What is a bid portal? IonWave, Bonfire, BidNet and more

A bid portal is a website where a government agency posts its bids and takes responses. Cities, counties, school districts and some state agencies use them. Many agencies rent the same portal software, so you see the same names again and again.

Names you will see

• IonWave. Used by many Texas school districts, cities and co-ops. Each agency has its own IonWave site, such as an address that ends in ionwave.net.
• Bonfire. Agencies post bids on their own Bonfire page. One vendor account works across Bonfire agencies.
• BidNet Direct. Groups agencies by state or region.
• OpenGov, PlanetBids, DemandStar, Public Purchase, Jaggaer and Periscope. Other portals you may meet.

Federal bids are different. Federal agencies post notices on SAM.gov, and each notice says how to respond. SAM.gov registration is free, and federal offers need it.

Why you sign up on each one

• To see everything. Some portals show the bid documents only after you sign in.
• To get alerts. When you sign up, you pick the kinds of work you do, and the portal emails you new bids that match.
• To respond. Many agencies take responses only through their portal. You upload your files there and press Submit before the deadline.

On a portal like IonWave, each agency's site needs its own account. On Bonfire, one account covers many agencies. Vendor accounts are free on most portals. Some portals offer a paid plan with extra alerts, but you can usually respond to a bid without it.

Set up early

Sign up several days before you need to respond. Some agencies approve new vendors by hand, and some ask for a second sign in step. A late account is a common reason for a missed deadline.

How Victavio AI helps

• It finds your agencies. Victavio lists the agencies near you and the portal each one uses, in Settings, Bid portals.
• It fills in the sign up form. Victavio AI opens the portal's sign up page in a secure browser and fills in your company details while you watch. You type your password, read the terms and press the last button, so you create the account yourself.
• It connects your account. On portals where Victavio may work, you can sign in once inside Victavio's secure browser. Today that is IonWave. Victavio then checks your account for new bids and files. It never sees your password.
• It tells you how a bid is submitted. Ask "how do I submit this bid?" and Victavio AI reads the notice and says whether it goes through a portal, by email or by mail.

On portals whose terms do not allow automated tools, Victavio AI points at what to click and you click it.

Try it

Open the AI and say: "Get me registered on the bid portals near me." It starts with the agencies closest to you and explains each step.