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GSA Schedules

Federal Sales Training

Proposals

Sales Tools


Articles

  • What is a GSA Schedule?
    A GSA schedule is an unfunded, five-year contract listing the prices the federal government has agreed to pay for a vendor's commercial products and services...
  • The downside of GSA Schedules
    GSA schedule contracts are an ideal vehicle for selling products and services to federal vendors. This is particularly true for small- to medium-sized businesses that cannot afford to obtain more than one multiple award schedule contract...
  • Does Competition Exist Among GSA Schedule Holders?
    Is there competition among GSA schedule holders? Like everything else in federal sales, the answer is yes, no, and maybe depending on who you talk to...
  • Negotiating GSA Prices
    The General Services Administration (GSA) appears to be placing more emphasis on obtaining the lowest possible price when negotiating GSA schedule contracts...
  • GSA the World's Biggest Customer
    The most confusing aspect of a GSA proposal is the requirement to disclose your discounting practices. GSA uses the disclosures to negotiate a discount equal to or better than the best discount you have extended to your commercial customers...
  • The Similarities and Differences Between Commercial and Government Sales
    Most people outside Washington, D.C., view the federal market as strange and unique. The truth is, it is and it isn't. On the sales side, the federal market is identical to the commercial market...
  • Procrastination and GSA Schedules
    Writing a GSA Schedule proposal is an excruciating process for companies. Most people do not like to write and the problem is compounded by indecipherable Requests for Proposals provided by GSA...
  • Rules of the Road for GSA Schedules
    The rules governing GSA schedules are set out in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 8.4. They can be accessed at: http://www.arnet.gov/far/farqueryframe...
  • Why Buyers Like GSA Schedules
    In essence, a GSA schedule is a pre-approved price list for use by any federal buyer. Pre-approved (pre-negotiated) pricing is the key. In making a buy, GSA schedules allow: Unprecedented speed and minimal paperwork...
  • Why Vendors Like GSA Schedules
    GSA aggressively promotes the use of GSA schedules to buyers across all federal agencies using the war chest accumulated from the industrial funding fee charged to GSA vendors...
  • 2010 Federal Procurements Are Bigger Yet
    Is the Obama Administration cutting back on federal contracting? Let's look at the top 20 federal procurements planned for 2010...
  • The New Administration and Federal Contracting
    Like most democratic administrations, the Obama administration publically professes to (1) crack down on federal contractor abuse, (2) make contracting information more transparent, and (3) substitute federal employees for contract personnel...
  • Be Proactive to Win Federal Dollars
    Proactive methods have governed sales approaches for products and services since the days of Willy Lowman. The same basic principles remain the keys to success in federal sales...
  • Closing a Sale Part Two
    Companies holding multi-vendor contracts minimize the amount of competition they face since a public bid isn't necessary...
  • Closing a Sale
    The manner in which a federal purchase is completed depends on the size of the transaction. Credit card buys under $2,500 can be single sourced by the end user and can be transacted without the contracting officer's involvement...
  • Multi-vendor Contracts Explained
    Multi-vendor contracts limit competition and make purchasing faster and cheaper. The government, when using a multi-vendor contract, need only solicit bids from three vendors holding the type of contract in question...
  • Stimulus Funding Program to be Stimulated
    The press is now saying that the Obama Administration plans to create 600,000 jobs this summer by speeding the outflow of stimulus funds...
  • Small Businesses Need GSA Schedule Contracts More Than Ever
    Federal, state, and local agencies are shifting major procurement dollars into GSA Schedules, especially for contracts funded with stimulus dollars, energy projects, infrastructure projects, and information technology projects...
  • Public Bids are too Late
    Bids funded by stimulus dollars are being posted at agencies web sites by federal state, and local agencies. Some public bids are in an Invitation for Bid (IFB) legal format (fixed price, low bidder wins). IFBs are usually used for construction projects...
  • Creating Green Federal Facilities Will be an Endless Process
    A recent article at Government Executive entitled GSA Officials Say They Are Off To A Fast Start On Energy-Efficiency Projects indicates the potential for revenue opportunities for facility maintenance contractors holding GSA schedule 03FAC Facilities Mai...
  • Distinguish Your Company for Stimulus Contracting
    The press is now reporting that stimulus spending is behind schedule; what a surprise! Did anyone on the inside believe the initial hype anyway? Where is the action in federal contracting so far? Engineering GSA Schedule: the Construction Management, ...
  • Start Now If You Want Stimulus Funds
    How much of the nearly $800 billion stimulus package will end up funding federal contracts? No one is sure yet, but some predict from $50 to $100 billion. Like everyone, you would probably like to increase your revenue with stimulus dollars...
  • Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Quickly
    Job creation is at the center of the Obama administration's stimulus package. The focus on rapid job creation is discussed in the press daily...
