You're bidding on 2-3 tenders per month. You win half of them. Revenue is inconsistent. Cash flow is unpredictable.
What if instead, you were bidding on 12-15 tenders per month, winning 25-30% of them, and closing 3-4 contracts every single month?
That's not fantasy. That's what happens when you build a proper tender pipeline. Here's how.
The difference between bidding and pipelining
Most SMEs (reactive bidding)
- Spot a tender → Bid on it → Win or lose → Move on to the next one
- 1-3 bids per month
- Win rate: 30-50% (because they're selective)
- Revenue: Unpredictable, boom-bust cycles
- Problem: One lost tender = cash flow crisis for the month
Successful companies (proactive pipelining)
- Find 15 relevant tenders → Qualify 10 → Bid on 10 → Win 2-3 per month
- 10-20 active tenders simultaneously
- Win rate: 20-30% (because they're bidding on more)
- Revenue: Consistent, predictable, monthly flow
- Problem: Managing 10-20 tenders requires a system (not a spreadsheet)
The secret isn't being a better bidder. It's having more bids in flight.
The math: why more bids = more wins
Example: R300,000 average contract
Current state (2-3 bids/month):
- Bids per month: 3
- Win rate: 40% (you're selective, so you win more)
- Wins per month: 1.2 contracts
- Revenue per month: R360,000
- Annual revenue: R4.32 million
After scaling (10-15 bids/month):
- Bids per month: 12
- Win rate: 25% (you bid on more, so win rate drops slightly)
- Wins per month: 3 contracts
- Revenue per month: R900,000
- Annual revenue: R10.8 million
Impact: Revenue 2.5x higher by having 4x more bids in flight
How to build a tender pipeline
Step 1: Find all relevant tenders (do this once per quarter)
Set up email alerts on eTender Portal:
- Go to etenders.gov.za
- Create alerts for your industry (e.g., "construction", "IT services", "stationery supply")
- Get daily or weekly alerts automatically
- You'll see every tender in your sector the day it's published
Follow provincial and municipal portals:
- Western Cape, Gauteng, KZN, etc. have their own portals
- Many municipalities don't publish on eTender—they post locally
- If you service a specific province or city, subscribe to their tender bulletins
Follow specific SOEs and departments:
- If you can service Eskom, Transnet, DHA, DOH, etc., follow their procurement pages
- Many post tenders directly on their websites
Network and ask your clients:
- "Are there any tenders in the pipeline I should know about?"
- Procurement officers often tip off vendors before tenders close
- Relationships matter—attend briefing sessions and build relationships
Step 2: Qualify your leads (look at 50, qualify 15-20)
You'll find many tenders. Most won't be right for your business. Qualify ruthlessly using this criteria:
- Do we meet the mandatory requirements? Check compliance requirements, B-BBEE level, experience, etc.
- Is the contract value worth our effort? A R50,000 contract isn't worth 15 hours of prep time. A R300,000 contract is.
- Can we deliver this? Be honest about your capacity and expertise.
- Is the timeline realistic? Most tenders close 2-4 weeks after publication. Do you have time to prepare a quality bid?
- Is this a tender we can win? Look at past awards in eTender. Who usually wins? Do you match that profile?
Out of every 50 tenders you find, maybe 15-20 will pass qualification. That's your active pipeline.
Step 3: Track your pipeline (all tenders in one place)
Create a simple tracker with:
- Tender reference number
- Description (what's being procured)
- Estimated value
- Published date
- Closing date (put this on a calendar with alerts)
- Compulsory briefing date (if applicable)
- Status (lead, qualified, preparing, submitted, waiting, won, lost)
- Assigned to (who on your team is leading this?)
