Help

Short answers on using CrewBid. The button at the top of every page opens the same articles beside the page you're on. Something missing? Email hello@crewbid.tech.

Getting started

  • How CrewBid works· We read public tender notices from across BC every day, sort them by trade and area, and email you the ones that fit your business.
  • Is CrewBid free?· Yes. Alerts, the dashboard, reminders and full bid details are free while we are in early access.
  • Signing in· Sign in with an emailed link or with Google. There is no password to remember.
  • The help assistant· Members can ask questions in the help panel. Answers come only from these help articles, with a link to the one used.

Finding bids

  • Browsing open contracts· "For you" shows bids matching your settings, as in your alerts. "All of BC" shows every open bid; use the filters to narrow it.
  • Contracts coming up for renewal· Recurring contracts usually come back out to tender on a cycle. We estimate when, so you can get ready before the notice drops.
  • Following buyers and keywords· Follow a buyer or a phrase and every new matching bid reaches you, even outside your trades and areas.
  • What you missed· Public contracts that fit your trades and areas and closed in the last 90 days.
  • Where the bids come from· CanadaBuys plus the websites and feeds of public buyers across BC. BC Bid, Bonfire and bids&tenders are next.

Deciding to bid

  • Bid-prep checklist· A short checklist for the bid you are working on. Ticks save as you go.
  • Can you bid this?· We compare the notice's requirements with your business profile. ✓ means you meet them, ✗ names what you are missing, ? means check it yourself.
  • Previous rounds and who has the work now· For recurring contracts we show earlier rounds, who won them, and what the buyer has published paying firms in this trade.
  • Saving and tracking bids· Save a bid to keep it, mark "I'm bidding" when you go for it, then tell us if you won. Saved and bidding bids get deadline reminders.
  • Sharing a bid· Send a bid to a partner or sub. Your link lets them see the full notice, and credits you if they join.
  • Summaries and "What changed"· The plain-language summary is trimmed from the buyer's own description. Always confirm details in the official notice.

Your settings

  • Bids with no town· Some notices only say "British Columbia". Tick this to see those too; leave it off if you only work locally.
  • Choosing your trades and areas· You get bids that match at least one of your trades and are in one of your areas. Tick every trade you would actually bid on.
  • Home base and travel distance· When a notice names the town, we match it by straight-line distance from your home base instead of your areas.
  • Skipping ferry trips· Tick this and we drop bids where getting there from your home base needs a ferry.
  • Your business profile· Tell us your insurance, WorkSafeBC, COR, bonding and clearance, and we check every bid's requirements against them.

Email

  • Deadline reminders· For bids you saved or are bidding on, we email you 3 days and 24 hours before closing, and when the notice is updated.
  • How often we email you· Weekly is one email on Monday morning, daily is each morning there is something new, and instant is within the hour.
  • Pausing or stopping emails· Pause alerts until a date in Settings, untick "Email new matching contracts", or use the unsubscribe link in any email.