1. Marketing Strategies and Techniques U.S. General Services Administration Office of Small Business Utilization Small Business GSA Schedule Contract Holders

2. 2 Agenda  Business/marketing plans  Who uses GSA Schedules?  Buying Practices  Top 10 Schedules  Locating Buyers  Partnerships  Utilizing Information  First Impressions  Proposals  Offer Challenges  News and Information

3. 3 Business/Marketing Plans  Blueprints of a Business  Who am I/are we?  Where do we want to go?  What is attainable now?  What should we plan to accomplish?  What/Who will help me meet my goals?  What is my budget for exploring?  What is the final outcome we desire?

4. 4 Who uses GSA Schedules?  Executive & Other Federal Agencies  Mixed-Ownership Government Corporations (FDIC, Federal Home Loan Banks, etc.)  The District of Columbia  Cost Reimbursable Government Contractors authorized in writing by a Federal agency (48 CFR 51.1)  State and Local Government (Cooperative Purchasing)  Domestic and Worldwide  % Schedules Domestic  %Worldwide

5. 5 2008 Top Ten Agencies in Federal Procurement  1. Department of Defense  $314,555,539,523  2. Department of Energy  $24,523,659,011  3. National Aeronautics and Space  Administration  $14,615,545,958  4. Department of Veterans Affairs  $14,059,007,778  5. Department of Homeland Security  $13,916,493,609  6. Department of Health and Human  Services  $13,102,209,587  7. Department of Justice  $5,698,834,163  8. Department of Agriculture  $5,149,764,913  9. General Services Administration  $4,753,993,250  10. Department of the Interior  $2,694,066,867 Source: SBA FY 2008 Official Goaling Report http://www.sba.gov/idc/groups/public/documents/sba_homepage/fy2008official_ goaling_report.html

6. 6 GSA as a Buyer  Federal Acquisition Service (need data from FAS)  $353,406,660  41 Schedule Categories  Most Purchases Non-Schedules  Public Buildings Service  $353,406,660  41 Schedule Categories  Most Purchases Non-Schedules

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8. 8 Buying Practices Any vendor for purchases under $3000 Two or more vendors for orders over $3000 Orders above the Maximum Order request more discounts Non-GSA Items are Open Market Blanket Purchase Agreements Pre-Proposal Conferences E-Buy FBO Notices

9. 9 Sales for All MAS Contracts by Size and Socioeconomic Status (November 2009) Business Size # of ContractsSales Small 35%12,841 3,205,910,683 Large 65%3,170 5,931,414,158 Socioeconomic Sub- category# of ContractsSales 8A 3.1%1,520 283,965,471 (5%) SDB 8%2,930 699,825,140 (5%) WOSB 7%3,279 618,480,079 (3%) HUBZone 1%538 56,328,608 (3%) VOSB 3%1,283 258,925,382 SDVOSB 2%891 208,770,487

10. 10 State and Local Program Sales Cooperative Purchasing Program Sales Fiscal Year (Oct -Sept) Total Cooperative Purchasing SalesLarge Business $ Large Business %Small Business $ Small Business % 2003 (March- Sept) $ 7,897,817.00 $ 868,759.8711% $ 7,029,057.1389% 2004 $ 75,320,481.00 $42,179,469.3656% $ 33,141,011.6444% 2005 $140,774,721.00 $85,872,579.8161% $ 54,902,141.1939% 2006 $239,819,554.00 $141,493,536.8659% $ 98,326,017.1441% 2007 $314,244,056.00 $168,352,020.0054% $ 145,892,036.0046% 2008 $377,533,537.00 $237,747,758.0063% $ 139,785,779.0037% 2009 $564,108,321.00 $374,559,484.0066% $ 189,548,837.0034% 2010 YTD $121,616,553.00 $ 62,024,442.0351% $ 59,592,110.9749%

11. 11 Disaster Recovery Purchasing Program Sales Fiscal Year (Oct - Sept) Tot Disaster Recovery $Large Bus $ Large Bus % of Total SalesSmall Bus $ Small Bus % of Total Sales 2008$5,069,515$2,398,42847.3%$2,671,08752.7% 2009$15,410,450$2,934,22519.0%$12,476,22581.0% 2008-2009 Total$20,479,965$5,332,65326.0%$15,147,31274.0% In addition to the rise of small business sales in the Disaster Recovery Purchasing Program, Veteran Owned Small Businesses accounted for 29% of all FY 2009 Disaster Recovery Purchasing Sales.

