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How Can I Win Government Contracts? Part 2

Guest post by: Mash Bonigala

Article Overview: I know the government has specific initiatives to recruit and hire small business contractors for governmental projects but how can I get these jobs? I started my search on this topic at the source, the government. On the SBA website there are tutorials on how to apply for and win government contracts. By taking one of these convenient online courses all of my questions were answered. I want to share some of this information but I would also recommend that anyone interested in acquiring government contracts take this online course themselves.

How Can I Win Government Contracts? Part 2

I know the government has specific initiatives to recruit and hire small business contractors for governmental projects but how can I get these jobs? I started my search on this topic at the source, the government. On the SBA website there are tutorials on how to apply for and win government contracts. By taking one of these convenient online courses all of my questions were answered. I want to share some of this information but I would also recommend that anyone interested in acquiring government contracts take this online course themselves.

In the first blog I focused on what the market entails and the basics of who can apply for federal contracts. In this second blog on the subject I will focus on what you can do to win these contracts for your small business.

Before you begin looking for contracts you need to realize that the government has contracts that are offered exclusively to small businesses. The other piece of information you should know is what “size standard” your business fits. Each type of business will need to meet the qualifications for a small business based on the type of product or service the business offers. These qualifications are based on either a certain amount of gross income or the number of employees. The SBA website has a table for size standards. Just complete a search from the main website page. When you look at this table you will notice that every business fits into a class of products and services. The government uses the North American Industry Classification System or NAICS. Before searching for opportunities you will want to find out how your business is classified within this system.

Finding Contract Opportunities

The government lists all of its current contract opportunities for over $25,000 at. Many businesses start working for the government by becoming a subcontractor. The SBA has a searchable database of subcontracting opportunities called SUB-Net, which can be found through a simple search from the SBA website.

Selling to the Government

Another avenue to finding governmental opportunities is by selling directly to the government. The first step in this process is to register your company in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) and the Online Representations & Certifications Application. This will allow you to market directly to federal agencies. By registering to this database federal agencies will also be able to search you out and request your services and you may be invited to conferences and other events designed to assist small businesses in obtaining government contracts.

SBA Certification Initiatives

The federal government has designed specific initiatives to help out disadvantaged businesses. These include, the HUBZone program, 8(a) Business Development Program, and Small Disadvantaged Business Certification. These programs assist businesses located in economically disadvantaged areas that may not have access to the same resources as other businesses.

Next Steps

In summary, the next steps you should make if you are ready to become a government contractor:

1. Find you NAICs code
2. Apply for a D-U-N-S number
3. Register in the Central Contractor Registration
4. Read the applicable portions of the FAR
5. Search the subcontractor database on SBA.gov and the contractor opportunities at

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Article Tags: business contractors, convenient online courses, government contracts, governmental projects, initiatives, jobs, sba website, small business



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Patent information - I'm also interested in Part 2. Thanks.


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