The Public Sector Market & Customer Expectations

Since 1993, Tenders Direct has played a pivotal role in linking businesses to lucrative public sector opportunities. In November 2023, we proudly commemorated our 30-year journey.

I am the Assistant Sales Manager for Tenders Direct and have been with the company for 8 years. In this post, I take a look at where our company is right now and discuss the current public sector landscape.

The Public Sector Market

Tenders Direct started 30 years ago because people had little awareness of the opportunities available with the public sector. Today, there is more awareness, but misconceptions now stop businesses entering the market and discovering how lucrative tenders can be.

Did you know:

• There are tendering opportunities with the public sector for most industries
• Low-value tenders are not complicated to bid for, and are open to SMEs
• There were over 40,000 low-value tenders published across the UK (33,000) and Ireland (7,000) in the last 12 months
• On average, you can find over 7,000 live contracts between the UK and Ireland
• 12% of all tenders only have 1 or 2 bidders

When you consider the low level of competition, and the extremely fair procurement processes in place, you can see why the public sector marketplace would be appealing to businesses.

Customer Expectations

Over the last 30 years, customer expectations around tender notices have not changed much – prompt notification of relevant opportunities, giving customers the most possible time to bid for work.

However, when it comes to the overall product, we have noticed a gradual change in consumer priorities. Customers now expect more from our service than they used to, many features we used to think were ‘nice to have’, are now what users are looking for as standard.

This is why we are constantly innovating, adding new features and supporting our customers to overcome challenges in the market. Recent developments include:

• Tenders Direct Guarantee – Tender alerts with 100% accuracy, we are the only service to offer the level of assurance
• Saved Searches & Targeted Alerts – customise your tender experience by saving search filters and creating multiple alert profiles
• Integrate – our API allowing you to connect our platform with a range of other business tools
• Freedom of Information Requests – allowing users to effortlessly request additional procurement information from buyers

Delivering Accuracy, Timeliness and Added Value

I’m proud to be part of a team providing tools which support business growth and promote a healthy public sector, where competition and innovation can flourish for the good of all. Despite there being other solutions on the market, we strive to set ourselves apart by offering the best service and solutions.

Our service stands out because of our:

• Experienced researchers who source, validate and categorise every notice published in the UK and Ireland, ensuring our customers receive only relevant and reliable information
• Dedicated account managers who are on hand to provide support and guidance to help customers maximise the benefits of our product. They also collect feedback from customers to help us improve our product and service
• Range of added value services through the Tenders Direct portal, such as personalised dashboards, interactive charts, bid management tools, training courses, events and blogs

We aim to provide customers with insightful analysis about public sector procurement, tailored to their individual needs. We are constantly seeking ways to improve our user interface and the customer experience more broadly, from initial contact through to product usage and renewal. Above all, our vision is to set the standard in innovative, collaborative solutions for public sector tendering, building on our 30-year heritage and placing the customer at the centre of our plans for the future.