12. 12 Purchase Decision Past Performance Price Options Warranty Availability Location Buyer Discretion 508 Compliance Green Options

13. 13 www.section508.gov  Eliminates barriers  Opportunities for the disabled  Applies to all Federal agencies  Procure  Maintain  Use Electronic and Information Technology (EIT)  Contractors selling EIT must comply with 508  Register with the e-Buy Accessible Data Center at www.gsa.gov/ebuy Consider ALL current and potential customers!

14. 14 Environmental Program Office of Applied Science (202) 219-1522 Fax (202) 219-0784 Alternative Fuel Vehicles Vehicle Buying (703) 605-CARS Fax (703) 605-9868 Green Power Energy Center of Expertise (202) 708-9296 Green Purchasing FAS Assisted Acquisition Services (202) 708-8100 NCR Safety, Environmental and Fire Protection (202) 708-5236 Waste Reduction and Recycling Energy Conservation Branch (202) 708-9010

15. 15 Top 10 Schedule Sales in 2009 70 - IT15,646,895,263 874 - MOBIS4,339,503,655 871 – Professional Engineering Services2,946,654,659 84 – Total Solutions Law Enforcement…2,464,826,999 520 – FABS1,145,153,672 71 I – Training Aids and Devices1,139,502,181 874 V Logistics876,942,514 CORP Consolidated856,394,205 36 – Office Imaging848,348,490 66 – Scientific Equipment776,376,484

16. 16 Locating Buyers  www.fbo.gov – Advanced Search  Pre-solicitation, Sources Sought, Solicitation/Synopsis  Classification Code  NAICS Code  Recovery and Reinvestment Act  Collect Contact Info Always  www.gsa.gov/smbusforecast - Forecast  NAICS Code  Title  State  Cold Calling  Authority to Purchase  Contact Information  Quarterly/Biannual Updates  Emails as follow-up only  Conference Attendance  Set Goals  Anticipate potential partners – not just buyers  Determine Needs  Network, Network, Network

17. 17 Seeking Partnerships  Contractor Teaming Arrangements (gsa.gov/cta)  GSA Schedule Vendors ONLY  Total Solution  Paid Separate  Team Plans Process  Subcontracting (gsa.gov/subdirectory)  Any size prime  GSA Schedule Projects  Piece of the Pie  Mentor Protégé (gsa.gov/mentorprotege)  GSA Schedule Vendors  Prime Directed Projects  GSA Approved  Subcontracting Agreement  American Recovery and Reinvestment (gsa.gov/smallbusinessrecovery)  Prime and Subcontracting  Construction Related

18. 18 Contract Modification for ARRA  To modify your contract to accept ARRA projects please go to the Vendor Support Center at www.vsc.gsa.gov and follow these directions:  Click on:  Contract Administration  Modifications  MASS Modifications  View Modifications  Scroll to find Modification # FX75, "American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA)“  Open the SF-30  Complete and Sign  Submit to your Contracting Officer

19. 19 Schedule Sales Query (SSQ)  SSQ provides the sales reported by MAS contractors  Use SSQ to research your competitors’ sales  Utilize free tools to help make better business decisions  Go to http://ssq.gsa.gov  Find Opportunities for  Mentor Protégé  Contractor Teaming Arrangements  Subcontracting

20. 20 Utilizing Information Effectively  Consider different mailing list  General – Any and everybody  Potential – High Probability  Direct – responsive/sure thing  FBO Contacts  Contact Steps 1.Letter/Postcard (Intro) 2.Phone Call (details) 3.Follow-up (building trust)  Follow-up Often/Sincere  Postcards  Email  Seasonal Greetings  Update Annually  Points of Contact (POC’s)  Numbers  Address  General or Direct List  Pricing  GSA Data Sites –e-library –GSA Advantage! ®