  • Federal Facilities Slated for Overhaul
    The Obama administration plans to overhaul federal facilities to make them more energy efficient. This will be a daunting and expensive task since federal facilities number in the thousands...
  • Information Technology Companies Take Note
    The Obama administration plans to modernize the Veterans Administration (VA) and make it into a "21st century organization". Proposed reforms include: Develop a seamless electronic health record for active-duty personnel and veterans...
  • Obama and Federal Sales
    Your crystal ball is as good as mine. Mine says the following will happen to federal contracting under the new Obama administration. War spending will go down, slightly impacting DOD contractors negatively...
  • Green Your Revenue
    The Obama administration announced recently that the proposed infrastructure initiative will include: Information Technology for school systems Internet access for rural and underserved communities Green technology for federal facilities The info...
  • Recent Developments in Federal Contracting
    State and Local Government Use of GSA schedule Contracts: Recently the Administrator of the General Services Administration (GSA) recommended that Congress authorize state and local governments to use all of the 53 GSA schedules in making purchases...
  • The Role of the Contracting Officer
    As indicated above, federal contracting officers have far more influence on a purchasing decision than commercial purchasing agents...
  • Options for Closing Federal Sales
    In the previous installment we discussed making federal sales up to the point of transacting the deals (signing a contract). Transacting or closing the deals can be done in several ways...
  • Make it Easy for Federal Buyers
    Once you've hired the full-time sales person, made the direct sales calls, established a relationship with the end user, and sold your product or service, you figure you're done, right? No...
  • Act Immediately to Add Federal Revenue to Your Company
    We have repeatedly stressed in prior newsletters that the federal market is recession proof and an ideal source for additional revenue. Naysayers will although the market may be recession proof, it has a long sales lead time...
  • The Future of Multi-vendor Contracts
    The federal government cannot function without multi-vendor contracts. Such contracts are being used more frequently because there isn't any other efficient method for federal contracting officers to buy everything needed by program managers...
  • Competitiveness of Multi-vendor Contracts
    Multi-vendor contracts limit competition and make purchasing faster and cheaper. The government, when using a multi-vendor contract, need only solicit bids from three vendors holding the type of contract in question...
  • Comparison of Federal Multi-vendor Contracts
    It is difficult to be a successful federal contractor without having a multi-vendor contract. The basic types of multi-vendor contracts are summarized below...
  • Popular Types of Multiple-vendor Contracts
    The federal government could not function without multi-vendor contracts and more and more dollars are being awarded under this type of contract each year. There are many types of multi-vendor contracts. The two most popular are summarized below...
  • Distinguishing Messages Win in the Federal Market
    Everyone thinks their competitors are worthless and that they alone have the best product or service known to man. Federal end users have heard "we are the best" so many times that it makes them scream when they hear it...
  • Are Federal Bids Wired?
    A common perception about federal public bids is that they are "wired," implying that the bid is set up or rigged to favor a particular company...
  • The Best Closing Mechanism
    GSA Schedule contracts are the best closing mechanisms for small and medium-sized businesses that cannot afford to hold several multi-vendor contracts...
  • Public Bids as a Closing Procedure
    Why would the federal government select a public bid as the closing procedure of choice given the horrendous lead time and cost involved? Federal contracting officers do their very best to avoid them...
  • Playing the Federal Sales Game
    The federal market can be an alien and confusing world. Many would-be contractors firmly believe that federal bureaucracies are governed by strange and convoluted procurement rules designed to confuse and even intimidate...
  • Insights on Closing a Federal Sales
    The commercial and federal markets are basically identical in that you have to make one-on-one sales calls to end users in order to sell your product or service...
  • Multiple Award Contracts: The Wave of the Future
    Multiple Award Contracts (MACs) have the following characteristics. Awards are made to a number of vendors and the winning vendors compete among themselves for business...
  • Small Businesses and Federal Sales
    The following question often surfaces at our seminars, "What procedures should be followed by small businesses eager to participate in the federal market?" The answer to this question is that a small business should implement an aggressive federal s...
  • Selling Services to Federal Agencies
    Our newsletters repeatedly emphasize the need to establish a relationship with end users when selling in the federal market...
  • Keys to Success in Federal Sales
    Attendees at our federal sales seminars frequently ask us to summarize the keys to success in federal sales. Successful federal contractors all possess the following traits: * A willingness to invest in direct sales (i.e...
  • Alliant: Better Late Than Never
