There are literally thousands of RFPs available at all government levels. Government contracts vary in award size and scope, but for many small to mid-size businesses looking to jump star or even create a nice financial cushion to withstand the ups and downs that happen throughout the year, even small contracts can be beneficial. Here are just a few places to start your search for that perfect government business opportunity.
Where to Find End of Year Contracting Opportunities
FedBizOpps.gov – All federal contracts over $25,000 are listed on FedBizOpps.gov, and the site allows you to effectively filter by release date, service code, region and has the added feature of giving members announcement notifications as they arise. The site is free to use and is a powerful tool for both novices and experts in government contracting.
RFP Search Pay Services – There are dozens and dozens of RFP search services that allow you to filter by region and industry type. The problem with this is that by the time interested bidders hear about these opportunities, several other competitors have likely already heard about the announcements long before and have taken the first steps in researching and writing their bids. This significantly decreases your chances of winning the contract, and could cost your business several thousands of dollars in time and resources spent searching for and preparing your bid.
Local Search – For local government opportunities you might find that the best place to search might be your local newspapers or government agency’s website for business opportunities. Although they aren’t limited to working exclusively with local businesses, county or city government agencies often prefer to work with businesses that can directly contribute to the local economy and have a earned a positive reputation
Smarter Ways to Take Advantage of End of Fiscal Year Business Opportunities
Because there is such a small window to effectively bid on end of fiscal year contracts released in the Summer months, it can be quite difficult for many businesses to invest time their time and resources scrambling to write proposals. It’s best to anticipate which contracts will be released in the Summer months by searching for opportunities well ahead of time.
SmartProcure– A Better Way to Search. SmartProcure is a proprietary database of purchasing histories of thousands of local, state, and federal agencies. It’s an effective way of searching for and identifying business opportunities long before there’s even an RFP or RFQ released to the public. Using this tool on its own, or along with one of the other methods listed in this blog, gives you a tremendous advantage over hundreds of other vendors who sit and wait for opportunities to come to them.
Get Personal – Meeting in person with contracting officers and program managers throughout the year is an extremely effective way of both finding bid opportunities before they are released and as a way to expose your business as a credible solution to the government’s contracting needs. Find government agencies contracting or purchasing departments’ contact information and arrange a meeting with officers to introduce yourself and market your business and business brand.
Utilizing a combination of a few or all of the methods above will surely increase your chances of finding those great opportunities that come around at the end of the government’s fiscal year. And as long as there are products and services agencies need to procure for the public and for itself, you know that there will be a reliable government contract waiting for your business. Don’t miss the opportunity.
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