By George Bishop

Seneca Creek Consulting LLC

Attracting new clients or winning new business is always a challenge, even for the most experienced sales professional. And even the most experienced ones need to remind themselves sometimes to concentrate on the basics.

Why should an agency want to do business with you or your company? Most likely they won’t, unless you have something they need.

I am sure you have heard it said, “Sales are easy. Just find a need and satisfy the need!” Well, in government sales we throw in a few wrinkles, such as best value, lowest cost, performance based, set-asides and weighted evaluations, to mention a few. Still think it is easy? Take a look at the Federal Acquisition Regulation and the length of the Terms and Conditions attached to every solicitation.

How do you go about penetrating this market? Many years ago, when I was selling services to the Department of Defense for a major integrator, I learned a lesson that I believe is still valuable today. I called on the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) when it was based in Crystal City, VA. I was attempting to find a need I could support, so I visited a contracting officer to discuss support services. He asked simply, “What do you know about the Navy and NAVSEA?” I knew DOD and Army, but little about the Navy. He said, “When you can discuss Navy and understand our business, come back to talk to me.”

From that day on I never made a call on a company or government agency without knowing their organization, business, key personnel, requirements and desires. Moreover, I correlated these to my services and products and how I could best assist them in satisfying their requirements.

So how do we sell to the government? Aside from dealing with the “governmentese” listed above, I recommend the following approach:

*Analyze your company’s skills, experience, contacts and knowledge to target selected government agencies. If this is done thoroughly you will know the best place to start selling your products and services. Then the next actions will be far easier.

*Understand the targeted agency’s business and how to work efficiently and professionally to support them.

*Know (identify) the requirements that match your skill sets or products and have a cost-effective solution to satisfy them.

*Last, provide proof of your capabilities in the form of credentials and references, competitive costs and resumes. The government likes to feel secure in its vendor selection.

These actions constitute a lot of time and work on your part, but they are essential ingredients for securing that sought-after government contract.

George Bishop has spent the past 25 years selling IT solutions for some of the largest federal systems integrators. He is currently a managing director for Seneca Creek Consulting LLC, a firm that offers experienced direction and sales support to companies desiring to enter or expand business in the government market. For more information, go to www.SenecaCreekConsulting.com.