Trying to Win Government Business?

You may be doing it all wrong.

If you are trying to win a portion of the $7 trillion spent each year by U.S. governmental agencies by responding to bids or request for proposals (RFPs), you’re missing out on an entire sector most people aren’t aware exists. Agencies utilize such things as GSA & State contracts, Co-ops, piggybacking, discretionary spending, p-cards, sole sourcing, and quote requests. On top of that, by the time an RFP is published the agency that posted it typically has a vendor in mind.

The 80% of spending that happens outside of the RFP process is typically awarded much quicker than the standard 3-9 month RFP process. So, how do you get a piece of that 80% and win government business? There is a way. Here are three steps to having more success selling to government agencies:

Look at agencies’ past purchases for spending patterns

By looking at an agency’s historical spending, not only can you price your products/services competitively, but you can find out when an opportunity is coming before others do. GovSpend.com, a web-based database containing hundreds of millions of local, state, and federal purchasing records, gives you access to these records.

By knowing things like what accessories and services your clients are buying, when warranties are expiring, and what time of year agencies tend to buy certain products, you can be ready to pitch to them right as they’re ready to purchase again.

Contact the right person

Another major advantage to using the type of data you’ll find in GovSpend is knowing the right person to speak with. Don’t cold call the agency and ask for “Whoever is in charge of purchasing”. Instead, you can take the contact information off the purchase orders, now when you call you can say “May I please speak with John Doe regarding your purchase of [blank]”. By referencing a purchase they’ve already made, they will be more interested in learning what else you have to say.

Price competitively

Offer your clients a deal they can’t refuse. By analyzing the purchase orders you can see what your clients are spending or what your competitors are charging and beat it every time. This is the most important step to success. Doing this should help you land more business than you were before.

Don’t wait for agencies to request bids. Be proactive. Look at their purchasing habits, your competitor’s prices, and target the right contacts to get yourself a bigger piece of the pie.

Using a tool like GovSpend you’ll find the information you need to help you land more sales faster. GovSpend’s database is full of agency purchase orders across the nation that you can see to discover where spending is going and how to make it flow into your business.

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10 Myths About Selling to the Government

Learn more about the common misconceptions about government sales.

Download the report to learn:

  • How to win a government contract in just a few weeks — or even just days.
  • Why only 20% of government spending goes through a bid/RFP process.
  • How to identify and win a portion of the 80% of government spending not released for bid/RFP.
  • How to target your sales/marketing efforts to the agencies most likely to buy from your company.
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Looking to learn more?

Request a demo to learn more about GovSpend.

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