Win some, lose some

I have been working on a tender over the last few weeks for a project that could have given Brighter Creative a really big boost.  Sadly and very disappointingly we didn't win it.  I was sure we'd have it in the bag.  The document we produced was great and we had put together an amazing team of people to deliver the product.  But as the saying goes, you win some, you lose some.  I am trying to remain positive about the situation as there is an awful lot to be learnt from not winning a competitive tender.  So I am trying to gather as much feedback from the potential client so that we can refine our offer for the next time.

Lately we're doing an awful lot of quoting and it takes up a considerable amount of my time.  This is good; I have seen a significant increase in the number of enquiries we're generating through marketing and networking.  I have also noticed that we are not converting the same ratio of quotes in to business as we might have done previously.  My thoughts are twofold.  Firstly that we're following an upward trend and the business is growing (we've turned over twice as much this year as the same period last year).  Secondly, perhaps as a business grows it becomes more competitive and difficult to win clients - the stakes are higher.  I also think that the current economic downturn is causing people to shop around a little bit too.  I need some way of identifying which prospects are serious and which ones are simply shopping.  To comment on the shopping side, I am expecting to win some business in the next few months from people who are looking to get a better deal from their agency.  Everyone is looking for value for money and that's something we offer in spades.