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What is a government solicitation? If you’ve never bid on government contracts, you may be asking yourself this question. Luckily for you, we’re here to break it down for you. We’ll give you some advice on what to expect and what you need in order to succeed at government solicitations.
Let’s start at the beginning – what is a solicitation? It’s quite simple really, a solicitation is the act of obtaining something from someone.
The government uses solicitations (which can also be known as procurement) in order to provide a solution to a problem. If the government is needing something, but they don’t have it, they’ll procure it.
You can think of it as outsourcing a solution to a need. The government will outsource a good, service, or product and hopeful vendors will compete for the contract.
It isn’t just the federal government that uses solicitation. The local, municipal, state governments use solicitations too.
A government solicitation can vary depending on what each contracting office (CO) needs. Government bids can come in a variety of forms, the most common are:
With an RFP the CO is looking for a high-quality response to their questions. These questions will usually be on your business’ tactical approach to delivering the contract if successful. You will need to detail your experience and any unique selling points your business has. This will give you an edge over your competitors.
An RFP for a government solicitation can be quite complex and require some work to formulate a winning response. This is why a lot of organizations outsource their government solicitation response to a government contracts consultant. An RFP Writer will know how to best articulate your organization to the buyer. Your response may require company CVs, procedures, policies, and case studies that demonstrate your experience and capability.
An RFQ is focused primarily on price. It’s used when the governments are looking to procure a more straightforward service, good, or product. A buyer may require you to answer a few questions about your experience. However, the emphasis is on competitive pricing. This is because the commissioner knows how they want to contract to be delivered. Therefore, they don’t want to know how you would deliver. They want to ensure you’re capable, but ultimately this is a price-driven exercise.
An IFB is fairly similar to an RFQ as the buyer knows how they want to contract to be delivered. They don’t require suggestions on how to deliver the contract meaning vendors can’t negotiate the terms. In this sense, the contract is awarded to the lowest-priced bidder that meets the requirements.
Yes! Government solicitations aren’t just reserved for the big conglomerates. In fact, 23% of all government solicitations are set aside and reserved especially for small businesses. These are set aside by the government in accordance with the Small Business Association (SBA). These are known as set-asides.
The federal government buys over $500 billion worth of goods, services, and products annually. These set-aside contracts allow smaller businesses to get a piece of the pie. Within this 23% set-aside goal, there are different goals for subsets within the small businesses label. These are:
The government solicitation process can vary depending on what is being procured. There are few things you need to do first in order to be eligible to bid for government solicitations. These are:
You will need to have your organization’s DUNS number to hand to bid on government contracts. This can be found on the Dun and Bradstreet website. This nine-digit identification number is for the physical location of your business.
In order to start bidding on government solicitations, you’ll need to match your services/products to a NAICS code. The NAICS code stands for North American Industry Classification System. A business will have a primary NAICS code or multiple depending on if they have multiple services or products. To find your NAICS code, view the list on the U.S Census Bureau.
You must register with the government’s System of Award Management (SAM) to participate in government contracting. Becoming a registered vendor with SAM eliminates the need to enter the same information over and over. This streamlines the process and increases efficiency when doing business with the government. You will need both your DUNS number and NAICS code to register with SAM.
A government solicitation must adhere to the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR). These are a standardized set of regulations used by the public sector when soliciting goods, products, or services.
Typically, a government solicitation is made up of 13 sections and each one is overseen by FAR. They are labeled by letters and are as follows:
Make sure your eligible to bid on the government solicitation you’re going for. As an RFP Writer, you don’t want to waste your time and resources writing a bid that you aren’t eligible for. Read every page (even if there are 80) as it will detail if there are any qualifications you need. This includes the statement of work. This will contain all the information you need in order to submit the bid.
Carrying on from the above point, a buyer will expect you to be experienced. Although it’s not unheard of for new businesses to win contracts, it’s very unlikely. The government will be expecting you to have completed past contracts and have a bank of experience. It’s advised that you have at least 3 past contract examples to detail.
These contract examples should be similar in scope and scale to the one you will be bidding for. A buyer will often specify that these should be within the last 3 – 5 years. You should note your previous experience accommodating needs similar to those in the CO requirements. It’s also worth detailing how you overcame any challenges while fulfilling the contract. This will demonstrate your problem-solving skills and adaptability.
A government solicitation will be expecting prospective vendors to present added value to the contract. This could be in the form of value for money as the buyer wants to get the most bang for the taxpayer’s buck.
Consider the social, environmental, and economic aspects of the contract. Are you presenting any innovative or sustainable solutions? What’s your unique selling point? What are you doing that makes you better than your competitors? During your research on the buyer, you could see if the office has any objectives they’re working towards.
Our RFP Writing service is the perfect solution to ensure that you submit a high-quality bid, even when you’re busy. Our writers will break down the solicitation documents, allowing you to see what the bid and the contract involves. This will help to ensure that you have all the specified evidence and meet the requirements of the contracting authority. Our RFP Writers will then craft persuasive, high-quality responses, attach supporting evidence and even submit the bid on your behalf. Upload the solicitation documents for a free quote.
Have you already written a bid but need a second pair of eyes to review your work? Our RFP Mentor service will do just that. Simply send over your bid responses and the solicitation documents. Our writers will then assess your work, ensuring that your responses are in line with the specification. They will also check for any spelling or grammar errors. You can then submit your bid with confidence. Upload your work for a free quote.
Do you need help with preparing a bid proposal? Proposal Ready can help businesses that are new to bidding for contracts or those in need of rejuvenating their content. Our Bid Consultants can offer you proposal writing services, creating:
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