If you’re in the business of securing commercial contracts, there may come a time when you decide to take things to the next level and shoot for a government contract or two. Pretty simple right, what with all your commercial experience? Well, not exactly! Despite having achieved success commercially, many businesses find that government contracts are a whole ‘nother thing - and that preparing a proposal for the GSA (
General Services Administration) is a pretty tricky endeavor. The process of preparing and submitting a GSA proposal can leave very little room for error as it is built on federal standards and review procedures - which means that errors can cost you.
In this article, we’re walking you through the five secrets that you need to know to win at GSA proposals - and win that contract.
Understanding the Purpose of a GSA Proposal
When you set out a commercial proposal you’ll be used to focusing on a marketing slant which showcases your business - but that’s not gonna cut it with a GSA submission. This document is all about accuracy and transparency and, as such, is a deep dive into your business to figure out if you’ve got what it takes to meet financial and regulatory requirements. As you can imagine, this does require a bit of a different mindset and you should therefore be prepared to spend a considerable amount of time to make sure that all of the information that you provide is 100% correct. Your proposal will also shine a spotlight on the way your business runs including internal management and sales and business best practices.
Many organizations rely on
GSA contract consulting to understand these expectations, while others manage the process internally by studying GSA guidance and past submissions.
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Reviewing Eligibility and Internal Readiness
OK, so you think you’re ready for the heady world of government contracts but, not so fast. Before you start drafting that proposal, it’s really important to make sure that you fit all of the necessary criteria such as:
- How long you’ve been doing business
- A good track record of responsible conduct
- Healthy and stable finances
Once you’ve whizzed off your submission, the GSA will be taking a microscope to your operations and examining everything from tax records to vetting owners so it’s essential to have all your ducks in a row before forging ahead. You’ll also need to ensure that your teams are onboard as your proposal will require input from multiple departments including sales, legal and finance.
You can give yourself a good head start by making sure that you fully understand the bit about what your company offers as there’s a lot involved such as item identifications, reporting and scope so, getting this right will save you a lot of headaches further down the road.
Preparing Pricing and Sales Documentation
It’s impossible to exaggerate the importance of pricing which needs to be more than “close enough” for government work if you want to secure, erm, government work. It’s never too early to make a start on this by gathering up all of the relevant information on your pricing, invoices and discount rates as this will help you to demonstrate that your pricing is realistic and fair … and that you can back this up with evidence from your commercial operations.
Your sales team will also get to chime in here as the GSA is going to need blow-by-blow accounts of how your sales and pricing works including all formal and informal practices. You can do yourself a favor here by getting to know the federal contract advisory guidance to ensure that the t’s are crossed and the i’s are dotted.
Managing the Submission and Review Process
Putting together your proposal can be a pretty hard slog - but you’re not done yet. The submission process is just as important as this can dictate how smoothly the evaluation stage goes. When submitting your digital files, it’s vital that you ensure that everything is formatted correctly and labelled clearly as well as uploaded the right way. Failing to do this can lead to long delays or even rejection - which would be a shame after all your hard work.
Once your documents are in the safe hands of the GSA, they’ll begin their review and, often, they’ll come back to you for clarification or additional information. Needless to say, this means that you need to keep your files and records to hand and we recommend assigning a dedicated team member to be in charge of this to keep the process running smoothly and efficiently.
Addressing Compliance and Regulatory Requirements
You wouldn’t, of course, even dream of submitting a proposal without going all belt and braces when it comes to compliance, right? This is super-important at all times but none more so than when you’re attempting to break into the
world of government contracts. Data protection, trade agreements, labour laws and reporting all need to be beyond reproach and this should absolutely, positively be locked down before you even fill in the first section of your form as, believe us, they will check!
Writing Clear and Consistent Proposal Narratives
The people at GSA are pretty darn busy and if your information is unclear or, worse, disingenuous, you’re likely to find your proposal at the bottom of the pile. For this reason, you need to double and triple check that each section is filled out clearly and, more importantly, makes sense. Your new GSA pal needs to be able to see that your records flow in a way that is reliable and transparent and you can make this happen by examining every section closely - and getting a pro to review it if possible.
Conclusion
We’ve given you a lot to digest here, for sure, but don’t worry, although GSA proposals are complicated, they’re not impossible. The main thing is to do your prep by making sure that you have all of the right information to hand - and that it’s all accurate, clear and verifiable.
By familiarising yourself with the structure and guidelines and adhering to compliance and eligibility, you’re on the right track to showing that you’ve got what it takes to nab that contract and take your business to the next level.
