How to Use AI in Bids, Proposals, and RFPs

Let’s talk about how to use AI in bids. From ChatGPT to Google Gemini, it seems like everyone is buzzing about artificial intelligence (AI). But what does a futuristic tech like AI have to do with something as classic as a competitive bid? Well, the truth is, AI can be a powerful tool for streamlining your proposal process. But it’s not a magic bullet! At The Bid Lab, we believe in a hybrid approach: using generative AI to handle heavy RFP workloads while still applying an indispensable human touch.

So what is AI, really? Simply put, AI is a set of technologies that allows computers to perform tasks that typically require human intelligence, like understanding language, recognizing patterns, and making decisions. In the bidding world, this translates to powerful new ways to research, organize and even draft parts of your response.

How AI Can Help You Bid Better 

Think of AI as your super-fast, super-efficient research assistant. It can’t replace your expertise, but it can make your life a whole lot easier. Here are a few ways AI can be a game-changer for your competitive bids:

• Deep Research, Done in Seconds: Need to understand a new industry or a specific government agency? AI can quickly summarize key trends, competitor landscapes, and relevant regulations. Instead of spending hours digging through reports, you can get a concise overview in minutes.
• Requirement Breakdown: Original documents of solicitation can be hundreds of pages long, filled with complex jargon and scattered requirements. AI can help you sort through this information, pulling out key deadlines, mandatory forms, and specific compliance points. This helps ensure you don’t miss a critical detail.
• Drafting and Brainstorming: Stuck on how to phrase a complex idea? AI can help you brainstorm different ways to communicate your value proposition or write a compelling executive summary. It can provide a starting point that you can then edit and refine.

The Bid Lab’s Approach: AI as a Tool, Not a Replacement

At The Bid Lab, we use AI to make our process more efficient, but we never let it replace the human expertise that makes our bids so successful. We know that a winning bid needs personality, precision, and a personal touch–and that is something only a person can provide. We treat AI like another useful RFP tool:

• AI for Initial Analysis: We use AI to help us quickly analyze complex RFPs (Requests for Proposals) and RFQs (Requests for Quotations). This helps our team identify key sections and requirements so we can immediately get to work on the strategic parts of the response.
• The Human Touch for Strategy: AI can’t understand your company’s unique story, values, or culture. That’s where we come in. Our experts use their experience to create a narrative that showcases your strengths and resonates with evaluators.
• A Focus on Compliance and Personality: While AI can flag requirements, a human eye is essential for ensuring perfect compliance. Our RFP team reviews every single page to make sure nothing is missed. More importantly, we add the personality that makes evaluators feel like they’re getting a true sense of your business and its people. A bid with personality is more memorable and more likely to net a higher score during RFP evaluation time.

Why You Can’t Just Trust AI to “Write” Your Bid 

AI is powerful, but it has some serious limitations when it comes to high-stakes documents like competitive bids. Relying solely on AI can lead to generic, impersonal, and even incorrect responses. 

• It Lacks Nuance: AI often generates text that reads okay at first glance, but lacks the specific context, tone and unique selling points of your company. Your bid writing is meant to be read by people, but AI can only generate generic, boilerplate content. If your RFP response language and content are generic and full of buzzwords, then it won’t stand out from the crowd of competitors.
• It Can Be Wrong: AI can “hallucinate” or provide inaccurate information. It might misinterpret a bid requirement or invent a fact. That is why a final human review is non-negotiable. 
• It Can’t Build Relationships: Bidding is all about building trust and demonstrating capability. AI can’t build that trust or convey your passion for a project. An impersonal bid is a losing bid. 

How to Use Bots Wisely in Your Own Bids

If you’re ready to start using AI in your own bidding process, here’s how to do it wisely. Think of it as a helpful assistant, not as a replacement for your own brainpower. 

• Define Your Purpose: Use AI for tasks like summarizing long documents, rephrasing technical sections in simpler terms, or generating a list of potential questions to ask during the pre-bid conference. 
• Provide Specific Prompts: The more specific your input, the better the output. Instead of “Write a response to this bid,” try “Summarize the key compliance requirements from this RFP, focusing on sections 3.2 and 4.1.”
• Always, Always, Always Review: Treat any AI-generated text as a first draft. Read it carefully, fact-check everything, and rewrite sections to add your company’s voice and personality. Make sure it aligns with your unique approach and values. We always recommend seeking out an RFP editor to review an RFP.

There are plenty of AI dos and don’ts, so don’t just use AI blindly– do your due diligence and research tips to get the most out of AI for your specific project.

You Don’t Have to Navigate AI in Your RFP Project Alone

AI is here to stay, and it is a valuable tool for anyone in the competitive bidding space. But the key to winning is understanding its limits and focusing on what it can’t do: tell your unique story. 

At The Bid Lab, we believe the best bids are a collaboration between technology and human intelligence. We use AI to get the good stuff faster, and we use our expertise to make sure your bid is not just compliant, but also compelling, memorable and filled with the personality that sets you apart. We can even use AI to find industry bids (learn more about our user-friendly RFP search engine, Bid Banana!). So, to see how our team can help you work smarter, not harder, contact us today. Reach out for a free consultation by calling 1-844-4BIDLAB or emailing respond@thebidlab.com.