How Will You Win That IDIQ Contract with The Government Cutting Spending?

The next few years are looking to be a lean time for many government contractors, since the current administration and Congress are both largely focused on cost-cutting.  Even the President’s “southern wall” is having trouble getting full congressional funding approval.

This means that contractors looking to pick up a new IDIQ contract in the current environment are going to need to be smart in how they go about making contacts and marketing themselves.  Just sitting back and waiting for contracts to become available isn’t an option.  At Asher, we know good strategy and proactivity will be the keys to IDIQ contract bids until at least 2020.

Adjusting Your Bidding Strategies to The Reality of The Current Government

Leverage all your internal resources.

It wasn’t too long ago that a business development manager’s list of contacts was a closely-guarded secret.  This attitude needs to go away.  Contract development and bidding should be seen as a collaborative process, with everyone working together to make it happen. Team approaches to growing your business are needed now.

Likewise, any bonus policies should be restructured accordingly.  This is not the time to encourage cutthroat competition among your business development staff. Incentivize some good business development teamwork too.

Make more external contacts.

How are your relationships with other businesses in your industry or area of expertise?  Work on those.  Remember, many government contracts allow, or even require, partnerships to make them happen.  Being on good terms with the competition could easily make the difference on whether you’re invited to share in someone else’s good fortune.

Just remember that they’ll probably want a piece the next time you have a contract that needs to be split up.

Make a structured plan for growth.

Don’t simply assume making an IDIQ contract happen is as easy as placing a few phone calls and submitting your bid.  Think about your target agencies and make solid plans for how to increase your standing with them.  This could include:

• Reminding them of past services rendered.
• Targeting smaller agencies or associated groups who would also need your services.
• Continuing to grow and leverage your internal contacts.
• Keeping a close watch on personnel and agency news to get more insights into who the current power-players are.
• Improving your marketing messaging to sell more new ideas and get a fresh look at your capabilities from prospective customers

Learn More Critical Government Sales Skills from Asher Strategies

We have decades of experience in government contract bidding, and have helped major federal-government-focused businesses grow. Contact us today to ask about our training seminars.