There are several ways to locate government agencies whose needs match what you can provide.
Once you go through the process of thinking about your business in terms of the end items that you are capable of providing for the government, you are ready to identify prospective customers: the buying offices within the federal government that have a need for your product or service.
A simple rule of thumb is that if the item is a commercial-type or general-purpose item, there is a good chance that the General Services Administration (GSA) buys it for both the military and civilian offices. Think of the GSA as the "Sears and Roebuck" of the government. This doesn't mean that the military or a civilian office won't be using the product; it just means that the GSA may issue the contract, and other government offices, both military and civilian, can buy off of that contract.
Examples of such products and services could be anything from furniture products and services, cleaning supplies, copier equipment, hardware and appliances to marketing, media, and public information services; paints, pest control, financial services, and training and travel services, just to name a few.
If the item or service is predominately military in nature, then one of the Department of Defense buying offices would be the place to go. The same is true for civilian agencies; if energy related, you may want to check out the Department of Energy as a probable customer.
One way to locate potential government customers is through FedBizOpps (Federal Business Opportunities), the official website listing of all federal government contracting opportunities and awards over $25,000. Government buyers are able to post information about their business opportunities directly to FedBizOpps via the Internet at www.fbo.gov.
This website is updated every business day, with approximately 500-1000 new notices being posted on a daily basis. In addition to identifying specific government buying offices (your potential customers), you can also use this website to find the person within each buying office who is there to answer questions and provide information to small businesses looking to sell to that office.
Here's how to proceed. For demonstration purposes, let's assume that you want to identify the government buying offices for the Department of Energy:
Now that you have identified your customers within the agency that interests you, it is useful for you to note, for future reference, that there is a variety of other meaningful information available to you here. Although you aren't quite ready to pursue live bids quite yet, when the time comes, you can also get synopses of current bid opportunities for that particular office grouped by posted date or classification code, as well as the location of the buying office.
One way to locate government buying offices is to pick up your local phone book, search the blue (or Yellow Pages) under "Government, federal," and then look for a listing for the purchasing office or small business office. If neither of these offices is identified, then call the office(s) listed and make an appointment to meet with them.
Once there, introduce yourself and your company, and provide the buyer with your business card and a listing of the supplies and services you can offer. If you have one, also provide the URL of your business web page. This gives buyers another opportunity to see who you are and what you can do.
Don't be afraid to ask questions. Find out what products and services they buy. If they don't buy the product or service that you are offering, ask them to refer you to an office and a person that does.
Then later, use the first contact as a referral to the next. For example: "I recently talked to Joe/Mary and they suggested I talk to you for help in bidding on government contracts. What products and/or services do you buy?" This helps establish credibility with the new contact. It is important to get names and numbers for future use.
If you have already registered your business with the government, let the buyer know that. Over time, be sure to follow-up with the buyer to see if there are any new solicitations you can bid on and, in addition, to ingrain your company's name in the buyer's mind.
Instead of doing the work yourself, you can subscribe to a "bid matching" service to provide you with leads on bids and prospective customers. The bid service, with your help, will develop a company profile using keywords and government product and service codes to help match your company's capabilities to the needs of the government.
Using that profile to screen for suitable leads, the bid service will then search on the Internet for opportunities and will also get bid opportunity information directly from the government. You will receive the leads by e-mail, and all you have to do is decide whether to bid. However, keep in mind that this service only provides the leads; it will not help you understand a particular bid. Also, remember that they are getting this information from the same sources you can search on the Internet yourself. If your going to pay someone, make sure you get some added value.
You can locate a bid-matching service by searching on the Internet under "bid matching service," or by asking for a referral from the small business specialist in the government buying office or from your local PTAC. Since bid lead services are usually not close by, contact is by phone or e-mail.
This method works much the same way as a bid-matching service, but costs you nothing (you are already paying for it with your tax dollars). Stop in the Procurement Technical Assistance Center nearest you, sign up to be a client, and get your prospective buyers and bid leads through the PTAC. Their automated systems scan hundreds of government and commercial websites, delivering emails with the latest opportunities.
As you go through the process, the PTAC will be available to answer your questions or will refer you to someone who can. It can also get copies of specifications and standards for you at minimum cost and do some market research. In addition, it offers training in government procurement practices through seminars and conferences and assistance in understanding e-commerce. To locate the PTAC nearest you, go to the Association of Procurement Technical Assistance Centers website, which has easy-to-use listings with up-to-date contact information.
Using a bid-matching service or a PTAC actually identifies customers and gets bid leads in one step. Some leads will not prove to be biddable for a variety of reasons, but the leads themselves will give you a lot of useful information on an item, including the buying office. It "jump starts" you in the process.
As you identify government buyers, keep in mind that there are two parts of the federal government to look at: the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Civilian Agencies. As we mentioned earlier, the DoD is the largest buyer, but you may not fit there. Don't worry if you don't; remember that "green is green."
A list of the major government buying offices, both military and civilian, is available at Win Government Contracts. Additional information may be found at business.gov and USA.gov.