The Road to Tender Success in 4 Simple Steps

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The Road to Tender Success in 4 Simple Steps

Winning Tenders means big businesses. Unfortunately, the application part is complex, time-consuming and labor intensive. Why not use the experts and boil the process down to 4 easy steps?

 

TRADEMARK (1)

 Before you can bag a great contract to boost your business, you first have to find that perfect tender and submit a successful application. This always involves a ton of paperwork and proof of compliance with multiple requirements, as a method to weed out all the unfitting applicants.

 Before you can bag a great contract to boost your business, you first have to find that perfect tender and submit a successful application. This always involves a ton of paperwork and proof of compliance with multiple requirements, as a method to weed out all the unfitting applicants.

Your ability to comply with the complicated application requirements in your Tender can be just as important as your business’s ability to successfully complete the project’s objectives, at a competitive price.

You could spend many frustrating hours working through this process by yourself or you can opt to use the experts, who know exactly what you need and how to get it as soon as possible.

Simply follow these four Tender steps to make things simpler for yourself:

1. Sign up with the documentation experts

There are a few basic documents that most Tender applications require.

Company Partners, a team of dedicated experts in tender documentation, can assist with getting the following documents, in record time:

  • A Registered Company Document (vital for any governmental Tender)
  • Tax Clearance Certificate
  • BEE Certificate
  • Shareholders’ certificates
  • Letter of Good Standing at the Compensation Fund
  • Many others as required by an industry

How to get your vital documents? Call Company Partner’s advisors for a FREE consultation at 0800 007 269 (toll-free from landlines) or just click HERE  to sign up for Company Partner’s Tender Package.

2. Sign up for Tender Notifications and a booklet on How-To-Tender

Before you can establish, which supplementary documents you need to submit, you’ll have to find the Tender you’d like to apply for.

You can either sift through multiple newspapers, bulletins and websites to find relevant Tenders or you can simply sign up to an online Tender Notification Service, which sends you industry- and area-related jobs right to your email.

If you do decide to sign up to Company Partners’ Tender Package, you’ll receive a month’s subscription to the “Trade World Tender Leads Service” FREE for a month.

TradeWorld’s tender service will send you personalized notifications based on your location and your business profile / industry. You’ll also have access to the available RQF’s (all projects below the formal tender value of R500 000).

Then you need guidelines of how to actually complete a tender application. Therefor you will also receive a booklet of the most important tips on ‘How to Tender’ (with weekly updates) FREE!

How to get FREE Tender Notifications and a booklet? Just click HERE for your FREE month’s subscription to TradeWorld Tender Notification Service, as part of Company Partner’s Tender package.

3. Collect your supplementary documentation

Depending on your specific tender’s requirements, you usually have the following documents left to submit (as certified copies), besides your proposal:

  • ID documents of the Directors or Members
  • Audited/reviewed financial statements of the last 3-years
  • Proof of Public Indemnity Cover (proof that you have insurance on any harm that may come to your employees, while they are at work)
  • Letter of Guarantee (a form of insurance from your bank, assuring that you will spend the allocated Tender money as promised)
  • Proof of Industry membership and compliance (documentation to prove your membership and compliance to the required institutional industry bodies)
  • Depending on your industry, Company Partners can also supply you with the services above.

4. Attend Workshops – to write your proposal based on expert-advice

You need an excellent proposal and a competitive price to bag a Tender.

To find out which elements make up an excellent proposal or appropriate pricing you can use the Tender Info provided FREE along with Company Partners’ Tender Package or you can attend any of TradeWorld’s How2Tender workshops:

  • 20 September and 22 November – SAP Offices Johannesburg
  • 4 October – SAP Offices Cape Town

How to sign up for workshops?  Just click HERE for your FREE Tender Info, as part of Company Partner’s Tender Package or email us for more information on the tender workshops: support(at)companypartners.co.za

That’s how you pave your road to Tender success!

