What is panel 'Forum Shopping'?
Last week, when working on a tender response with a partner in a law firm, we asked the question:
"Do you think there is a chance the client will use this panel as an opportunity to go 'forum shopping'?"
The partner stared at us blankly.
What is ‘forum shopping’?
In its pursuit form, 'forum shopping' refers to the practice of finding favourable venues - courts and arbitration centres in particular - that are likely to provide you with a favorable judgment.
As this suggests, this involves strategically selecting a forum/place that is perceived as being more sympathetic to your position.
Okay, pretty straight forward.
Panel ‘forum shopping’
But, in the bids and tenders world that's not exactly what 'forum shopping' means.
To us, 'forum shopping' is a pricing strategy. It’s when a client sets up multiple panels under which they can secure your services and then get you to price each of those panels differently.
Then, when they need to secure your services, they go ‘shopping’ - looking for the panel where your rates are the cheapest!
Crafty right!
And not as uncommon as you would think - particularly with Government panels.
How to protect yourself against panel 'forum shopping' tactics?
If you want to make sure you don't fall into the trap of a forum shopping strategy, then:
Maintain consistent pricing for all panels
Make sure your pricing is consistent for all the panels you go for. This should avoid providing the opportunity to seek out lower prices elsewhere.
At BidWizard we understand this isn't always that easy though. So if you’re faced with the very real prospect of having to price differently for different panels, then:
Consider a value-based pricing strategy: based on the unique value proposition your service is offering the customer. Make sure to emphasise the quality, features, and benefits that differentiate your service.
Think about offering bundled pricing: for those panels where you may need to offer a cheaper rate, offer bundled packages that combine your services at a lower competitive price rather than as a standalone lower price. Hopefully this will discourage customers from cherry-picking panels based solely on price. No guarantee mind you!
Exclusive deals: think about offering exclusive deals and rewards on those panels where you charge higher rates against those where you offer a lower rate. For example, the customer can access your L&D/CPD program on premium rate panels for free, but needs to pay if they are accessing this same product on a lower fee rate panel.
When all else fails, get in touch with us for a free 30 minute consultation to discuss some of the ways you can counter these tactics.
