84 ©2018 WASHINGTON DC ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP DOING BUSINESS WITH THE
TIPS FOR LANDING A GOVERNMENT CONTRACT
• Research your intended buyer. Know the buyer’s budget.
• Develop a customer/agency specific strategy.
• Start with a small order and work from there.
• Allot sufficient time, resources, and knowledgeable
personnel when seeking a contract.
• Make use of the SBA’s counseling and training resources at
sba.gov/federal-contracting/counseling-help.
TYPES OF GOVERNMENT CONTRACTORS
There are two broad categories of government contractors:
• PRIME CONTRACTORS bid on and win contracts directly
from Government agencies. After award, the prime
contractor company is the entity that is legally responsible
for all aspects of fulfilling the contract, such as interacting
with the Government customer, recruiting staff,
organizing and managing teams of subcontractors, and
meeting all delivery requirements. Both large and small
businesses can serve as prime contractors.
• SUBCONTRACTORS join prime contractors’ teams, usually
to provide a specific capability or product. Subcontracting
is an excellent way to enter the Government contracting
market and to participate in large-scale opportunities. The
advantage of being a “sub” is that you’ll be responsible
only for your area of expertise, not managing the entire
contract. You can gain valuable experience (called “past
performance”) that will qualify you for future contracts.
But note that you’ll be serving two customers: the prime
contractor and the Government. Your prime contractor
will determine what percentage of the work (called
“workshare”) and which assignments (called “tasks”) you
will receive. You may or may not work directly with the
Government, at the discretion of your prime.
CONTRACTING OPPORTUNITY TOOL
Visit the U.S. General Services Administration’s (GSA) Forecast
of Contracting Opportunities tool at gsa.gov/acquisition/
forecast-of-contracting-opportunities to see upcoming
contracting opportunities, filtering by agency, contract award
status, location, NAICS code, and contract value.
LOCAL & FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
SET-ASIDES
Most Federal Government agencies “set aside” a percentage
of their acquisitions (what they buy) for small and
disadvantaged businesses. In some cases, these set-asides
might consist of certain types of tasks on larger contracts.
In other cases, entire contracts may be designated for small
businesses. In fact, every Federal Government purchase
valued from $3,500 to $150,000 is automatically set aside
for small businesses; purchases exceeding $150,000 are set
aside for small businesses as long as there are at least two
companies that could do the work.
The Government is particularly interested in buying goods and
services from small businesses for several reasons, including:
• To ensure that large businesses don’t “muscle out”
small businesses
• To gain access to the innovation and agility small
businesses are great at providing
• To support entrepreneurs as drivers of economic
development and job creation
• To offer commercial opportunities to socioeconomically
disadvantaged business owners
The Federal Government has specified annual prime
contracting goals for designated small businesses. The
current, Government-wide procurement goal stipulates that
at least 23% of all Federal Government contracting dollars
should be awarded to small businesses. In addition, targeted
sub-goals are established for the following small business
categories:
• Women Owned Small Business – 5%
• Small Disadvantaged Business – 5%
• Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business – 3%
• HUBZone – 3%
Visit sba.gov/partners/contracting-officials/small-businessprocurement/
set-aside-procurement to learn more.
STEPS TO REGISTERING AS A FEDERAL
CONTRACTOR AND CERTIFYING YOUR
BUSINESS AS “SMALL”
1. Obtain a D-U-N-S number. This is a unique nine-digit
identification number for each physical location of your
business. The assignment of a D-U-N-S number is quick
and free for all businesses required to register with
the Federal Government for contracts or grants. Visit
fedgov.dnb.com/webform to register.
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