U S General Services Administration Federal Acquisition Service

U. S. General Services Administration Federal Acquisition Service Marketing to the Federal Government A Business Primer For GSA Industry Partners Customer Accounts & Research Division Marketing & Business Support Branch GSA Federal Acquisition Service

Federal Acquisition Service Today’s Agenda • Overview • Federal Government Customers • Conducting Market Research • Developing an Effective Marketing Strategy • Other Useful Tools and Resources • Wrap-Up • Q&A 2

Federal Acquisition Service GSA Acquisition Centers Management Services Center for Facilities Maintenance & Hardware Greater Southwest Acquisition Center National Administrative Services & Office Supplies Acquisition Center Integrated Workplace, Information Technology, Center for Innovative Acquisition Development & Automotive Center 3

Federal Acquisition Service National Administrative Services and Office Supplies Acquisition Center Business Development Marketing Customer Service ***** 4

Federal Acquisition Service National Administrative Services & Office Supplies Acquisition Center Ø 67 Cameras, Photographic Printers & Related Supplies & Services Ø 738 X HR/EEO and Social/Counseling Services Ø 75 Office Products/ Supplies and Services and New Products/Technology 5

Federal Acquisition Service National Administrative Services & Office Supplies Acquisition Center 76 Publication Media 81 IB Shipping, Packaging and Packing Supplies 874 Mission Oriented Business Integrated Services MOBIS (Training Services) 00 JWOD now Ability One - NIB/NISH Products (Skilcraft brand) GSA Global Supply 6

Federal Acquisition Service Federal Government Customers Who Buys? Decision Makers and Influencers in federal agencies: Ø Contracting Officer/Specialist Ø Program Managers Ø End Users 7

Federal Acquisition Service Contracting Officers/Specialists Warranted by Congress to negotiate and enter into binding contracts with commercial firms Ø Gate Keepers of Programs and Initiatives Ø Generally Work for Project and Program Managers Ø Post Requests online for: Quotes, Proposals, and for Requests For Information 8

Federal Acquisition Service Program Managers Ø Establish “big-picture” requirements based on Agency Missions, Goals, Initiatives and Plans Ø Identify and Allocate Resources Ø Authors of Statements of Work (SOW) Ø Key reviewers of vendor capabilities 9

Federal Acquisition Service End-Users Ø Your largest target market for products - Credit Card holders Ø Federal civilians and Do. D employees Ø Often have major input in selecting the product/service offering the best value and ease of use 10

Federal Acquisition Service GSA Schedules Why Buyers Use Them What GSA Tells Prospective Customers: Ø Ø Ø Ease of ordering Discounted prices, volume discounts Wide selection of contractors Direct relationships with contractors Orders count towards agency’s socio-economic goals Reduction of procurement lead time and administrative costs 11

Federal Acquisition Service Conducting Market Research Sources of Information and Customer Data Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS) Fed. Biz. Opps (FBO) Do. D Business Opportunities Schedule Sales Query Federal Government Agency Websites 12

Federal Acquisition Service Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS) https: //www. fpds. gov Central Repository of contract actions over $25, 000 Summary info on actions less than $25, 000 Identifies which federal civilian agencies are buying and what they are buying Users can run a variety of Reports 13

Federal Acquisition Service Fed. Biz. Opps www. fbo. gov Fed. Biz. Opps is the Government-wide Point of Entry for Procurement Opportunities over $25, 000 Good POC information Government buyers post their RFQs, RFPs, BPAs and Task Orders online Vendors can sign up for e-mail notifications based on NAIC Codes and Keywords Advanced Search capability 14

Federal Acquisition Service Schedule Sales Query ssq. gsa. gov Ø Schedule Sales Data as reported by schedule contractors Ø Variety of reports available Ø Goes back five years 15

Federal Acquisition Service Federal Government Agency Websites Ø What You Should Be Mining Websites for: Ø Contracting Opportunities and Forecasts Ø Contracting Office POC Info Ø Agency Small Business Info Ø New Procurement Initiatives Ø Agency Procurement Plans Ø Business Opportunity Forecasts Ø Industry Day Briefings 16

