How to Bid on Military and Government Contracts

5 years ago

Did Someone Say, “Bidding Opportunities?” How to Bid on Military and Government Contracts.

Management Tips

Contract Bidding Tips, Federal Government Contracts, Finding Government IT Projects, Government Contracts for Bid, How to Become A Government Vendor

If your small to medium-sized tech business is looking for project opportunities to boost its revenue, consider bidding on contract work with the military or government. There are several options to obtain a government contract including Micropurchase, Simplified Acquisition Procedure (SAP) or Invitation to Bid (IFB) or Request for Proposal (RFP).

Micropurchase. Contracts generally less than $3000 which are not posted for bids. A federal purchasing agent makes the purchase directly without obtaining competitive bids.
Simplified Acquisition Procedure (SAP). These contracts are normally reserved for small businesses and fall into two categories. Contracts between $3,000 and $25,000 which are not typically posted and those between $25,000 and $150,000 which can be found on FedBizOpps (FBO).
Formal Bid/Large Contract. Contracts valued at more than $150,000 are posted on FBO or a government purchasing agent may issue an Invitation for Bid (IFB) or a Request for Proposal (RFP).

Let’s look more closely at what it takes to bid on government IT project work. Leverage these ideas to help your business grow by doing important initiatives for our government and military.

Starting the Process to Become a Government Vendor

Your first requirement involves registering as a government vendor. This requires your organization to get a unique Dun and Bradstreet (D-U-N-S) number for each physical location for the business. Thankfully, this is a free process.

Next, register your company on the government’s System for Award Management (SAM) website. There is no cost to register your company in SAM.

You will need:

Your DUNS Number, Legal Business Name, and Physical Address from your Dun & Bradstreet (D&B) record.
Your Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) and Taxpayer Name associated with your TIN.
Your bank’s routing number, your bank account number, and your bank account type, i.e. checking or savings, to set up Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT).

Finding and Bidding on Government IT Projects

A listing of federal projects open for bidding is available at FedBizOpps (FBO). This includes larger projects as well as those under $150,000 that let you take advantage of the streamlined SAP process.

The number of opportunities available can be daunting, but you can narrow the output by searching by criteria such as location or keywords. You can also search by NAICS code.

The project details, known as a solicitation, include a statement of work (SOW) which will detail all of the requirements for the project. Read this document carefully to ensure you understand the requirements and have the capability to fulfill them exactly.

Most importantly, only bid on government tech projects when you are confident your team is able to successfully complete the work. A failed first initiative hampers your chances of winning future bids.

Need help?

The DoD created the Procurement Technical Assistance Program (PTAP) to help small businesses navigate the process. Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (PTACs) are available throughout the country and are tasked with helping you to prepare and execute bids.

When you need advice on bidding on technology projects, speak with experts who truly know the ropes. Partnering with an experienced government IT vendor like Sentient Digital, Inc. is the best strategy for your success.