Switching from a bid writer?
The bid-writing service alternative that keeps the bid yours - for £49.99/month
Bid-writing services and “automated bid” tools write it for you, per bid, at four figures a time - and hand back the generic prose evaluators mark down. BidSquirrel does the part that actually wins: it finds and scores the right tenders, checks you qualify, and drafts the bid with you from your own evidence, scored against the scoresheet like an evaluation panel. Browse live tenders from major GB sources and see your top matches scored, free, no card; Pro (£49.99/mo) scores every match and builds the bid - start a 30-day trial, no card.
Who BidSquirrel is for
For teams that want the bid to stay theirs - and the capability in-house.
- Four-figure ghostwriting feels wrong for most of your pipeline
- You need find, qualify and draft help - not just polished prose
- Your evidence and voice should stay in the submission
Keep a specialist writer if you only need help on the occasional flagship bid, and already find and qualify work yourself.
Why outsourcing the writing is the wrong trade
- 01
Generic prose loses marks
Evaluators read hundreds of submissions and spot templated, ghostwritten or AI-generated answers more easily than ever. A bid in someone else’s voice buries the specific track record, named people and local knowledge that actually score - the things only you can supply.
- 02
It is the wrong help, expensively
A bid writer turns up after you’ve found the tender and decided to bid. They don’t tell you which opportunities are worth your time, whether you even qualify, or where this particular scoresheet hides its marks. You pay four figures for drafting, not for winning judgement.
- 03
You learn nothing and stay dependent
Outsource the writing and the capability never comes in-house. Next quarter you’re booking - and paying - all over again. Guided writing builds a repeatable bidding muscle your team keeps.
- 04
Whose side are they on?
A busy bid-writing consultancy may be drafting for your direct competitors on the same framework. Your win themes and pricing logic leave the building. With BidSquirrel, your draft and your strategy never leave your account.
A bid-writing service vs BidSquirrel
| What you actually need | Bid writer / auto-bid tool | BidSquirrel |
|---|---|---|
| Finds and scores the right tenders for you | ||
| Pass/fail eligibility check before you commit | ||
| Built on UK procurement (PA23, NHS PSR, devolved) | Varies by firm | |
| Scores your draft like the evaluation panel | ||
| Costed price breakdown + value-for-money case | Rarely, and not costed | |
| You keep your authentic, evidenced voice | Ghostwritten for you | |
| Typical cost | £1,000 to £5,000 per bid | £49.99/mo, every tender |
| Turnaround | Days, booked in advance | On demand, while you write |
| No conflict (the same hand isn’t writing rivals’ bids) | A real risk |
Bid-writing fees and turnaround are typical industry ranges and vary by provider. A specialist writer can still suit the occasional flagship bid - BidSquirrel is built for the steady flow of winnable work, and to build the capability in-house.
Questions, answered
Do I need a bid writer to win public sector work?
No. What wins is a specific, evidenced answer to the question the evaluator actually asked - and nobody knows your projects, people and references better than you. The gap most SMEs have isn’t writing ability; it’s knowing what the scoresheet rewards and where bids lose marks. BidSquirrel gives you that and writes it with you, so you reach the winning version for a fraction of a bid writer’s fee.
How is this different from a bid-writing service?
A bid writer ghostwrites the whole bid for you, per bid, for £1,000 to £5,000 - in their voice, not yours. BidSquirrel writes it with you, not for you. It finds and scores the right tenders, checks you’re eligible, tells you exactly what this scoresheet rewards, then drafts each answer from the evidence you give it, scores it like the panel and stress-tests it against the criteria for you to confirm the facts and own the final words. You keep control, your evidence and your voice - and the capability stays in-house.
Isn’t an AI that writes the whole bid faster?
Faster to a worse score. Generic, one-click AI prose is precisely what evaluation panels mark down, and it buries the differentiators that win. BidSquirrel is built for the opposite job: built to assess like a UK procurement panel, it drafts the full answer from your own evidence and scores it to the scoresheet - never fabricated, always handed back for you to confirm and refine - so the result is strong and unmistakably yours, not machine-smooth filler. See how it works.
I already pay a bid writer. Why switch?
Keep them for the occasional flagship bid if you like. But for the steady flow of winnable work - including the low-value local-authority council jobs a writer is too expensive to touch - BidSquirrel finds it, qualifies it, and builds the draft with you from your own evidence, at £49.99/mo flat. Most SMEs find that pays for itself against a single avoided bid-writing fee.
Can it help on a bid I’ve already drafted?
Yes. Upload your draft and the ITT and it scores your answers against the scoresheet, flags unsupported claims and gaps, and tells you what to strengthen before you submit - the candid panel read you’d otherwise pay a consultant for.
Compare with the others
Keep the fee. Keep the capability.
Find the right tenders, know if you qualify, and write the winning version yourself with the assessor beside you. £49.99/mo. See how our AI works →
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