- Probability of winning (realistic gut check)
Example:
| Tender Ref | Description | Closing | Estimated Value | Status | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GWC-2026-0145 | Office stationery supply (1 year) | Feb 28 | R180K | Preparing | Sarah |
| DBE-2026-0234 | IT support services (2 years) | Mar 15 | R450K/yr | Qualified (not started) | John |
| WC-2026-0089 | Cleaning services (1 year) | Mar 8 | R200K | Submitted | Maria |
Step 4: Set up deadline alerts (never miss a closing date)
For each tender in your pipeline, set calendar alerts:
- When it's published: Review and decide if you're bidding
- 1 week before closing: "Wrap up the bid, final review next week"
- 1 day before closing: "This closes tomorrow, final submissions today"
- Compulsory briefing: "Briefing at 10 AM, send someone"
Use your calendar aggressively. Missed deadlines are irreversible.
Step 5: Run your pipeline monthly (review, update, add new tenders)
Once per month:
- Review all active tenders—what's the status of each?
- Remove tenders that are now closed (archive for learning)
- Add new tenders from your latest searches
- Look at your win/loss rate—what's working? What's not?
The 3-month tender lead time
Important: Government tenders have a long sales cycle.
- January: You find and bid on 12 tenders
- February: Tenders are evaluated, awards announced
- March-April: Contracts signed, work begins, revenue starts flowing
So the revenue you're seeing in March-April comes from tenders you bid on in January. Build that pipeline now, and you'll see revenue 2-3 months later.
Tools for pipeline management
Spreadsheet (minimum viable pipeline):
- Free, simple, everyone understands it
- Problem: Doesn't automate alerts, hard to track compliance across tenders
BidReady (recommended for serious bidders):
- Centralizes all your tenders in one dashboard
- Email alerts for deadlines and briefing dates
- Document centralization (all your compliance docs in one place)
- Compliance tracking (know when your tax clearance expires)
- Win/loss analytics (understand what's working)
How to go from 2 bids/month to 10+
Month 1: Build your pipeline
- Find 30-50 relevant tenders using eTender, provincial portals, SOE websites
- Qualify them (keep 15-20 that fit your criteria)
- Create your tracker
- Start bidding on 5-8 that close soon
Month 2: Keep filling the pipeline
- Weekly searches for new tenders
- You now have 12-15 tenders in progress
- Bidding on 8-10 per month
- First wins should be closing (revenue starting)
Month 3+: Pipeline maintains itself
- Weekly searches for new tenders
- Maintained pipeline of 12-15 active tenders
- Monthly bids: 10-12
- Monthly wins: 2-4
- Monthly revenue: R600K - R1.2M (depending on your contract size)
Common pipeline mistakes to avoid
1. Not filling the pipeline consistently
You bid on 5 tenders in February, close nothing, then panic. If you'd maintained a 15-tender pipeline, you'd have 2-3 wins monthly.
2. Bidding on everything
Low-value tenders, tenders you can't deliver, tenders you don't qualify for. This wastes time. Be selective. Qualify ruthlessly.
3. Not tracking your win/loss data
After 6 months, you should know: What tender types do you win most? What's your average win rate? What's your average contract value? Use this data to improve.
4. Managing everything in your head
You'll forget. You'll miss deadlines. You'll lose track of which tenders you've submitted. Use a system—spreadsheet or BidReady.
The pipeline as a leading indicator
Your pipeline size predicts your revenue 3 months out.
- 15 active tenders × 25% win rate = 3-4 wins per month
- 3-4 wins × R300K average = R900K - R1.2M revenue per month
- You can forecast your revenue with confidence
This is how successful companies plan cash flow, hire people, and invest in growth. They look at their pipeline and know exactly what's coming.
Bottom line
Stop bidding reactively (one tender at a time) and start pipelining strategically (multiple tenders in flight). Find relevant opportunities, qualify them, track them, and maintain a 12-15 tender active pipeline. This gives you 2-4 wins per month and transforms revenue from unpredictable to reliable.
The companies that double their revenue from government tenders don't bid twice as much. They bid 4x more with a proper system. Build your pipeline, and watch your revenue grow.
Use BidReady to manage your pipeline
Sign up free and start tracking your tender pipeline in one organized dashboard. No more spreadsheets, no more missed deadlines.
