One of the most common mistakes when preparing a bid document is the temptation to add padding. If only l had a pound for every time l heard the phrase, "Just put in some standard stuff..." well, l might not even be here, writing this!

Appraisers of bids can spot 'standard stuff' from a thousand miles away and generally hate it with a passion - as do l.

Yes, there are times when information - company details, staff numbers, policy statements - is required repetitively and it makes sense to have these details to hand. However, the majority of questions are subtly tailored to the needs of the particular client or project - they may appear to ask for a standard response but as bid authors it is to our benefit to consider how our so-called standard approach will work in relation to and, more importantly, how it will benefit the project in question... and communicate that in our response.

The addition of cut-and-pasted answers (... "it worked really well in that submission"...) can often detract from the very good, specific content in your bid. It can suggest to the bid appraiser that your team don't really understand the needs of the project, or that you haven't read or understood the question.

Three tips:
1) If in doubt about the intention of the question, ask the author of the questionnaire.
2) Always relate your response to the project.
3) Unless you're offering something relevant and/or innovative, if the bid documents don't ask for the information, don't feel the need to add it as some sort of security net.

Or... you could always come and speak to us!