Small Businesses and Government Contracts
The United States government is one of the largest purchasers of goods and services in the world. Therefore, it can be very beneficial to get the government as one of your customers, especially if you can get government contracts for recurring purchases.
There is a process that any company interested in working with the government will have to go through. On the bright side, the government has certain regulations that ensure that a certain percentage of the contracts they award go straight to small businesses.
In order to become qualified to bid on government contracts, small businesses will need to classify their company by the size and type of business they are running according to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) and the SBA size standard.
The government agencies that are offering the contract will need this information. And, since some of the contracts that they award are specified for certain types of business, you should also specify whether or not your company qualifies as a woman-owned business, a veteran-owned business, a HUBZone business, or a service-disabled business.
The next step to procure government contracts is to register with the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) database. Most government agencies use this service to learn about their potential providers. In order to register, though, a company will need to have a number of things in order, including: an NAICS code, the SBA size standard of the company, Standard Industrial Classification codes, a Federal Tax Identification Number, and a DUNS number.
After you are registered in the CCR database, government agencies may contact you to see whether or not you wish to bid on government contracts. However, if you really want to get government business, you need to pursue opportunities on your own as well.
There are a number of different resources that you can use in order to do this. For example, there is a FedBizOpps.gov website where all opportunities for projects over $25,000 are listed. You can check that site to see if there are any projects you can bid on. Federal agencies also list smaller opportunities on their Bid Boards or on their websites, so it is important to check these locations as well because many of these smaller opportunities are reserved for small businesses.
Another good way to find out about bidding opportunities is to become a GSA Schedule Contractor since some types of products and services are almost always purchased through the GSA. When you can cover all these bases, you’ll be more likely to keep the revenue flowing.
The process of adding an application for a request for proposal (RFP) is difficult when not understood clearly. Once understood it is critical to provide well written government contracts. Evelyn has had enough writing practice with construction contracts, government procurement and other similar topics that she understands the process. For additional information, see her other resources.
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