Cracking the Federal Market: The Small Business Guide to Federal Sales Part 22

Newsletter 22: Prosper in the Federal Market
By Richard White

Outsider Perception: The federal market is tough to crack.

Reality: The perception is true.

Lesson: Although the federal market is difficult to tackle, companies that are successful in doing so quickly realize that it’s an extremely lucrative one and that their actual sales costs – once they are  entrenched – are actually less than in the commercial sector.

Background:
This newsletter concludes the 22 part series entitled “Cracking the Federal Market: The Small Business Guide to Federal Sales.” The federal market is not really more difficult to enter than any other new market your business has targeted. Don’t let the fear of the unknown hold you back. Approach the task of tackling this new market in the same way you would if it were a commercial market. Market entry requires tenacity and patience.  The federal market offers rewards commensurate with the effort your staff puts into delving into this new endeavor. For highly -focused companies, the rewards can be exceptionally rich and lucrative.

Keep in mind that federal buyers will never get rid of companies which perform at the highest levels because trusted performers make the buyers’ professional lives easier and risk free. These buyers will go out of their way to make sure that your company remains their business partner. The partnership truly begins when your company wins its first contract and, once this occurs, your company has total control over its destiny in the market. It is entirely possible for one-person firms which work in the federal market to grow to $100 million businesses in just a few years.

Small business preference programs can dramatically impact upon your company’s growth.  Those which cannot take advantage of preference programs take heart -- companies without the benefit of preferences have also experienced explosive growth.

The critical steps to success in the federal market outlined in this series are:

1. Sell to federal customers as you would in the commercial market.
2. Learn the rules for closing federal sales.
3. Get a GSA Schedule contract and sell with a pre-approved price list.
4. Target federal customers in your region first and become an “insider” like the large federal prime contractors.
5. Use the inherent advantages of being an insider to help your business succeed in the federal market.
6. Certify your company as one of the preferred small businesses if it qualifies.

Archives of the newsletters in series can be found at www.fedmarket.com.  Feel free to send a copy to your friends and business associates. 

Fedmarket.com Services
Fedmarket.com offers a range of services to companies seeking federal contracts. 

GSA Proposal Preparation eLab
Fedmarket.com assists companies in completing their GSA Schedule offer during the course of a three-day computer workshop.  We provide you with a detailed Request for Information (RFI) at the time you register for the workshop. The RFI outlines the required corporate data and pricing that must be gathered and prepared in advance of the eLab. Attendees will, with the assistance of our GSA consulting staff, complete their GSA offer prior to the end of the workshop. In fact, many complete the offer and leave with a completed proposal in fewer than three days. If you are a procrastinator, the GSA eLab is the solution for you. The GSA Proposal Preparation eLab is offered monthly at the Federal Sales Academy in Bethesda, Maryland and quarterly in Las Vegas, Nevada. Call a Fedmarket representative at 888-661-4094 x 8 to learn more about this 3-day workshop.

FedBuyingIntelligence, Online “Who Buys What You Sell” Subscription Service
FedBuyingIntelligence (FBI) brings focus and precision to your sales efforts.

FBI quickly identifies for you the federal buyers buy what you sell -- and how often. For each of your company's federal supply codes, FBI provides a compete purchasing history, rich with critical information such as buyer contact names, phone numbers, email addresses, agency names and geographic locations. Browse this information on screen, or download it for use in your contact database or other contact applications.

Assembling intelligence data on your own would take enormous time and effort. FBI streamlines this difficult process giving you access to current and timely data that will provide you with the tools to succeed in the federal marketplace. FedBuying Intelligence (FBI) is the most powerful sales tool in the federal market. It searches five years of public bid data and tells you “who bought what”. Enter your product/service using keywords, Product/Service Codes, or NAICS Codes and find the solicitations and awards for the Contracting Officers and Contract Specialists who bought your product/service. Contact data including telephone number and email address is provided for each buyer in a downloadable spreadsheet.FBI tells you:

• Which federal buyers have purchased your products or services.
• What they purchased.
• When they purchased it.
• How much they paid.
• Which agency the buyers work for.
• How to contact the buyers.

FBI government buyer information includes:

• First and last name
• Address
• Phone and fax
• Email
• Office and agency information
• Recent contract awards

Call us at 888.661.4094 x 8 for more information on any of our GSA services or products or visit http://www.fedmarket.com/products/gsa_index.shtml.