Archive 2015

Last week we talked about the importance of building relationships. All too often, many businesses make that assumption that because their doors are open or they obtained that certification, that the next thing that follows is business. Well, as we learned last week, they couldn’t be more wrong. Only those who were the most prepared by having intelligence not available to the average business owner, or came out of an ...

Many times I have heard people say, I spent all the time, effort, energy and money to get certified, but I never got anything as a result of that. I am sure they are telling the truth. Getting certifications is a difficult and time consuming process, but they are well worth it if you know what to do next. Very few agencies and government entities can just hand you a ...

In previous articles, we have looked at the government procurement process by defining the various government sectors of procurement and what they are looking for in a contractor as far as certifications, registrations and capability statements. We are now ready to explore the specific processes a company can utilize to successfully market to the government. The least effective method is to just respond to every competitive opportunity because you think you ...

In this economy, it is pretty normal to experience fear and trepidation about the current state of business and the future prospects for your business. However, it is critical to stay focused on the opportunities and not the circumstances, but to be as Stephen Covey says in the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Habit #1, be proactive. Just like the cave dwellers of old, who focused on what the most ...

Is there some bad news out there, heard any of it lately? Do you believe it? Do you have a choice? A change in attitude, would you agree that business is going to go on? That there is money to be made? What if you project an attitude of gratitude? Law of attraction 10 Strategies to attract new business and be strong in this economy. Is your company Built to Last? 1. Remember, we have a ...

In order to effectively market to any sector described in the previous articles, it is important to have an effective and colorful one page description of the value your company provides to its customers. In the sectors we are describing, we call this a capability statement and it provides the procurement or sourcing teams the information they need to consider your companies merit. We can accurately say it is a ...

How does the government find you, and how do you find the opportunity that is right for you? In the last blog, we reviewed market research at the federal government level using FPDS and USA Spending, which are both websites. We began to explore market research at the State of California level (always remember to check your Secretary of State website for doing business with the state for the parallel resource ...

How does the government find you, and how do you find the opportunity that is right for you? What is so difficult about getting seen by the government? You would think with all of those steps you just went through that it would be easy to find you. Well, instead, it is very difficult. The government at all levels have a lot of contracts to manage and create, so it is ...

So, now you have completed some initial steps, now what? In the previous five articles, we have talked about the initial steps. Doing the basic things required to be eligible for any kind of government contract which described as federal, state, agency, municipal, or large business. Now, the next step is how do you find opportunities and market to them? We will spend the next couple of articles presenting some basic ...

In the last blog we covered Federal and State Certifications. Just to clarify, by certification, we mean that there is a 3rd party that evaluates your business for what you say it is. If you claim to be a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), then the CVE (Center for Veterans Enterprise) is going to audit your books, scrutinize your company’s documents, and make sure that your company is ...

Last time we explored how to prepare to do business with the government by acquiring your DUNS # and CAGE Code. We also discussed some of the steps that will help you be found by contracting officers. When it comes to government contracting, there are actually several levels. These levels are: Federal level as prime and/or subcontracting to a large prime. State-level prime contracting and/or subcontracting to a large prime. Municipal and School Districts Utilities Understanding ...

Getting Started (Part III) Last time we explored whether government contracting was good for your business and we looked at each of the markets. Once we determined we had what it took, we looked into each entity of the government to see if they bought what we sold. In most cases, that answer is going to be yes, but it is important to know when the potential opportunities will be ...

How do I Start? Contracting from Start to Finish (Part II) Last post we discussed the pros and cons of entering the mysterious world of government contracting, so if you are reading this, you are probably ready to go to the next step. So, the next step is to decide what level of contracting you want to pursue. There are several considerations that are necessary to evaluate before making this decision. How ...

Contracting from start to finish (Part I) Many business owners get intimidated when they hear the word government contracting. And yes, its true, if you want to do government contracting, your company needs to be in good shape financially, your processes need to be well defined, and your company needs to be operationally sound. But, if you meet these three criteria, then, there are several good reasons to enter into the ...