Don’t Let AI Write Your Tender, Here’s Why

AI tools such as ChatGPT have made it easier than ever to produce written content. While they can be useful for improving wording, organising information and checking that a document reads well, there is a big difference between using AI to assist with your tender and asking AI to write your tender for you.

These are not things that should simply be generated by an AI tool.

Your tender submission and capability statement need to be about one business: yours. They need to reflect your actual experience, people, systems, projects, qualifications and the way you operate.

Your tender needs to be specific to your business

When you ask ChatGPT to generate a tender response without first providing detailed information about your business, it has to rely on general information and commonly used language. The result may sound professional, but it can also sound like every other business.

Statements such as "we are committed to excellence", "we deliver high-quality outcomes" and "our experienced team provides tailored solutions" might sound good, but they do not tell a tender evaluator what makes your business different.

A strong tender response needs to demonstrate what your business can actually do. That means including genuine examples, relevant project experience, the people involved, your processes, your resources and evidence of successful outcomes.

Your experience cannot be invented

This is particularly important when preparing tender documents. Your experience, qualifications, accreditations, projects, personnel and business processes are facts. They are not areas where you should allow AI to fill in the gaps.

If your business has completed three relevant projects, say three. If you have particular qualifications or accreditations, include them. If you have developed a specific process for managing safety, quality or environmental requirements, explain what you actually do.

You should never allow an AI-generated response to introduce experience, qualifications, statistics, accreditations or achievements that your business does not genuinely have.

If you don't know the answer to a tender question, the answer should come from someone within your business, not from an AI tool making an educated guess.

Your capability statement should be unique

The same principle applies to your capability statement.

A capability statement is an opportunity to clearly explain who your business is, what you do and why a potential client should consider you. It should reflect your actual business and the capabilities that set you apart.

Your project history, key personnel, services, qualifications, licences, equipment, systems, experience and client outcomes are what make your capability statement yours.

Simply asking ChatGPT to "write a capability statement for a construction company", for example, is likely to produce content that could be used by hundreds of construction companies. It might read well, but it won't necessarily say anything meaningful about your business.

Generic content doesn't set you apart

One of the biggest problems with relying on generated content is that it can make businesses sound remarkably similar.

If every business uses the same polished language about quality, safety, customer service and innovation, those words lose their impact.

Instead of simply saying that your business provides a high-quality service, explain how you achieve quality. Instead of saying your team is highly experienced, demonstrate that experience through relevant projects and qualifications. Instead of saying you have strong systems, explain what those systems are and how they work.

Specific information is far more powerful than generic claims.

Use AI to assist, not to invent

This does not mean there is no place for ChatGPT in the tender process. There can be considerable value in using it as a supporting tool.

For example, you could provide your genuine project information and ask AI to help structure it into a case study. You could provide your existing response and ask for help making it clearer and easier to read. You could also use it to identify whether you have actually answered each part of a tender question.

The important distinction is that the information comes from your business first.

AI can help you communicate your information, but it should not be responsible for creating the information.

Start with what your business knows

Before preparing a tender response or capability statement, gather the information that is specific to your business. Talk to the people who manage your projects and operations. Review previous work, client feedback, policies, procedures and project results.

Ask yourself: What relevant work have we completed? What experience can we demonstrate? Who will deliver this project? What qualifications do they have? What systems do we use? What problems have we solved? What makes our approach different? What evidence can we provide?

These are the details that should form the foundation of your submission.

Your business is your competitive advantage

The most valuable information in a tender is often information that nobody else can provide because it belongs to your business.

Your experience, your people, your projects, your systems, your knowledge and your results are what differentiate you from your competitors.

That is why your tender submission should not start with AI-generated content. It should start with your business.

Use ChatGPT and other tools to help improve, structure and refine your writing if they add value. But make sure the substance is accurate, relevant and genuinely yours.

A tender does not need to sound like everyone else's. It needs to demonstrate why your business is the right business for the job.