Being proactive in the federal marketplace requires government contractors to perform a diverse set of activities in order to position themselves for the most opportunities. When I talk to government contractors, both small and large, I often hear some of the same frustrations. The top 5 things I hear are:

We often hear from the public sector that web-based attacks that occur at companies like Adobe, Forbes, Sony, or Anthem are not their problem. Public Sector organizations secure their own networks with the best hardware, detection software, and penetration testing, and have in place stringent rules about passwords and top-notch use policies that ensure they are safe. In every case, the security chain is only as strong as its weakest link.

"What is a GSA Schedule contract?" This question may seem like it would have a simple answer, but if you’re completely new to the topic, the explanation can become a bit complex. You may already be familiar with the endless acronyms of the Federal Government, and in this language sometimes referred to as “Government speak,” everything has the potential to sound overly advanced, bureaucratic and cumbersome. However, in approaching this question differently, it is not as advanced as it sounds.

Did you miss our presentation yesterday afternoon? You can now download a free copy of this presentation. If you're looking to build a thriving government practice, you must first understand how to get your practice off the ground, build relationships with key decision makers, and ultimately win government business. Download our webinar Selling to the Government - Session 1: Building Your Government Practice to learn:

When it comes to writing government proposals, everyone who has responded to a government RFP (request for proposal) knows they are often limited to “page count:” the number of pages that the response is limited to. Government entities often limit the pages to the minimum number they believe a contractor needs to explain their solution. As a reader, you can't blame them; they are often reviewing many responses and don’t want to have to sit and read through hundreds of pages of text. And as writing the government RFP response, you don’t want to write hundreds of pages of text. Having read through several responses personally, and coming across pages of just text -- just looking at it is exhausting. How many times have you tried to explain something verbally in a meeting, only to revert to drawing it on a white board to explain it to your audience? The same applies to responding to government RFPs. Sometimes, just writing an explanation is not enough to ensure your audience understands what is being said. You need to illustrate it.

Two of the oldest GSA eTools are also two of its most powerful when examining competition on the GSA Schedule Program - Schedule Sales Query (SSQ) and GSA Advantage!