How to write about digital services… and pens
Almost every bid we work on has a digital element, and (humble brag) it’s an area where we’ve had a lot of success… answering questions about data integration; security; cloud services and networks; user interface and analytics capabilities. We must be real IT nerds, right?
Categorically, no.
None of us are experts, and John thinks GitHub is the name of my office! But we don’t need to be Software Developers, Data Scientists or Tech Engineers.
Like most areas of complex service delivery, we work with our clients (and their subject matter experts) to understand the detail. While we may not be IT nerds, we absolutely are tender writing nerds, and we’ve developed some ‘go to’ strategies for turning what our clients tell us about their digital systems into winning bid content.
Top tips for writing about digital.
Focus on benefits. I dislike that scene from the ‘Wolf of Wall Street’ where Leonardo DiCaprio asks a trainee salesperson to sell him a pen. The trainee says, “It’s an amazing pen…” and Leonardo is unimpressed. It’s a bit cringeworthy (to say the least), but it does popularise a key sales point; you don’t sell anything by selling its features; rather, you should start by understanding what your customer wants. With digital services, they are so rich with features that it’s hard to avoid describing all the cool things software or hardware can do. Instead, focus on the problem it’s there to solve and why this should mean something to the customer. Does it save time, support data sharing, engage more people? These are some of the benefits of digital platforms, by the way.
Don’t just describe digital components in the digital questions. IT touches every area of our lives, and so it should touch every area of the bid. By showcasing digital benefits and solutions across your service or solution, showing how people will use different systems and why, you can bring things to life for the customer.
Learn a bit about IT. Like I say, you don’t need to become Moss from the IT Crowd (sorry, couldn’t think of a more up to date IT nerd reference!) but it does help to take an interest in how it all works. Which APIs and why? Which security components? What does the user interface look like? Dig a little deeper and you will be able to spot more benefits, and your understanding will help you avoid the more esoteric techie jargon.
Is there a common theme in the tips above?
Yes, it’s about people rather than the technology itself, and we are all experts in people.
Mark Winter
Managing Consultant