Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- What is the relationship between Unicom Systems Inc. and bidsCanada?
- What is bidsCanada?
- What is the difference between a free and a paid bidsCanada subscription?
- I'm having problems using PayPal to pay for a bidsCanada subscription. What do I need to do?
- I currently have a paid bidsCanada subscription and want to ensure uninterrupted service. Do I have to wait for the current subscription to expire before paying for a new subscription?
- What happens when my paid bidsCanada subscription expires?
- Can I post my organization's RFPs (request for proposals), RFQs (request for quotations), tenders and other bid solicitations to bidsCanada?
- I am no longer receiving automatic notifications from bidsCanada. What happened? What do I need to do?
- Why should I pay for a bidsCanada subscription when most of the content is freely available on the web? What's the bidsCanada value proposition?
bidsCanada is not a company but is a service offered by Unicom Systems Inc. Unicom Systems Inc. owns and operates the bidsCanada service.
bidsCanada is a search engine, opportunity matching and e-mail notification service that is owned and operated by Unicom Systems Inc. bidsCanada is used daily by thousands of businesses to find information on RFPs (request for proposals), RFQs (request for quotations), tenders and other bid solicitations issued for the supply of goods and services by Canadian public sector organizations, Fortune 500 companies and other large corporations. The value proposition of bidsCanada:
- For public sector organizations - effectively reach thousands of qualified suppliers to ensure best value in the procurement of goods and services.
- For businesses - increase sales while saving the time, money and effort required to manually monitor many public sector websites for opportunities.
A free limited access subscription allows you to evaluate some of the capabilities of bidsCanada. You may use a free limited access subscription for as long as you wish - there are no time limits. A free limited access subscription enables you to receive notifications of relevant RFPs and also provides you with your own personal web page, both of which produce results based on your saved search criteria. However, you will need a full access subscription to use the premium features of bidsCanada which includes getting direct links to RFPs, the identities of the organizations issuing RFPs, direct links to the websites of the organizations issuing RFPs, province level searching and result sorting. If you do not have a free bidsCanada account, you can set one up by clicking here. If already have a bidsCanada account, please log in.
A paid full access subscription provides all of the benefits of a free subscription but also enables you to use the premium features of bidsCanada which includes getting direct links to RFPs, the identities of the organizations issuing RFPs, direct links to the websites of the organizations issuing RFPs, province level searching and result sorting. Please note that when a paid full access subscription expires, it is converted to the equivalent of a free limited access subscription. You will still receive notifications of relevant RFPs and also have access to your own personal web page for as long as you wish. If you do not have a free bidsCanada account, you can set one up by clicking here. If already have a bidsCanada account, please log in.
Unicom Systems Inc. (bidsCanada) does not have access to your PayPal account or any PayPal account information. You will need to work with PayPal to resolve any issues specific to your account. If you cannot make payment through PayPal, you can opt to be invoiced. The following may also be of assistance:
- I forgot my PayPal account password:
Please access PayPal to have instructions for resetting your password sent to you by e-mail by clicking here. - I'm having problems making a payment through PayPal with a credit card:
Please access the PayPal Help Center for common questions and answers regarding making a payment through PayPal with a credit card by clicking here. - For assistance with all other PayPal problems:
Please access the PayPal Help Center for common questions and answers regarding using PayPal by clicking here. - Contact PayPal customer service by telephone:
1-402-935-2050 (a U.S. telephone number)
4:00 AM PST to 10:00 PM Pacific Time Monday through Friday
6:00 AM PST to 8:00 PM Pacific Time Saturday and Sunday
Please note that hours of operation may vary on holidays
If you pay for a subscription prior to the expiry of your current subscription, the appropriate time will be added to your current subscription. You do not have to wait for your current subscription to expire. Simply log in to bidsCanada using your current account.
When a paid full access subscription expires, it is converted to the equivalent of a free limited access subscription. You will still receive notifications of relevant RFPs and also have access to your own personal web page for as long as you wish. Please see What is the difference between a free and paid subscription?
Yes, if you work for a Canadian public sector organization, Fortune 500 company or other large corporation as a buyer, you can post your RFPs (request for proposals), RFQs (request for quotations), tenders and other bid solicitations to bidsCanada free of charge. All you need to do is set up a free Unicom Systems Inc. account. Once your account is activated, which usually occurs within 24 hours, you will be sent user credentials and instructions via e-mail which will enable you to begin posting RFPs to bidsCanada immediately.
In order to comply with the strict policies of many major e-mail and network service providers, Unicom Systems Inc. is obligated to disable accounts with e-mail addresses that result in undeliverable messages or "hard bounces" after messages are sent to those e-mail addresses from Unicom Systems Inc. and/or bidsCanada. A failure on the part of Unicom Systems Inc. to comply with these strict policies carries the risk of having all e-mail messages to all users being blocked by the service providers.
If Unicom Systems Inc. receives undeliverable notices after sending messages to you, your bidsCanada account may be suspended. Please note that Unicom Systems Inc. may receive undeliverable notices for a variety of reasons including but not limited to temporary problems with your network or e-mail server, your inbox is over quota, your e-mail address is no longer active, and/or your e-mail service provider or anti-spam software is blocking messages from Unicom Systems Inc. and/or bidsCanada. You may need to check with your own technical support staff to remedy the problem.
Once your account has been suspended, Unicom Systems Inc. and/or bidsCanada will cease sending any further messages to you and you will be unable to log in to bidsCanada. If you believe your account has been suspended, you can check by clicking here and then entering your e-mail address. The status of your account will be displayed. If your account has been suspended, you will need to contact bidsCanada at at inquiries@bidsCanada.com to have your account reactivated.
You could opt to manually check each of the websites that are indexed by bidsCanada. The bidsCanada value proposition is convenience - saving you time by reducing the need to manually check each website while providing you with automatic notifications of opportunities.