Conservation tenders are emerging as a critical mechanism for supporting payments for ecosystem services in Australia and have been applied at the national, state and regional level. These tenders are designer markets or policy mechanisms in which the proactive participation of landholders is required for success. In this paper we develop a five step framework to identify barriers to participation and to support the design of conservation tenders. We consider participation in six case study tenders covering a variety of land management objectives using our framework. These case studies also provide further pragmatic lessons in managing participation in tenders. Participation supporting factors include alignment of management priorities, opportunity for payment/compensation, effective engagement via information workshops and site visits, and clear and uncomplicated bidding and contracting experiences. Post-contract support may require further attention. Attention to these design elements is likely to support adequate participation and achieve the competitive allocation of funds from which conservation tenders derive their economic efficiency outcomes