Some believe that marketing is a critical component to having success in the federal market. Marketing efforts make the public, official buyers and end users aware of your company and your products or services. My definition of marketing includes distributing press releases, advertising, participating in conferences and trade shows, conducting seminars, and employing targeted direct mail, e-mail and fax campaigns.

As a general rule, it's unwise to spend big dollars on marketing when first entering the government marketplace. Remember, the key to success in this market is focusing on target agencies. Marketing tends to take you in the opposite direction. Early in the game, your interest in securing contracts should far outweigh your interest in brand identity.

Marketing works best for large government contractors. Why?

• They have more money.
• They have GSA contracts and other contracting vehicles they can advertise to government end users and buyers.
• They need to let other companies know about their capabilities for teaming purposes.
• They like to get together at conferences and share war stories over cocktails and hors d'oeuvres.

In a limited sense, companies market as a natural byproduct of doing business. Examples include sending out a capabilities brochure to target customers, issuing an occasional press release when there is something significant to report, writing articles for publications, going to local networking breakfasts, and attending or sponsoring charity events. That's not what we're talking about here. These forms of cheap marketing can be effective. What we're saying is be cautious about traveling to out-of-state, multi-day conferences or placing $10,000 ads; the money can be better spent elsewhere.

A GSA Proposal Solution Designed Specifically for Small Businesses

GSA Schedules eLab - Develop your GSA proposal in 3 days at our eLab. Fedmarket provides you with a Request for Information (RFI) prior to your arrival at our eLab. You are instructed to bring the requested corporate data with you to the course. Attendees should, with the assistance of our GSA staff, complete their GSA offer prior to the end of the eLab's third day. Many attendees complete the process and leave with a completed proposal within two working days. If you are unfamiliar with the proposal process, the GSA eLab is the solution for you. The GSA eLab is offered monthly at the Federal Sales Academy in Bethesda, Maryland. Read more...

Sign-up for our GSA Proposal Preparation eLab today!

To learn more about our GSA products and services, call 866-519-4482, Ext. 110 for assistance.

Federal Sales 101: Winning Government Business

Participating in the federal sales game can be an extremely frustrating and overwhelming endeavor. Chasing down leads often turns into an exercise in trying to negotiate your way through a maze with many, many dead ends. Our seminar "Federal Sales 101: Winning Government Business" will put managers and sales people on the right path to establishing immediate relationships and closing government business. The seminar is led by Federal Sales Academy Director and "On the Sales Firing Line" columnist, Eileen Kent. Read more...

Sign-up today for the next "Federal Sales 101: Winning Government Business" class!

To learn more about this seminar, call 866-519-4482, Ext. 110 for assistance.

Call Fedmarket's sales staff at (888) 661-4094, Ext. 8 with questions concerning these or any other products or services Fedmarket offers. E-mail inquires may be sent to the following: sales@thefederalmarketplace.com.