How to Answer Public Sector Tender Questions
5 min readBy Kim FraterPublished 2026-07-27
"I believe public procurement shouldn't be complicated. Every guide I write explains the process in plain English so you can bid with confidence."
If you've ever opened a tender and thought, "I know exactly what we do, but I have no idea what they actually want me to write," you're definitely not alone.
It's one of the biggest challenges for businesses that are new to public sector bidding.
The good news is that buyers aren't trying to catch you out.
Once you understand the language they use, tender questions become much easier to answer. In this guide, I'll explain what those instructions really mean and how I approach them when I'm writing bids.
The Biggest Mistake I See
After spending years both evaluating tenders and writing them, I've noticed one mistake that comes up time and time again.
Businesses answer the subject of the question.
They don't answer the instruction.
For example, imagine the question starts with:
Describe your approach to managing contract performance.
Some suppliers immediately start telling the buyer about KPIs, meetings and reports. They might write a brilliant answer.
But they've forgotten one important thing.
The buyer didn't ask them to explain their approach.
They asked them to describe it.
It sounds like a small difference, but those instruction words matter.
Read the First Verb Before Anything Else
Whenever I open a tender, the first thing I look for isn't the topic. It's the first instruction. Words like:
- Describe
- Explain
- Demonstrate
- Outline
- Provide evidence
- Tell us
- How will you...
Those words tell you how the buyer wants the answer written. Once you've worked that out, the rest becomes much easier.
What Does "Describe" Actually Mean?
When a buyer asks you to describe something, they're asking you to tell them what it looks like.
Think of it as painting a picture.
Imagine you're describing your service to someone who has never met your business before.
Keep it clear. Keep it logical. Don't assume the evaluator already knows how you work.
For example if the tender asks: Describe your mobilisation process
A good answer would walk the buyer through the mobilisation from contract award to go-live in a logical order. You're describing the process, not trying to justify every decision.
What Does "Explain" Actually Mean?
This is where you tell the buyer why. Why have you chosen this approach? Why does it work? What benefits does it bring? Lots of suppliers confuse "describe" and "explain." A strong answer often does both, but if the buyer specifically asks you to explain, make sure you answer the "why", not just the "what."
What Does "Demonstrate" Actually Mean?
This is probably the instruction I see misunderstood most often. If a buyer asks you to demonstrate something, simply saying you do it isn't enough. You need to prove it. That might include:
- a case study
- KPI results
- customer feedback
- audit scores
- contract outcomes
- accreditations
Think of it this way. If someone challenged your answer, what evidence would you put on the table? That's what "demonstrate" is asking for.
What Does "Provide Evidence" Actually Mean?
This one is fairly straightforward. The buyer wants proof. Not promises. Not intentions. Evidence. Good evidence could include:
- customer testimonials
- performance data
- independent audits
- certifications
- case studies
- contract statistics
The stronger your evidence, the more confidence the evaluator is likely to have in your claims.
What Does "Outline" Actually Mean?
An outline is exactly that. An overview. Don't write two pages if half a page answers the question. The buyer is usually looking for the key stages or main points rather than lots of detail.
What About Questions That Start With "How Will You..."?
These questions catch people out all the time. The buyer isn't asking what you did on another contract. They're asking what you'll do for them. Of course, you can support your answer with examples from previous contracts, but make sure your response stays focused on how you'll deliver this contract if you're successful.
Quick Summary Table:
| If the question says... | The buyer wants... |
|---|---|
| Describe | Tell us what you do. |
| Explain | Tell us why you do it. |
| Demonstrate | Prove you can do it. |
| Outline | Give us the key points. |
| Provide evidence | Back up your claims. |
| How will you... | Tell us what you'll do for this contract. |
When a Buyer Asks for Examples
If a question asks for examples, don't panic.
You don't need to squeeze in every contract you've ever worked on.
I'd much rather see one or two strong, relevant examples than six weak ones.
Choose examples that are as similar to the contract as possible and explain what you did, what happened and what the buyer achieved as a result.
Don't Ignore the Rest of the Question
This is another mistake I see so often.
A buyer might ask:
Describe your complaints process and explain how you use customer feedback to improve your service.
There are actually two questions there. Some suppliers write a brilliant complaints process. Then forget to explain how they use feedback.
Always check whether the question has more than one part. If it does, make sure you've answered every part before you submit.
Use the Word Count Wisely
A longer answer isn't automatically a better answer. If you've got 1,000 words, use them because the buyer has probably given you that space for a reason. If you've only got 250 words, don't spend 200 of them introducing your company. Get straight to the point and answer the question. Every word should earn its place.
Before You Press Submit
I always ask myself a few simple questions:
- Have I answered every part of the question?
- Have I followed the instruction word?
- Have I included evidence where it's needed?
- Have I explained the benefit to the buyer?
- If I were evaluating this, would I understand exactly what we're going to do?
It's amazing how often those five questions highlight something I've missed.
My Final Thoughts
One of the biggest myths about bid writing is that you need to be a brilliant writer. You don't. You need to be a good communicator. Buyers aren't looking for the most impressive vocabulary or the longest sentences. They're looking for clear answers that respond directly to the question they've asked.
If you take one thing away from this guide, let it be this:
Before you start writing, stop and look at the first instruction word.
That one word will often tell you exactly how the buyer wants your answer to be structured. Once you understand that, writing tender responses becomes much less daunting.
Thanks for reading.
I hope this guide has made public procurement a little easier to understand.
Kim Frater
Founder, Bid Trawler
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