Ever wonder how your small business tucked away in Southern Arizona could do business with the federal government?
Steve Feinman, a SCORE mentor, offers the following tips on how to secure federal contracts.
Visit the Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) for Arizona (www.azsbdc.net/special-programs/procurement/). It offers a variety of services, at no charge or minimal fees, for companies that want to do business with federal, state and local governments. It will help you register, research past contracts and determine whether your company is ready to do business with the government. It also sends out information regarding small business set-aside opportunities.
Attend a free SCORE workshop on Saturday, Nov. 7 from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on this topic at the University of Phoenix campus at 300 S. Craycroft Road (just south of Broadway). Registration is limited to 20, so don’t wait; email mentoring@scoresouthernaz.org today.
Make an appointment with a SCORE mentor who can guide you to develop applicable business, marketing and financial plans and help you sell to the federal government.
Do some research to become familiar with the federal acquisition environment. Check out the Small Business Administration (SBA.gov), and WashingtonTechnology.com.
You cannot do business with the federal government unless youโre registered with the System for Award Management (SAM.gov). Make sure to review the instructions before you start and have your company documents, Employer Identification Number and business checking account information handy.
Explore the Federal Business Opportunity (fbo.gov) site, where many opportunities are announced and listed. You can do searches and set up a search agent to notify you of opportunities. Find procurement opportunities, download the documents and study them so you get a sense of what youโll be required to do to bid and do the work.
For more information, see: tinyurl.com/ntaagpo
