Government Contracting Blog

Government contracts present a world of opportunities for businesses seeking stability, growth, and profitability. They can be highly profitable for businesses, offering stable contracts and a steady revenue stream. However, the process of qualifying for these opportunities can be complex and demanding. Even if you already have a government contract like a GSA Schedule, you’ll come across several contracting opportunities that you’ll need to bid on to win business through your Schedule.

Most government solicitations start off with some form of market research, including, but not limited to, Sources Sought Notices (SSNs), or Requests for Information (RFI), where the government generally will state their requirements and see how industry responds. This allows the government to ‘define’ their requirement, but also determine availability from commercial providers and how the agency can set up competition requirements at the solicitation/Task Order level.

So, you have been recently awarded with a GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) and are probably wondering what tools are available to you as a GSA Schedule contractor. While there are several websites and resources at your fingertips, we’re going to focus on GSA eBuy, an online procurement tool that allows eligible government agencies to procure products, solutions, and services from GSA contract holders registered on the eBuy platform. Let’s cover what GSA eBuy is and how you can use it your advantage.

Successfully qualifying government opportunities for your organizations pipeline is a vital step in becoming a successful government contractor. Like many things in life, the qualification stage in the government contracting process requires due diligence on your part to ensure that you can meet all of the stated requirements.

The federal government uses Simplified Acquisition Procedures, otherwise known as ‘SAP,' to help streamline the contracting process. In layman’s terms, SAPs emphasizes the “keep it simple” approach. SAPs are governed by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), specifically FAR Part 2 and Part 13, and aim to reduce the overall administrative burden and time of awarding procurements below a certain dollar threshold. SAPs are designed for the purchase of relatively simple supply or service requirements. If you find yourself curious about the FAR in large and want to know more, please feel free to check out our recent blog post titled Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 101.

If you are interested in selling to the government, but don’t want to deal with the potential headache of managing your own General Services Administration (GSA) Multiple Award (MAS) Schedule, an authorized GSA reseller could be the right choice for your company. While having your own prime GSA Schedule has its own benefits, sometimes it’s not the right fit for an organization. Managing your own GSA Schedule requires the right internal resources, personnel, and funding, and often comes with many upfront challenges including the cost and time to obtain a prime GSA Schedule. Partnering with a reseller can reduce the overall compliance risks in selling to the government, while also increasing overall speed to market in the public sector marketplace.