Tender clarification questions for digital projects.

Ask about a decision, not a vague concern

Start with the exact document, section or conflicting statements. Explain which detail is missing without turning the question into your sales pitch. Avoid bundling several unrelated questions: separate answers are easier to trace when the buyer issues a clarification log.

Read the competition's communication instructions first. They determine how and when questions should be submitted. Do not assume a private email will count as a formal clarification, or that the question can be sent after the deadline. Treat the templates below as editorial starting points to adapt to the actual tender.

Eight question templates

1. Content scope: “Section [X] describes migration of the existing website. Can you provide the available inventory of pages, documents, media and languages, and confirm which content types are in scope?”
2. Integrations: “Section [X] lists [system]. Can you confirm which integration responsibilities sit with the appointed supplier, and whether interface documentation and a test environment will be available?”
3. Accessibility: “Section [X] requires an accessibility audit. Can you confirm the required standard, agreed sample, testing methods and whether remediation support and retesting are included?”
4. Research recruitment: “Section [X] names [user group]. Can you confirm who is responsible for sourcing and scheduling participants, and whether incentives and access support are included in the budget?”
5. Transition: “The stated launch date is [date]. Can you confirm when incumbent access and export data will be available, and who is responsible for resolving transition dependencies?”
6. Operational support: “Section [X] specifies [response time]. Can you confirm the service hours, incident categories and whether the target refers to acknowledgement, restoration or resolution?”
7. Value and term: “The notice states a value of [amount] and the documents describe [initial term plus options]. Can you confirm the basis of the published value, including its VAT treatment and the periods or lots it covers?”
8. Acceptance: “Section [X] requires approval of [deliverable]. Can you confirm the acceptance criteria, responsible approver and expected review window?”

Turn the answer into a recorded change

Keep a question log with five fields: document reference, uncertainty, question date, authoritative response and impact on scope or decision. Save the relevant updated document version. If the answer changes effort, timing or eligibility, revisit the decision to bid before the response team continues.

Hypothetical example: “support within two hours” could refer to acknowledging a ticket or restoring a service. A buyer clarifies that it requires restoration for critical incidents during specified service hours. The agency must now check technical coverage, staffing and the commercial effect. Copying the answer into a notes file without changing the estimate would miss its purpose.

What to do when the answer is still unclear

Record the remaining uncertainty and check whether a follow-up is permitted before the deadline. Ask a qualified colleague to review a contractual or technical point when needed. An unanswered question is not permission to adopt the interpretation most convenient to your firm.

Keep confidential pricing ideas and unnecessary personal information out of questions. Check the buyer's instructions about how questions and answers are circulated. Phrase the question so the requirement can be clarified without disclosing your proposed competitive approach.

Sources behind the topics

The topic selection draws on official guidance about accessibility audit scope, research recruitment and legacy-system transition. The question wording is our own. Those sources do not establish the communication rules of your specific competition.

Use the answers in your bid/no-bid decision note. The useful result is a better-supported commitment of time and resources, even when the answer leads you to pass.

Keep working through the decision