    Editor's Note: The Alliant Small Business procurement questions and answers were published this week at FedBizOpps and the due date for proposals remains November 17, 2006...
  • Think of Proposal Writing As the Last Step in a Sale
    Our federal sales seminars stress that your sales efforts and proposal-writing process should be one, highly-structured undertaking...
  • Proposal Writing Is Not Going to Go Away
    Most owners of small and medium-sized federal contracting companies wish that writing proposals was not a requirement of doing business with the federal government...
  • Don't Get Stuck as a Subcontractor
    Small businesses need to get their first federal contract to become part of the club of insiders - those companies with contracts - that the federal government favors when it buys products and services...
  • Should You Have a GSA Schedule?
    A common comment from attendees at Fedmarket's Federal Sales Academy seminars is: "Long time federal customers are now telling us we need a GSA schedule to do business with them...
  • Best Value: A Sales Person's Dream
    In a previous installment we discussed the rules governing GSA schedules that encourage "Best Value" selection of vendors...
  • How a GSA Schedule Sale is Made
    Most federal sales are relationship based. People buy in the federal sector, not agencies, and they need to know everything about what you are selling...
  • What is Happening at GSA?
    The Federal Supply Service, the General Services Administration (GSA) organization responsible for GSA schedules, is undergoing significant changes. Scope of work issues have placed the agency under a microscope...
  • Submitting Proposals to the 'New GSA'
    In our previous installment, we discussed how the General Service Administration (GSA) is becoming more stringent and rigid with respect to its review or evaluation of GSA Schedule offers...
  • GSA and Most Favored Customer Pricing
    A recent newsletter discussed that the General Service Administration (GSA) has encountered procurement problems and has initiated a "Get It Right" campaign to improve acquisition regulation compliance...
  • Procurement Problems and GSA Schedules
    Federal procurement is being attacked from all directions. The General Services Administration (GSA) was recently called to task by federal auditors and Congress for alleged "scope of work" violations...
  • Guard Against Audits
    The General Services Administration (GSA) is increasing the number of pre-award audits of vendors with GSA schedule contracts up for renewal...
  • Electronic Representations and Certifications
    The federal government is now requiring that prospective contractors complete electronic annual representations and certifications at http://orca.bpn.gov (ORCA) in conjunction with registration in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) database...
  • Get a GSA Schedule Contract or Stay Away
    In our previous installments, we have repeatedly stated that small- to medium- sized businesses must have a GSA Schedule (pre-approved price list) to sell in the federal market...
  • GSA Visits Contractor Sites
    GSA will visit you to make sure you're tracking your GSA sales properly. GSA's auditors will also pay close attention to whether you have offered better pricing to the "basis of award group" defined under your GSA Schedule contract...
  • Is There a Magic Bullet?
    We recently received a call from an engineering company that hasn't entered the federal sales market...
  • The Eagle Has Landed
    Multiple Award Schedule Contracts (MAS) are master contracts that allow the companies which receive an award of such a contract to compete for task orders over the term of the contract...
  • GSA Schedule Rejections
    The task of preparing proposals for submittal to the General Services Administration (GSA) has always been a difficult one for those unfamiliar with government contracting...
  • GSA Schedules and Small Businesses
    As reported in earlier installments, the federal government's use of multi-vendor contracts to buy products and services is steadily increasing...
  • GSA Schedule 30 Day Proposal Evaluation Program
    The General Services Administration recently implemented a new GSA Schedule 30 day proposal evaluation program called the Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) Express Program....
  • GSA Schedule Recovery Purchasing by State and Local Government
    Until recently, the use of General Services Administration (GSA) schedule contracts by state and local government was limited to Schedule 70, Information Technology...
  • Get Your GSA Schedule Now Before it is too Late
    In previous installments we stated that GSA Schedules are the sales closing mechanism of choice for small businesses. They are always open for bid and they cover all major industries; two critical characteristics unique to GSA schedules...
  • Why Are GSA Schedule Offers So Difficult to Write?
    In previous installments, we have emphasized that GSA Schedule contracts are the closing vehicle of choice for small to medium-sized businesses...
  • Capturing State and Local Contracts with Your GSA Schedule
    Vendors, along with state and local governments, have urged GSA to allow them use the GSA Schedules program to spend federal grant money on pre-negotiated Homeland Security contracts...
  • GSA Schedule Competition in Real Life
    For political reasons the federal government takes the position that competition for federal contracts is 'full and open"...
  • Eliminate GSA Schedule Audit Risk with a Compliance Program
    Many contractors get an award of a GSA Schedule contract and think that their work is complete. The reality is that the tough work has really only begun. Compliance issues are of critical importance and are often overlooked or even ignored...