Your ability to comply with the complicated application requirements in your Tender can be just as important as your business’s ability to successfully complete the project’s objectives, at a competitive price.

You could spend many frustrating hours working through this process by yourself or you can opt to use the experts, who know exactly what you need and how to get it as soon as possible.

Simply follow these four Tender steps to make things simpler for yourself:

1. Sign up with the documentation experts

There are a few basic documents that most Tender applications require.

Company Partners, a team of dedicated experts in tender documentation, can assist with getting the following documents, in record time:

  • A Registered Company Document (vital for any governmental Tender)
  • Tax Clearance Certificate
  • BEE Certificate
  • Shareholders’ certificates
  • Letter of Good Standing at the Compensation Fund
  • Many others as required by an industry

How to get your vital documents? Call Company Partner’s advisors for a FREE consultation at 0800 007 269 (toll-free from landlines) or just click HERE  to sign up for Company Partner’s Tender Package.

2. Sign up for Tender Notifications and a booklet on How-To-Tender

Before you can establish, which supplementary documents you need to submit, you’ll have to find the Tender you’d like to apply for.

You can either sift through multiple newspapers, bulletins and websites to find relevant Tenders or you can simply sign up to an online Tender Notification Service, which sends you industry- and area-related jobs right to your email.

If you do decide to sign up to Company Partners’ Tender Package, you’ll receive a month’s subscription to the “Trade World Tender Leads Service” FREE for a month.

TradeWorld’s tender service will send you personalized notifications based on your location and your business profile / industry. You’ll also have access to the available RQF’s (all projects below the formal tender value of R500 000).

Then you need guidelines of how to actually complete a tender application. Therefor you will also receive a booklet of the most important tips on ‘How to Tender’ (with weekly updates) FREE!

How to get FREE Tender Notifications and a booklet? Just click HERE for your FREE month’s subscription to TradeWorld Tender Notification Service, as part of Company Partner’s Tender package.

3. Collect your supplementary documentation

Depending on your specific tender’s requirements, you usually have the following documents left to submit (as certified copies), besides your proposal:

  • ID documents of the Directors or Members
  • Audited/reviewed financial statements of the last 3-years
  • Proof of Public Indemnity Cover (proof that you have insurance on any harm that may come to your employees, while they are at work)
  • Letter of Guarantee (a form of insurance from your bank, assuring that you will spend the allocated Tender money as promised)
  • Proof of Industry membership and compliance (documentation to prove your membership and compliance to the required institutional industry bodies)
  • Depending on your industry, Company Partners can also supply you with the services above.

4. Attend Workshops – to write your proposal based on expert-advice

You need an excellent proposal and a competitive price to bag a Tender.

To find out which elements make up an excellent proposal or appropriate pricing you can use the Tender Info provided FREE along with Company Partners’ Tender Package or you can attend any of TradeWorld’s How2Tender workshops:

  • 20 September and 22 November – SAP Offices Johannesburg
  • 4 October – SAP Offices Cape Town

How to sign up for workshops?  Just click HERE for your FREE Tender Info, as part of Company Partner’s Tender Package or email us for more information on the tender workshops: support(at)companypartners.co.za

That’s how you pave your road to Tender success!

What is a Trade Mark and how will it help your business?

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What is a Trade Mark and how will it help your business?

Your brand is your hard-earned property. If you’d like to protect your asset, registering your logo and company name as a Trade Mark, might be a good idea. Here’s exactly why and how you should register Trade Marks for your business.

TRADEMARKIf you want to understand Trade Marks, you need to understand Intellectual Property. You can’t physically touch Intellectual Property, but in eyes of the Law, it’s considered an asset like any other, for e.g. property.

However, because determining Intellectual Property is a bit trickier than determining ownership of physical assets, registering your Trade Mark might be a good idea to help stop anyone else from claiming, using or mimicking your brand.

