How to Get Government Contracts [electronic resource] : Have a Slice of the 1 Trillion Dollar Pie /
Smotrova-Taylor, Olessia.author.
How to Get Government Contracts demystifies the process of how a company can enter the government market, win its first and subsequent contracts, and then grow itself into a multi-million-dollar government contractor within a couple of years. It offers an insider's view into the latest best practices that government contractors use to succeed in an increasingly competitive market, and it shows exactly how your company can apply these techniques to build a strong business.  Many companies venture into the government market with a certain naiveté and pay a hefty price to find out that there is much more to winning a contract than writing last-minute proposals in response to publicly posted solicitations. To stop the bleeding of precious resources, they need to step back to learn how professionals win business in the federal arena. This book shows you how to find, for example, the best potential customers and opportunities for your company. It also explains the secret to winning consistently by conducting pre-proposal preparation (also called "capture") and practicing a disciplined, process-based approach to proposal development. This book provides a recipe for winning government contracts over and over again, the way seasoned government contractors do it. After reading this book, you will know exactly what to do to position your company to win a government proposal before a solicitation becomes public, including building customer relationships, gathering intelligence, developing a "win strategy," performing competitive analysis, selecting the best teammates, and developing a solution. As a result, you will apply professional techniques to organizing your proposal effort, outlining a proposal document, and writing RFPs that persuade evaluators to award the contract to you.
Title Page; Copyright Page; Dedication Page; Table of Contents; Foreword; About the Author; Acknowledgments; Introduction; Chapter 1 How Lucrative Is Government Contracting- and How Tangled Is the Red Tape?; Let's Demystify Government Contracting; The Pros of Entering the Government Contracting Market; Market Size; Stability; Recession-Proof; Timely Payments; Competitive Edge in the Commercial Arena; Open to Entry; Not as Hostile as Other Sectors; Clear Trend: Less Corruption and Greater Transparency; The Cons of Joining the Ranks of Federal Contractors; There Is a Lot to Learn
It Is Hard to FocusSome "Govies" Can Be Difficult to Deal With; It's Not a Get-Rich-Quick World; Bird's-Eye View of the Market; Who Are the Buyers in the Government Market?; How to Become a Pro at Winning Contracts Consistently; People; Processes; Technology; Collateral; Training; Chapter 2 Get Started in Government Contracting; Rules of the Game in the Federal Marketplace; Fiscal Year; Budgeting Cycle; No Single Procurement Authority; Rules; Government Procurement Methods; Micropurchases (or Purchases Under the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (SAT); GSA and VA Schedules
Variety of Competitive Procurements Above the SATBecoming a Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) Wholesale Supplier; Reverse Auctions; Grants; Public-Private Partnerships (PPP or P3); Research and Development (R&D)-Related Contract Vehicles; Priming versus Subcontracting; Competitions and Sole-Source Awards; Government Acquisition Process; How to Navigate the World of Rules and Acronyms; NAICS, SIC, and CAGE; Take Advantage of the Small Business Program; Leverage Your Status; What's a Small Business?; Socioeconomic Categories; Necessary Registrations; Checklist for Starting Your Federal Business
Chapter 3 Break into the Federal Arena Without Breaking Your NeckThe Chicken and the Egg of Past Performance; Strategies for Penetrating the Federal Market for the First Time; How to Find Perfect Customers for Your Portfolio of Offerings in the Vast Federal Market; Market Research Checklist; How to Create and Feed Your Opportunities Pipeline with High- Probability Deals; Subscribe to Online Business Intelligence Databases; Register with Customer Procurement Websites; Pay Regular Visits to the Customer to Build a Trusted Advisor Relationship
Leverage Your Workforce and Partners to Find Out About New OpportunitiesSolicit Small Purchases or Get Sole Source Awards; Create New Opportunities by Writing White Papers and Unsolicited Proposals for Innovative Solutions; Team with a Prime Contractor as a Subcontractor by Crafting an Irresistible Value Proposition; Find Prime Contractors Who Have Trouble Staffing Their Contracts and Offer Your Staff to Fill Vacancies; Register with Large Government Prime Web Sites as a Small Business Vendor; Leverage Social Media and Other Marketing Techniques to Attract Partners and Customers to You
Network at Trade Shows and Other Events
Includes index.
How to Get Government Contracts demystifies the process of how a company can enter the government market, win its first and subsequent contracts, and then grow itself into a multi-million-dollar government contractor within a couple of years. It offers an insider's view into the latest best practices that government contractors use to succeed in an increasingly competitive market, and it shows exactly how your company can apply these techniques to build a strong business.  Many companies venture into the government market with a certain naiveté and pay a hefty price to find out that there is much more to winning a contract than writing last-minute proposals in response to publicly posted solicitations. To stop the bleeding of precious resources, they need to step back to learn how professionals win business in the federal arena. This book shows you how to find, for example, the best potential customers and opportunities for your company. It also explains the secret to winning consistently by conducting pre-proposal preparation (also called "capture") and practicing a disciplined, process-based approach to proposal development. This book provides a recipe for winning government contracts over and over again, the way seasoned government contractors do it. After reading this book, you will know exactly what to do to position your company to win a government proposal before a solicitation becomes public, including building customer relationships, gathering intelligence, developing a "win strategy," performing competitive analysis, selecting the best teammates, and developing a solution. As a result, you will apply professional techniques to organizing your proposal effort, outlining a proposal document, and writing RFPs that persuade evaluators to award the contract to you.
Business.
Management science.
Business and Management, general.