Tag: federal buyer

MasterMind Monday: How to Prepare for Your Call and Get Invited Back?

Posted on by Eric Coffie

Learn how to prepare for your call and get invited back in this blog highlight of our second Mastermind Monday video!

GETTING THE FEDERAL BUYER’S ATTENTION IS NOT EASY

Winning contracts in the federal marketplace is a long cycle and it can really be disheartening for the folks who never experience success because they expect something to happen in the first few months. 

As Carrie Fisher said, “Instant gratification takes too long,” and if that resonates with you, then the federal market is not your happy place.  

Why is this? Because getting your federal buyer’s attention is not easy.  The federal buyer needs to trust you.

“All the contract door openers in the world can’t do that, if you haven’t done the work to win and earn the real trust.”

With this in mind, you need to consider the fact that getting in a meeting with the federal buyer is just the first step, the real win is to get invited back. 

So, how can you stay committed and stay engaged in the effort of winning the federal business when nothing seems to happen for the longest time? Continue reading this blog. 

THE FEDERAL BUYER DOESN’T RETURN MY CALL

When someone doesn’t return your calls, our brains start to make up answers that they’re not interested in your product or they have already found other people, among other things. 

However, the only reason is if they didn’t call you back. Until you talk to them, you have no way of knowing what happened to your inquiries. 

“The only thing you can know when your federal buyer is not returning your calls is that they didn’t return your calls.”

Remember, in a really distracted universe, when everybody and everything is vying for your attention, it can take 15 to 30 instances to get from contact to contract.

THINGS TO DO TO GET THE FEDERAL BUYER’S ATTENTION

1. Think in very human terms. 

When somebody is trying to sell you something, but they don’t know about you and your company, what would you feel?

Remember, we are humans, and so are your federal buyers; so grasp the concept of thinking generously in very human terms about the person you’re trying to reach.

“If you’re too busy to learn about your federal buyer, they sure don’t have time to learn about you.”

2. Experiment.

It can take from 15 to 30 instances to get from contact to your first contract, so don’t just stop after a few call.

With this, you also need to consider experimenting how you communicate with them and what time of the day. 

Remember, as business owners, we are open to take calls every time, so let’s also consider that towards our federal buyer. 

3. Dress the part. 

Are your online profiles well-alined? Is the information about your business the same as it was written in the SAM database?

Consider that your average federal buyer checks you out 12 times online before they have the first contact with you, so if your online profiles are not aligned, that might be the reason they don’t respond to your calls. 

Remember, you want to be taken seriously as a federal contractor, so you should dress for the occasion and this includes your online wardrobe.

“When you’re showing off in the federal arena, your electronic wardrobe also matters.”

4. Pay attention to customer experience. 

Pay attention to the experience that you’re giving somebody when you are wooing them. 

What is going on for them? How could I be of service to them? What happens when we treat marketing and sales as acts of service? 

“Give somebody the quality of experience when you’re wooing them that they’re gonna start to believe that you’re going to continue to give them when they say yes.”

5. Solve small problems.

As small businesses, you might not have the huge capabilities that are needed in million-dollar contracts.

In this case, why not solve small government problems? There are state and local contract opportunities. If you are part of a set-aside, you can also do a joint venture or a partnership. 

The reason why these are recommended is the fact that this can help you in improving your past performance while also letting the federal buyer learn more about you. 

“Somebody who has already done business with you is more likely to do business with you again than somebody who has never heard of you.

HERE’S OUR CHECKLISTS TO HELP YOU!

Every profession has their own checklist in every process that they follow. This is also the same in meeting your federal buyer.

With this in mind, here is the checklist in every stages of the process and the things to do:

Pre-meeting

    • Why: What are your goals? Why are you meeting with them? 
    • Who: Who’s gonna be there? Who’s gonna be the hosts, guests, speakers, and notetakers?
  • Where: Where or what platform? What location? What facility? 
  • How: How will you get there? What are the security, the clearance, rehearsals needed?
  • What: What are you gonna do? What is your agenda? What are the kinds of handouts you are allowed to have? What kind of equipment and media to use? 
  • Emergency: What are your backup plans? What will you do if the technology fails? What will you do if somebody doesn’t arrive? What would you do if you couldn’t get into the building? What would you do if the security clearance papers couldn’t get there? 

Meeting day

    • Final Checks: Check your technology and look for the point of contact upon arrival.
    • Where: Use the necessary transportation and arrive ahead of time. 
    • Who: Sign-in sheets are really important. Know who’s in the room.
    • What: Set up something that you can deliver in 10 minutes and consider the 60% of your time for Q&A, discussions, and engagement.
  • How:  Relax. Your federal buyer is just human. Be grateful and show empathy.

