If you plan on expanding your business, you should really consider Government Contracting. It could help you diversify the revenue of your business. But what exactly is Government Contracting and How can you get into this industry?
What is Government Contracting?
Government Contracting is the process wherein either a State, Federal or Local Government outsource to Subcontract products or services to Businesses. This actually provides a huge financial opportunity, particularly to small businesses.
What are the things that you needed to know about Government Contracting?
Understand the Industry.
Taking comprehensive courses or having a mentor to show you the ropes about Government Contracting can help you greatly. It’s a good start to understand and learn the basic components of basic contracting, therefore, making you more confident in entering this space. Learning about it will help you stay away from doing risky mistakes that might cause you to lose money. Government Contracting can either bring in a lot of money when done right or cost you a lot when done poorly.
Register in SAM
Getting into the system is very important, and it all starts by registering through SAM (System for Award Management). If you are planning to get into Government Contracting, you must register your business at sam.gov. This is where you will submit your application, and you need to wait for your application to be approved or disapproved. You will also need to send in a notary letter, to provide validity of your business, proving that you are a legitimate person and not a scam.
Get State and Federal Certifications
If you are a minority, there are certifications that you can get at the state or federal level, in order to get the advantage of set-asides and sole-sourcing opportunities in Government Contracting. This refers to the money that is set aside for the people that are part of a minority group. For example, Women, regardless of their race, qualify to be Minority Certified on the State and Federal Level. On the State Level, you can get Disadvantaged Business Certified or Women Business Certified. On a Federal Level, you can get Women Owns Small Business Certified, Veterans Certified, Disabled Veterans, etc.
Getting those certifications will give you a leg up into the Government Contracting Space and win subcontracting opportunities for your business. Getting this process started can help you build your reputation in the Government Contracting Industry.
Market Yourself and Your Business
The next this that you should do is to market your business, and this is done by creating your Capabilities Statement. Capabilities Statement highlights your capabilities to get the job done. It’s basically a one-sheet presentation that puts down the capabilities of your business. This includes a business overview of what your business is all about, what you do, who it serves, your ability, contact information, and who’ve worked within the past.
Simply put, the Capabilities Statement serves as your business plan and resume all rolled into one. This is the thing that you should be bringing with you when you are trying to get into Government Contracting, and you also need to put this up on your website in a downloadable format, so that the people visiting your website will also be aware of your capabilities of doing Government Contracting.
You also need to go to matchmaking opportunities in your community for you to network and meet the right people.
Find Opportunities
Networking is one way to find opportunities, but beyond that, you can also go to Sam.gov, wherein they have an area for available RFPS from the Governmental RFQs or RFIs from the Government that they are looking for people to fill in.
Make sure that you are checking this on a regular basis to see if there is anything that fits the skills and capabilities that you have so you can go ahead and apply for it. Keep in mind that you are looking for things that have set-asides so you can take advantage of being able to bid on it and win that contract.
You can also utilize either free or paid websites that also provide Government Contracting opportunities. You also need to make sure that, on a State Level, you keep in contact or always check your local procurement office’s website because they can also sometimes list their contracting opportunities on their website.
Basically, keep your eyes open and ears on the ground and stay updated on opportunities that might be available for your business.
Stay Compliant
You always need to make sure that your business will stay compliant, whether you get or don’t get a contract, because people will be looking at your business first before handing over their contract to you, especially if a prime is coming over to you directly to bid on a contract. That means that they have already done their background checks and they feel that your business will be able to actually subcontract some of the work out to you.
Watch my video about Government Contracting wherein I talked about some tips and things to help you get started on Government Contracting.
Now that you have some basic ideas about joining the Government Contracting space, you can now start your preparation. If you need any help getting into Government Contracting, we do consultations for that at TVA Consulting.
Visit our website and send us a message! We will be happy to help you get started on Government Contracting and make your business take on that whole new level!
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