What is Position to Win (PTW) in UK Procurement and Why It Matters

Position to Win (PTW) or sometimes called Position to Win Strategy (P2W), is one of the most overlooked but impactful concepts in the UK public sector procurement world. While many bidders focus on writing a great tender response, PTW is about everything that happens before the bid lands on your desk. It’s the secret weapon that can help boost your win rates (PWIN) significantly, especially for suppliers targeting government contracts.

What is PTW?

Position to Win (PTW) refers to a proactive strategy where suppliers engage early in the procurement lifecycle—well before the formal tender is published. It involves shaping the buyer’s thinking, influencing the scope and requirements, aligning your offer with stakeholder needs, and ultimately making sure your organisation is the clear and obvious choice before the official competition begins.

PTW typically includes activities such as:

• Building relationships with decision-makers
• Positioning your solution around emerging problems
• Educating the buyer about industry trends
• Influencing specification design and evaluation criteria
• Mapping the competitive landscape early
• Analysing and modelling your competitors financials and identifying their key strategy

This positioning effort ensures that by the time the tender is issued, your offer is already aligned with what the buyer values most.

Why Is PTW So Important for Improving PWIN?

In competitive bids, most suppliers start from the same line: reading the spec, crafting a response, and submitting before deadline. The problem is—the winner is often decided long before that.

The APMP Body of Knowledge states that up to 80% of bid outcomes are determined before the RFP (request for proposal) is even released. That’s why your win rate (PWIN) won’t increase significantly unless you engage early.

PTW creates a strategic advantage:

• It reduces surprises. You already know what’s coming, so you’re prepared.
• It aligns your proposal. Your solution reflects the buyer’s real-world challenges.
• It filters out dead ends. You focus time and energy on deals you can realistically win.
• It differentiates you. You become a trusted advisor, not just another bidder.

In essence, PTW makes you the benchmark against which others are measured.

PTW and the MEAT Method: Bidding Smart in a Blind Game

The UK public sector often evaluates bids using the MEAT method—Most Economically Advantageous Tender. This means your proposal is assessed on both price and quality, with each tender assigning its own weighted criteria. And here’s the catch: bidding is blind. You don’t know what price or quality others will submit.

That’s where PTW and modelling the competition come into play. Successful suppliers use PTW to anticipate:

• How competitors are likely to price
• Where others might be strong or weak on quality
• What the buyer is most likely to value

This modelling helps you position your offer at the sweet spot—balancing price and quality for maximum score.

Think of it like game theory. If you go too low on price, you might sacrifice too much quality and lose on value. Too high on quality, and your price might push you out of contention. PTW gives you the data and insight to make strategic trade-offs. It’s not guessing—it’s informed positioning.

In a blind auction, you can’t outbid everyone on every metric. But with PTW, you can pick the optimal place to sit—one that maximises your chance of scoring highest under MEAT.

How to Apply Position to Win in Practice

Implementing PTW isn’t about guesswork—it requires structure. Here’s a simple five-step approach:

1. Identify Strategic Opportunities Early

Keep a close eye on pipeline data from portals like Contracts Finder, Find a Tender, or Market Engagement notices. Use tools like Tussell or Spend Network to monitor future opportunities months in advance.

2. Build Stakeholder Relationships

Engage key stakeholders in the buyer organisation long before the ITT is published. Focus on listening and understanding their pain points. Where possible, take part in early market engagement sessions or soft market testing.

3. Influence Requirements

Share thought leadership, invite them to demos, provide case studies. You want the buyer to start envisioning your solution as the model to follow. If you’re lucky, they may even ask for your input on shaping specs or criteria.

4. Map and Neutralise Competitors

Understand who else might be bidding. What are their strengths and weaknesses? How can you subtly position your solution to address their perceived gaps? Use past award data and FOI requests to build comparative models.

5. Pre-Write Win Themes

Use what you’ve learned to prepare early drafts of your win themes. Align your messaging with what matters most to the buyer—you’ll be ready to go as soon as the tender drops.

Real-World Insight for Suppliers in the UK Public Sector

Many UK suppliers, especially SMEs, don’t invest in early positioning because it feels “too early” or “too risky.” But in reality, not positioning is what’s risky. Here’s why:

• Government buyers often recycle specs from past tenders. If you weren’t involved last time, you’re already a step behind.
• Procurement teams are risk-averse. If they’ve spoken to you and trust your understanding of the problem, they’re more likely to write specs that match your offer.
• Market engagement sessions are rarely well-attended. Being one of the few suppliers who turns up and adds value can have a disproportionate influence.

Companies that consistently win government contracts in the UK do so because they treat PTW as a core part of their growth strategy—not a nice-to-have.

Final Thoughts

Position to Win isn’t about gaming the system—it’s about being genuinely helpful and creating alignment between your solution and what the buyer truly needs. The earlier you get involved, the more influence you have.

If your bid win rate has been stuck below 30%, the answer might not be better writing. It might be better timing. And better positioning. We offer advanced Position To Win services to give you tailored recommendations based on the specific capture and competition to submit compelling, winning bids.