Follow-up

  • Who: Have an internal and agency debriefing. 
  • What: Send what you said you would. 
  • When: Send it when and how you said you would.
  • How: Send follow-up in a thorough manner and with gratitude. 

RESOURCES

No one is entitled to a federal contract, but you can earn the federal buyer’s trust. So, continue building their trust and wait for the response that will yield more contracts!

“I remember another story about calling them. Calling, calling, and calling. And finally when they needed me, they called me more than I called them.”

If you want to learn more about how to prepare for your call and get invited back, then check our full Mastermind Monday video with Judy Bradt. 

You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

How to prepare for your call and get invited back with Judy Bradt

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4-3y9RcOaM

Mastermind Monday: What is a Micro-Purchase and How to Use These?

Posted on by Eric Coffie

Here’s what you need to know about micro-purchase and how to use these to let a federal buyer purchase up to $10,000 from you!

MICRO PURCHASE

A warranted federal contracting officer or someone with buying authority may purchase goods or services through a credit card worth up to the value of $10,000.

These things are called micro-purchases. It can be anything— from cutting grasses to a lunch and learn session.

This even happens with virtually no competition, no small business set aside, and the Buy American Act does not apply.

“The people want to make it easy— to give you a little bit of a try to do a project that they don’t have to run a big fancy competition for.”

So, why is this relevant? 

Well, as a small business or a business that is just new in the federal marketplace, the chance is so low for you to win a huge contract because you have no past performance yet. 

The good thing with these micro-purchases is these are the ones that most big contractors don’t look at.

Apart from that, the federal buyer is also encouraged to award these contracts to local suppliers.

Let’s say you provide interior painting services. If you’re close to a federal installation or an agency that buys your specific service, then you can talk to this federal buyer and be directly given the job. 

Most importantly, consider that business begets more business. A specific buyer won’t give you large contracts, if they don’t know that you can execute it well. 

So, what should you do? Take advantage of the micro-purchases and show the end user that there’s a low to no risk working with you. 

NUMBER ONE SECRET TO WIN MICRO PURCHASES

The number one thing you need to win a micro purchase is your phone.

Here’s what you need to do… leave a voicemail. 

It doesn’t have to be a two-minute voicemail. It can be a 30 second, with a maximum of one minute. 

With that in mind, make sure that you treat your voicemails like gold. Remember, you have 30 seconds of someone’s undivided attention. 

Most importantly, give it with the amount of loving care. Here’s an example voicemail for you:

“I’m so glad that we’re connected. So sorry I missed you. Here’s what it is that I’m calling about. It’s Colin calling with assessment services that you can use and the best value anywhere. Check your email, I’ve got details. Missed you today. I’m going to call you back Thursday at two. Talk to you soon.”

Then, once you make that voicemail, you make a note on your calendar and call them back. Pay attention to what time zone they’re in and call them when you say you will. 

Consider that you might have to reach them through voicemail many times before they answer your call, but just be patient and persistent. 

“You’re going to think about three or four different things that represent the best value that your company provides, what sets you apart, why are you memorable, why do they really want to talk to you.” 

THINGS TO CONSIDER IN TERMS OF MICRO PURCHASES

1. These are not posted.

Micro-purchases are not posted online or in any database; these only happen through conversations with the federal buyer. 

So, if you’re looking to do business at the micro-purchase level, you need to form a personal relationship with the players and layers of a specific agency. 

In most cases, you can first build a relationship with the small business specialist.

This person might not be able to lead you to the person with the micro-purchase power, but they can advocate and help fine tune your navigation in building relationships with the end user. 

2. These are location-specific.

Micro-purchases are location specific because you’re delivering a product or a service to a specific location.

3. These don’t need fancy agreements. 

Micro-purchases don’t need a contract agreement because the exchange about a specific purchase mostly happens through email or by conversation. 

Still, if you want to use an agreement for some purposes, you can download an agreement for micro-purchases online. 

ADVICE FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

1. Find someone with a specific need.

Behind every contract agreement is a real federal human who has everything on the line when they choose you. 

So, if you want to sell a specific service, start close to home and find someone with a specific need. 

Consider that if you have never sold to anyone in the federal government before, they’re going to want to see that you’ve sold the product or the service to another organization or customer that has a size and scale of requirement really similar to theirs.

2. Take time to know your federal buyer.

2.1 million federal employees are already on LinkedIn, so why not start with that to learn more about them and build relationships with them? 

Consider that this is a great time to do this because once the fourth quarter of the fiscal year starts, your federal buyer may already be looking for companies to do some micro-purchase with. 

