Super-smart resources to help you win
Every single seller will tell you that their proposal management tool is undisputed, unequivocally, unmistakably the best proposal management software in the whole wide world. The fact is that you are the decision-maker and have the power to truly define what is the right proposal management tool for you.
When there are so many proposal management software out there, how do you select something that really solves your problems instead of making them worse, or at the least, does what it claims to do?
Consider these 07 quick tips to find the best proposal management tool:
We’ve been given this advice since childhood: don’t fall for the shiny new thing. Yet, the human brain falls victim to how things look before full assessment takes place. Aesthetic is for date night and house warmings, not software selection. Beware of tools in the market that look great but don’t serve the purposes that matter. Aesthetics come only second to effectiveness and relevance to your problem.
We’ve noticed that quite often, organizations do not have a good set of requirements when they are procuring an RFP software or proposal management tool. Usually, out of frustration, money is thrown at the first thing that seems to give a solution.
It is a good practice to have a well-thought-out and realistic set of requirements when seeking a proposal management software. For instance, if one of your requirements is to improve communication between team members, it makes less sense to purchase a popular tool that does not offer native team collaboration features.
Focus on your key needs and priorities and seek a tool that solves the biggest problems best.
Vendors should offer their tool for a free trial period, or at least allow you to make the request (bet you never considered that). Take the opportunity to test and use the free version of the tool. You’re not under commitment and you have full control over your choice. During the trial, see if you are comfortable using the tool and make notes on the features and benefits to be able to reference later or show management.
Ever chopped down a tree? If you have, you know using a chainsaw is more effective than using an ax, because it takes less time to chop a tree with a chain saw than an ax. It also reduces the effort needed to do so. Not that we recommend chopping down trees.
The point is the same logic goes for proposal management tools. Ask the following questions when making your decision:
Answering yes to all the above questions is a good justification for purchasing the tool, but there are more questions to be asked.
Some proposal management tools save time, and some complicate things for the worse, but time is only one aspect to consider. The more important question that you must ask is if it will increase your likelihood of winning contracts. It will not matter if you save all the time and effort in the world if you end up losing the bid. So, ask the following questions too:
Again, if the answer is yes to the above three questions, you’re probably getting closer to the right decision.
Proposal development already takes too much effort. You should not also have to worry about your proposal management tool increasing risks. No, it should do the exact opposite on top of providing a solution for your initial problems. Ask the following questions about risk:
At this point, you get the idea of which option is the best choice.
In addition to the 07 quick tips, evaluate the best proposal management software with a few more questions:
Making any purchasing decision is tricky business, but these 07 quick tips to find the best proposal management tool will ease your decision. It would not be right to end this checklist without telling you about the proposal management tool that answers yes to each of the above questions.
Zbizlink saves time, helps manage the proposal requirements, and collaborate with several team members in remote locations. Even more exciting for us, it parses resumes and RFPs.
Zbizlink does all of these things and more. Interested in learning more?