Also, once you’re registered, you get a nifty ® symbol added to you Trade Mark which scares off potential offenders. You registered Intellectual Property also adds value to your business’s total worth – if you ever decide to sell your business.

 

The difference between Trade Marks, Patents and Copy Rights

In short, Trade Marks, Patents and Copy Rights are just different ways to protect different forms of Intellectual Property.

Patents are used to protect inventions. Inventions can be anything from new forms of medication to significant improvements to existing machinery – as long as the invention is non-obvious, useful (because mere ideas cannot be registered) and completely new or state-of-the-art.

Patent rights will legally deter others from making money or using your invention, without buying those rights from you, for a maximum of 20 years. After that it’s considered fair game for all.

Copy Rights are rights that are automatically given (here, there’s no need for registration) to the author or creator of original publication or production work. Works like photographs, films, literature and even computer programs all fall into this category.

The author or creator retains exclusive Copy Rights to use, distribute and sell the work or the Copy Rights, a glorious 50-years after death (straight after death these rights fall to whomever inherits the creator’s assets). That’s why historic photographs or illustrations and classical music are considered public domain.

Trade Marks are used to protect branding elements, which distinguish you from your competitor, like your logo and your slogan or even patterns (like Burberry’s definitive check pattern) or packaging (like Coca Cola’s classic glass bottle shape). Trade Marks can offer you a lifetime exclusivity provided you renew it every 10 years and you don’t sell it to someone else.

 

Intellectual Property Rights: Things to keep in mind

It’s limited to local trade: Intellectual Property Rights are limited to the country they are registered in; you have to register in every country you want to trade in / with. Copy Rights can often extend to some other countries.

It’s limited to your trade: Trade Marks are registered according to categories called Classes (the industry in which the business trades in). If you trade in multiple Classes, you’ll have to register your Trade Mark for all of them.

 

How to register your Trade Mark and protect your brand

STEP 1: Apply through professionals 

Company Partners’ Legal Department specialises in Trade Mark Registrations. We will fast track your Trade Mark Phase #1 Registration to an estimated 40 days, whereas registering directly with CIPC may take up to several months. Click HERE to order your Trade Mark registration with us.

STEP 2: We do the specialized preliminary search for you

We do a preliminary search for you, to determine whether or not there’s a registered Trade Mark that’s similar to your brand.

If there is, we’ll help you make the necessary adjustments – this process might take 6 to 8 weeks.

You can do an online search yourself by clicking HERE, but our experts will do it for you, if you’re signed up with us.

STEP 3: Your application gets processed

Once that’s done, your application will be submitted to the South Africa’s Trade Mark registrar for Phase #2 Registration. If everything goes well, you’ll be a proud new owner of a Trade Mark!

Betty Bookkeeper explains who is eligible to complete Tax Returns

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Hi Betty

This question is regarding tax returns.  When I completed my Diploma – Technical Financial Accountant I applied with SAIT for membership but I was declined membership as they said even though I had the qualification I did not have enough experience regarding tax returns.  I’ve been looking for employment to gain this experience but jobs are few.  I know that I am allowed to complete tax returns for family members for no payment but my question is am I allowed to complete tax returns (provisional tax, Emp 201, EMP 501 and VAT returns etc for my bookkeeping clients if I do not charge for the tax portion and only charge for the bookkeeping? I don’t know how else I will get the required experience.

Regards,
Sarah

Hi Sarah

You are allowed to complete the tax returns with your clients consent.  Many companies employ bookkeepers who are not registered tax practitioners who complete tax returns. You would just need to declare on the submissions that they are done by you.  It is also important that you do not present yourself as a tax practitioner to your clients until you are registered with SAIT.

Hope that helps!

Don’t forget that I’m here to answer your questions about the ICBA, or just queries about your accounting at work. All you have to do is email me with a copy of your ICBA membership certificate. Not yet a member? Send in your application form!