21. 21 Utilize All FREE Marketing Tools  www.gsa.gov/logo  Use images on GSA Advantage! ®  Attend large conferences like the GSA EXPO  www.expo.gsa.gov  www.gsa.gov look under “Events”  Attend outreach sessions designed just for small business  Come prepared to ask questions and get contact information  Invest in FedBizOpps for procurements over $25,000 – www.fbo.gov  Access the GSA’s Forecast www.gsa.gov/smbusforecast  Steps to Success http://vsc.gsa.gov/stepstosuccess.pdf

22. 22 Company Introduction  Letter, phone call  Address specific needs (capability statement)  Follow –Up  Card  Email  Letter  Company Growth (quarterly update) GOAL: Build Familiarity, Trust, and Confidence in your company’s ability

23. 23 Quality Proposals  Obvious  Clean  Neat  Follow Directions  Provide additional data  Typed – not hand written  Use provided Checklist  Not So Obvious  Have more than one person read for errors  Double check submission requirements  Be prepared to provide oral proposal if requested  Rejection doesn’t mean you were not competitive  Points of Contact are reachable regardless of outcome  Follow-up with a “thank you” card regardless of outcome  Highlight where special

24. 24 Written Proposal  Decide and Notify  Yes I will be participating  No, I will not  Respond in order  Not clear, then ask questions  Respond to all parts  Follow Directions  Describe your process and unique values  Spell Check and Grammar Check  Be Neat  Group Review before submission

25. 25 Oral Proposal  Professional Business Attire  Be On-Time  Know the Proposal  Include Key Workers  Be polite  Speak clearly and professionally  Answer all questions

26. 26 Know Your Contract Terms  Warranty  Delivery  Discounts  Authorized Dealers  Quantity Discounts  Service Agreements  Expiration Date  Option Year Requirements Give copies to your employees!!!

27. 27 Keep Information Accurate and Updated  Economic Price Adjustment  Price Increases  Most common EPA clause GSAM 552.216-70  Check the details for your Percentage ceiling  Prices fixed for first 12 months  No more than 3 increases/year  Price Decreases  Determined by the MFC  Ratio must remain the same  Spot Price Reduction  Reductions that do not apply across the board  Used to build relationships  Notify GSA when in use  Will not affect your awarded discount, terms and conditions

28. 28  Adding and Deleting Items  Adding –New products or services must be awarded –Within Scope, simple modification  Deleting –Remove products or services –Simplify Contract Coverage  Transfer of Assets  Novation Agreement  Legal Name Change  Change-of-Name Agreement See “Contract Modification” clause in the solicitation Update

29. 29 How to DEAL?????  Rejected Offers – Request Debriefing  Unable to fulfill contract – Contact CO with explanation  Cannot submit an offer – Notify CO immediately  Upset the Contracting Officer – Contact your OSBU for resolution  Errors in proposal – Correct and move on  Not meeting sales criteria – Reevaluate program participation, product/service need assessment, and marketing efforts  Nothing seems to be working – Take a break and review your business/marketing plans

30. 30 More Support 11 Regional GSA OSBU and SBTA’s www.gsa.gov/smallbizsupport OSDBU for all agencies www.osdbu.gov Procurement Technical Assistance Centers www.aptac-us.org Customer Service Directors www.gsa.gov/CSD

31. 31 News You Can Use!

32. 32 Policy Changes Allow Greater Access to Schedules When Supporting Emergencies  A policy change now allows GSA Federal Supply Schedule Program contractors:  Sell to state, local, territorial and tribal governments  Support of public health emergencies, including H1N1.  Eligible ordering activities  Purchase when expending federal grant funds  Responding to emergencies  Declared by: Secretary of Health and Human Services  Section 319 Public Health Services Act  Contact: www.gsa.gov/vsc or MASstateandlocal@gsa.gov

33. 33 Website Shortcuts

34. 34 Questions & Answers Christy L. Jackiewicz Program Analyst Office of Small Business Utilization 202-501-1021christy.jackiewicz@gsa.govwww.gsa.gov/sbu