Also, a lot of information about federal contracts and your players and layers are publicly open, so take advantage of those.

3. You have to do the work. 

It’s critical that you invest your time and effort in learning government contracts and building relationships.

It’s not enough that you watch a 10-minute video and say you figured everything out because you still need to do the work. You have to watch the content and you have to apply it. 

“You can’t do half of the activity and expect to get the whole result.”

RESOURCES

If you want to learn more about what micro-purchase is and how to use this to your advantage, then check our full Mastermind Monday video with Judy Bradt. 

You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

What is a micro purchase and how to use them?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhvAU8HfgRw

MasterMind Monday: Get in Front of Your Federal Buyer and Win!

Posted on by Eric Coffie

In this blog, we list our new MasterMind Monday highlights for you to get in front of your federal buyer and “win” in your meeting!

SET YOUR GOALS THIS 2021!

As the year 2021 starts, it’s also best to set your goals as early as now.

Also, aside from just wishing it on the stars, write these down and increase your odds of success.

You can write it on your notebook, on your phone, and anywhere else where you can see it. 

Also, if you think you need to change something in your goal, then you are free to change things. You can restructure it depending on your preference. Just be committed about what you’re doing and keep all your goals in mind. 

“When we start to process this stuff in our mind, we make a shift and we look at what we’re doing and we start doing things a little bit differently to create the lanes and the pathways, so these things can happen.”

LOOK AT CURRENT RULES AND REGULATIONS

Be your own pundit. Do your own detective work and make a guess. What do you think is gonna happen in your marketplace?

Consider what President Joe Biden said:

“Remember, our future cannot depend on the government alone. The ultimate solutions lie in the attitudes and the actions of the American people.”

This is where government contractors play a tremendous role. If you have seen the inauguration, the organizations that provided the scaffolding and helped in everything in the inauguration were government contractors. 

We ushered in that change too. We, as a community, were represented right there on that stage, whether it was your company specifically or not.

In terms of the new administration, remember that everyone is also trying to figure everything out. So, while new appointees are figuring certain rules and regulations that might matter to you, do your own research as well. 

There’s new rules coming out all the time that you’ve got to be aware of, so stay on top of these and remain compliant.

It is also recommended for you to follow budgets and agency forecasts. Luckily, these are published and can be seen by the public.

So, look at the data that are showing up in these reports and analyze your business strategies. Do you need to pivot? What companies are getting all the work and how you can work with them?

CHANGES AND OPPORTUNITIES THAT YOU SHOULD CHECK

1. LPTA

If the Lowest Price Technically Acceptable (LPTA) contracts are making you poor, then better check the recent changes made in the rule. 

Analyze why LPTA has been hurting your business and get to know the new rules. 

2. Pandemic Response

With the COVID-19 pandemic still terrorizing the world, you might need to check what are the federal government’s requirements related to pandemic response.

You might have the needed products and services that can help, so don’t just wait to quote something you see on SAM or anywhere online, go directly to the agencies needing it the most. 

Besides, what’s the worst thing that can happen aside from them saying no? So, call them up and say that you wanted to help. 

3. Telework and Virtual Outreach

The federal government is also doing virtual outreach, so take advantage of these activities. Find out the next one by contacting small business specialists and other decision-makers. 

Also, remember that most people are doing telework right now, so call your potential government agencies and provide them something of value while also building relationships with them. 

4. CCMC

Those of you who are in the IT industries and those who are doing business with the Department of Defense should already be tracking your Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CCMC).

You should also learn more about this matter and pay attention in order for you to become compliant. 

5. Diversity Inclusion Trainings

The prohibition on diversity inclusion training has been rescinded, so those that are developing these kinds of training are once again welcome and encouraged in the federal agencies.

FEDERAL CONTRACTING IS A RELATIONSHIP GAME

There’s no such thing as doing business with the government. There’s only doing business with people.

Remember, there’s a real federal human behind every federal agency who puts everything on the line when they choose you.

In fact, it is recommended for you to reach out to your local Procurement Technical Assistance Centers, your target agency’s Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU), and other government decision-makers. 

Apart from that, why not work with other government contractors? If you are a small business, you really want to expand your network and work with primes. 

Consider that these primes also need to reach their subcontract requirements. They need subcontractors that are familiar in a specific facility and that can provide the product or service that they need to fulfill the overall contract. 

RESOURCES

In doing business in the federal marketplace, you should learn to be a detective. Track the changes in the govcon policies and analyze how these affect your business and the future.

If you want to learn more about how to get in front of your federal buyer, then check the full Mastermind Monday video with Judy Bradt. 

You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

How to get in front of your Federal Buyer and “Win” your meeting

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbLqQWtFiZE