Government Contract: Why You Shouldn't Forget About Them

Thinking about hopping into the Federal Government market? Don't forget to make contracting a key piece of your launch. Many organizations start their Government practice by focusing on hiring an experienced sales team, "Federalizing" their message and presentations, registering for best Government focused conferences.... and don't spend nearly enough time thinking about or planning for the contracting phase of a Government sales cycle. Not having a well thought out, diversified contracting strategy can not only lengthen what can already be an arduous contracting process but can also hamper your overall sales activities. 

Over the years I have worked with and spoken to many companies that assume when the time comes they will "figure out" how to get contracting completed. This approach to contracting is a guaranteed way to either, best case extends your sales cycle or worst case, turn off potential customers. Government programs will ask, often times early on in the sales process "how do we purchase your solution?" If you don't have a good answer that includes a couple of paths to access your products or services many agencies will not consider you. If two organizations have similar solutions and one is easier to purchase (i.e. access to the right contracting vehicles) chances are the Government will choose the solution that is easier to purchase. 

The Federal Government (in the vast majority of cases) cannot purchase directly from a company, they must purchase utilizing a contracting vehicle which at a high level establishes pricing as well as terms and conditions of the licenses. My recommendation to companies just starting out in the Government space is to find a qualified re-seller and get your products/services on their GSA Schedule. Having access to a GSA Schedule is a good baseline vehicle that every Government agency can utilize to purchase goods and services. When evaluating your re-seller, you should also make sure they can provide you access to other Government Wide Acquisition Contracts (GWAC's) as well as partners that have socio-economic status. (HUB Zone, Veteran Owned, Small Business, etc) 

Establishing (early on) a diversified contracting approach as part of your overall sales strategy in my opinion is critical to your organization’s success in Government sales.