Federal Acquisition Service GSA Advantage! www. gsa. Advantage. gov GSAs powerful search-engine and online ordering system Benefits for vendors: Graphics included along with your product listing Easy to Navigate Increases potential for strong sales Provides instant visibility and ability to broadcast price changes easily Provides a direct link to your company’s homepage Reduces catalog printing and mailing costs 17

Federal Acquisition Service GSA’s e-Buy www. gsa. gov/ebuy Ø Ø Electronic Request for Quote and RFP/RFI system Provides vendors with a greater opportunity to respond to RFQs and RFPs Check e-Buy routinely for opportunities Receive e-mail notices of RFQ opportunities Access to all RFQs under SINS in which you hold contracts – Key Value: Schedule Holders only Point of Contact info, Contracting Officer Names, e-mail, phone number for mods and changes 18

Federal Acquisition Service Schedules e-Library www. gsa. gov/elibrary Ø The online source for GSA Schedule contract awards: Perform searches by SIN (category), contract number, contractor name, Schedule number or keyword Research other Schedule-holders in your industry Find Partners/Sub-contractor and Contractor Teaming Arrangements 19

Federal Acquisition Service Vendor Support Center The VSC is the Starting Gate Sign up for e-Buy – Schedule Holders Only View RFQs on e-Buy/Steps to Success New Contractor Orientation Webcast (take it!) Tips on how to succeed as a contractor GSA Steps Newsletter Access at: Toll Free: e-mail: vsc. gsa. gov 877 -495 -4849 vendor. support@gsa. gov 20

Federal Acquisition Service Develop a Market Strategy Strategies for targeting government buyers: Create a Capabilities Statement Target Buyers at peak government buying times Maximize web presence Send traffic to GSA Advantage! from your company website Actively participate in a variety of federal and state government; conferences, seminars & trade shows to generate leads and opportunities Know your NAICS codes Lease or Purchase Direct Mail Lists 21

Federal Acquisition Service Contractor Teaming Arrangements Expanding Your Business Opportunities Teaming Arrangements are created when two or more Multiple Award Schedule contractors join together to provide a solution to meet a federal customer need They independently abide by the terms of their individual contracts, but one contractor is designated, by the team, as Team Leader Contractors form these arrangements, at their discretion, when the result of their efforts produce the best solution for an agency’s requirement Non Schedule Holders can be a Subcontractor to Primes 22

Federal Acquisition Service Local GSA Customer Service Directors CSDs meet with federal civilian and Do. D customers Ø Hold Regional Events with customer attendance - Regional focus with the benefit of local knowledge - Go to www. gsa. gov/csd for POC information or call - 800 -488 -3111 23

Federal Acquisition Service Web Resources Ø GSAs Section 833 – gsa. gov/stateandlocal Ø Schedules Training - gsa. gov/cae. Go to ‘create new account’ Ø Schedules Info: gsa. gov/schedules and gsa. gov/masguide Ø Listing of Large Primes – gsa. gov/subdirectory Ø Publications: gsa. gov/cmls Ø Do. D RFQ Notices – http: //progate. daps. dla. mil Ø Lists: INPUT, e-Pipeline, Leadership Directories (input. com, epipeline. com, leadershipdirectories. com) 24

Federal Acquisition Service Finding Business Opportunities Ø Events: GSA Expo – expo. gsa. gov Regional/National Events – many types www. gsa. gov/events Acquisition Center Resources: Business Development Unit Marketing Unit Pamphlets and Brochures 25

Federal Acquisition Service Advertising - print Marke. Tips R 2 Liaison is Peter Davis; pete. davis@gsa. gov Phone (212) 264 -4781 Federal Times (federaltimes. com) Government Executive (govexec. com) Military Times (militarycity. com) Armed Forces Journal (armedforcesjournal. com) Federal Computer Week (fcw. com) Government Computer News (gcn. com) Government Security News (gsnmagazine. com) 26

Federal Acquisition Service National Administrative Services and Office Supplies Acquisition Center - POCs Ø Marketing Ø James Nicols Ø Alan Rosner 212 -264 -4828 212 -264 -0868 Ø General Information Ø smartshop@gsa. gov Ø 212 -264 -0868 Ø Customer Service Directors Ø Christine Lincoln 917 -282 -4933 27

Federal Acquisition Service QUESTIONS? 28