification questionnaire for smaller private sector contracts, though buyers may ask for basic company information before issuing tender documents. The reduced procedural burden is genuinely helpful for smaller suppliers — but the quality of the written submission is just as important to the outcome as in any competitive procurement exercise.
What These Myths Are Actually Costing You
The six myths above share a common effect: they make tendering appear less accessible, less fair, and less worth the effort than it actually is. Organisations that believe them either do not tender at all — missing a reliable, scalable route to contracted revenue — or they tender without confidence, producing half-hearted submissions that validate their pessimism by losing.
The organisations that consistently win public sector contracts are not the largest, the cheapest, or the best connected. They are the best prepared — with strong case studies, current accreditations, specific and locally relevant social value commitments, and written submissions structured around the evaluation criteria rather than around what they wanted to say about themselves. Preparation and quality of submission, not size or connections, determine outcomes in UK public procurement. Our complete guide to public sector contracts covers what preparation actually looks like in practice, and our bid no-bid guide helps you direct that preparation toward the right opportunities.
Frequently Asked Questions About How to Bid for a Tender
Is public sector tendering really open to any business?
Yes — provided you meet the eligibility criteria for the specific contract. Public sector procurement is legally required to be open, transparent, and non-discriminatory. No buyer can lawfully exclude a supplier on grounds other than those stated in the tender documents. Financial standing thresholds, required accreditations, and relevant experience requirements are legitimate eligibility criteria — but they must be applied consistently to all suppliers and must be proportionate to the contract requirement. Our guide to government contracts for SMEs covers the specific entry routes for smaller organisations.
How important is price in public sector tender evaluation?
Under the Most Advantageous Tender standard introduced by the Procurement Act 2023, price is evaluated alongside quality and social value. In most public sector service contracts, price accounts for 30–40% of the total evaluation score. Quality typically accounts for 60–70%. This means price is important — but it is not the dominant factor. An organisation offering excellent quality responses at a higher price will frequently outscore one offering average quality at the cheapest price. Model the scoring impact of your price position against the evaluation weighting before setting any price.
What is the biggest advantage SMEs have in public sector tendering?
Social value and local relevance. The mandatory social value weighting in public sector tenders — minimum 10%, rising to 30% in some categories — rewards commitments that are specific to the local community the contract serves. Smaller, locally based organisations can make genuinely credible commitments to local employment, local supply chain spend, and community partnerships that large national organisations cannot match with the same specificity. That specificity is what scores marks. Our guide to social value and tendering covers how to develop these commitments effectively.
Do I need a pre-qualification questionnaire for every tender?
Not for every tender. Under the Procurement Act 2023, contracting authorities are not required to use a selection questionnaire (SQ) for contracts below defined thresholds — and many below-threshold opportunities go directly to an open invitation without a pre-qualification stage. For above-threshold contracts, a selection questionnaire is the norm. Our guide to the pre-qualification questionnaire covers what they assess and how to prepare your standard documentation in advance so the pre-qualification stage does not become a last-minute scramble.
How do I find private sector tender opportunities?
Private sector opportunities are found through: the company’s own procurement portal (check the websites of your target buyers directly), supply chain registration portals operated by major contractors, trade association platforms and sector-specific procurement networks, Find a Tender Service for above-threshold private utilities and large infrastructure contracts, and direct relationship building with procurement contacts at target organisations. Our guide to how to find tender opportunities covers both public and private sector channels in full.
Is it worth bidding for public sector contracts if I have never won one before?
Yes — starting with accessible entry points is the right approach rather than waiting until you feel fully prepared. Below-threshold contracts on Contracts Finder, second-tier provision through local authorities, subcontracting with established prime contractors, and Dynamic Purchasing System applications with lower eligibility thresholds all provide routes into public sector tendering for organisations without an existing track record. Each win builds the case studies, regulatory history, and procurement experience that progressively strengthens eligibility for higher-value opportunities.
Ready to Bid — Without the Myths Holding You Back?
Together: The Hudson Collective has helped organisations across the UK and internationally move from myth-driven hesitation to consistent tendering success. Our team holds an 87% win rate across all sectors, working with 3,500+ organisations across 52 countries — from SMEs submitting their first public sector bid to enterprises managing complex multi-lot framework programmes.
If you have identified an opportunity and want expert support — or simply want to understand whether tendering is the right growth strategy for your business at this stage — get in touch. We will give you an honest assessment and a clear picture of what winning looks like for your specific situation.
Talk to our bid writing team today.
About the author: Written by Joshua Smith, a seasoned bid-writing expert with experience across the UK, Middle East and US, helping organisations secure the contracts they deserve through high-quality, competitive tender responses.