How to improve titles and descriptions
Some of the most important improvements that can be made to procurement sites are to the titles and descriptions of opportunities. The following suggestions are intended for people who create procurement documents and input the information that gets displayed on their sites.
Improving titles
Businesses need to be able to scan titles for their own key words so they can find relevant opportunities quickly. When titles are filled with words or ID numbers that are meaningful only to internal public servants but not externally, they cannot be scanned easily.
Remember the context and perspective of suppliers. Business owners are using their limited - and generally unpaid - time to sort through hundreds or thousands of opportunities to find one or two related to their specific business.
Use words that suppliers use. If you don’t know what words businesses use in the industry you need to buy from, some online research can help. Look for forums related to the industry to see what language businesses use. Or do a search on google trends to find the most used words among synonyms. Our diary study, which was conducted primarily with tech firms, revealed key nouns and verbs that suppliers use when searching for tenders. For example, if your procurement involves technology, include “digital” in your title.
Don’t try to convey everything in the title. For example, the specific intersection where a bridge needs repairing likely doesn’t belong in the title, although the city or town of the site does. Instead focus on describing the nature of the work required.
Include information about the general category of goods or services you are procuring – whether that’s agricultural research, bridge repair, food or software. Remember that businesses of all kinds will be scanning your title among many, trying to discern whether it relates to their business.
Improving descriptions
Focus on describing the nature and scope of work in one paragraph. Details about how to submit bids or other procurement details are not necessary in the description. Once a business has enough information to think an opportunity is relevant, then they can spend time learning the specific details of how to respond.
Give a sense of the scale of work involved or quantity of products needed.
Key nouns and verbs from diary study
Key words from participant quotes in the diary study, which was primarily conducted with technology firms. These are meant only as a starting point, and may not apply to businesses in other industries. As well, we did not have the opportunity to test with French participants in this study, so we’re only providing them in English.
Nouns
- Public sector
- Contracts
- Procurement
- Requirements
- Government
- Opportunities
- Projects
- Results
- Tender notice
- Categories
- Client
- Deadline
- Contact
- Budget
- Insight
- Criteria
- RFP
- Proposal
- Partner
Verbs
- Check
- Review
- Search
- Filter
- Procures
- Narrow down
- Scan
- Access
- “Ask if someone can sponsor secret clearance”
- Prepare
- Decide
- Bid
- Respond
Adjectives
- Active
- Digital