Onvia White Paper on how you can prepare your company for government contracting.

1. GET READY TO SELL TO THE GOVERNMENT
Before you can start pursuing government business, or gBusiness, you need to make sure that
your business is ready to have the government as a customer. Here are the basics to help you
prepare for government contracting.
Take a Look at Your Business
Government contracts are a great source of added revenue. The government is a very reliable
customer – after all, a government agency can hardly skip town without paying your bill!
However, due to the nature of government budgeting, it can take longer to get paid after
completing a job for the government than in the private sector. You will probably have to wait
30-45 days, and perhaps even longer, after the work is completed before you receive payment.
Make sure you have enough supplemental work (or a line of credit) to keep your business going
while you await payment.
Establish Your Company’s Identity
Agencies will be looking for identification codes in your proposals to easily determine whether
your business is a good fit for their contracts, and they won’t keep reading if they don’t find
them. In most government RFPs, identification codes are a requirement. Defining your business
in the government’s terms will also allow you to sign up for contractor registries and buyer-
vendor matching services.
DUNS Numbers
Dun & Bradstreet’s nine-digit DUNS (Data Universal Numbering System) number is a standard
business identifier for both the government and the private sector. In fact, since 1998 the federal
government has used DUNS numbers to identify contractors for all its procurement-related
activities. Each physical location of your business will need its own unique number. Registering
to receive a DUNS number will put your business in the Dun & Bradstreet database, which gives
agencies and companies access to your company’s contact, financial and industry-related
information. Dun & Bradstreet provide DUNS numbers free of charge. For more information and
to request your DUNS number, go to http://fedgov.dnb.com/webform/displayHomePage.do.
NAICS Codes
The North American Industry Classification System, or NAICS, was developed by the
governments of the United States, Canada and Mexico to easily classify business
establishments and simplify trade. While NAICS codes were originally created for use in
comparing statistical data, many federal, state and municipal government agencies use them to
classify potential vendors.
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2. A NAICS code is usually a six-digit number, with each successive digit narrowing down the
classification:
First and second digit: Economic sector
Third digit: Subsector
Fourth digit: Industry group
Fifth digit: NAICS industry
Sixth digit: National industry
There is no official agency to assign NAICS codes to businesses. The Census Bureau will
assign you one for its own purposes, based on the activity that generates the most revenue for
your business. Some government agencies may assign NAICS codes to their vendors based on
a variety of criteria, while others will ask vendors to submit their own codes.
You can find the NAICS code for your business by going to www.census.gov/eos/www/naics/
and entering keywords related to your business in “2007 NAICS Search” until you find the
NAICS code or codes that best fit your company. You can also download and browse the
complete list of NAICS codes.
Though the Census Bureau will classify a business with only one NAICS code, many agencies
will accept more than one code, and the Central Contracting Registration, discussed later in this
whitepaper, will accept up to five or 10 NAICS codes depending on the business. For additional
information, call the Census Bureau’s resident expert on industry classification at 888.75NAICS.
The FSC
The Federal Supply Classification, or FSC, was developed for the federal government and is
chiefly used by the Department of Defense. If you’re not doing business at the federal level, you
are less likely to encounter the FSC, but it’s still a good idea to familiarize yourself with the FSC
codes that apply to your business.
The Federal Supply Classification is broken down into 104 groups: 78 groups for products
(numbers 01-78), and 26 groups for services (letters A-Z). This group number or letter makes up
the first half of the FSC number. The second half identifies a sub-class within that group. For
example, “Prefabricated Structures & Scaffolding” is group 54. “Bridges, Fixed and Floating” is
class 20 within that group, so the FSC code for fixed and floating bridges is 5420.
To search for your FSC codes, go to http://www.dlis.dla.mil/H2/
Register Your Company with the Government
Now that you know how your business is classified, it’s time to register to compete for (and win)
government contracts.
The CCR
Rather than having vendors register separately with each federal agency, the government’s
Central Contracting Registration, or CCR, allows vendors to register to bid on all federal
contracts. This eliminates a lot of costly and time-consuming administrative work for both
vendors and the government.
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3. You must be registered in the CCR before you can bid on or be awarded federal contracts.
Registering will place your business information in a centralized vendor database, and you will
not need to supply that information separately to federal agencies for future bids. Whenever
your business information changes, you can update it in the CCR and know that the agencies
you’re targeting will have your up-to-date company profile.
The CCR User's Guide outlines the information you’ll need to provide in detail, but here are
some examples from the CCR FAQ page:
General Information – Includes, but is not limited to, DUNS number,
CAGE Code, company name, Federal Tax Identification Number (TIN),
location, receipts, employee numbers, and website address
.
Corporate Information
Includes, but is not limited to, organization or business type and SBA-defined
socioeconomic characteristics.
Goods and Services Information – Includes, but is not limited to, NAICS
code, SIC code, Product Service (PSC) code, and Federal Supply
Classification (FSC) code.
Financial Information – Includes, but is not limited to, financial institution,
American Banking Association (ABA) routing number, account number,
remittance address, lock box number, automated clearing house (ACH)
information, and credit card information.
Point of Contact (POC) Information – Includes, but is not limited to, the
primary and alternate points of contact and the electronic business, past
performance, and government points of contact.
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) Information* – Includes, but is not
limited to, the EDI point of contact and his or her telephone, e-mail, and
physical address. (*Note: EDI Information is optional and may be provided
only for businesses interested in conducting transactions through EDI.)
Source: https://www.bpn.gov/ccr/FAQ.aspx
If you’re a small business, take the time to complete the CCR’s Dynamic Small Business Search
function in the supplemental information section. It’s an extra step that will get your business
more exposure – federal agencies often use the Small Business Search to find vendors that
provide exactly what they’re looking for. The Small Business Administration also monitors the
Small Business Search. Much of the information you’ll enter will be similar to the information you
enter in ORCA (covered below), but having it in two places helps the SBA notify you if you’ve
accidentally entered incorrect information.
Upon completing the CCR registration, you’ll create a Marketing Partner Identification Number,
which will be your password for various other government systems, including ORCA.
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4. CAGE CODES
You may have noticed that a CAGE code is one of the listed requirements in the CCR. The
Commercial and Government Entity, or CAGE, code is a five-character ID number that identifies
contractors. Although originated by the Department of Defense, CAGE codes are also used by
such other agencies as the Department of Transportation and NASA.
To get a CAGE code, you must first complete registration in the CCR. You'll be assigned your
CAGE code as part of the CCR validation process, and as soon as your CCR registration is
active, you can view your CAGE code online when you log in to your CCR account.
ORCA
Like the CCR, ORCA (the Online Representations and Certifications Application) was
developed to reduce the amount of paperwork involved in federal contracting. This database of
government vendors' online representations and certifications applications (hence the ORCA
acronym) is the web-based replacement for the paper-based "Reps and Certs" applications that
businesses previously were required to include with their proposals for large government
contracts.
With the ORCA system, you submit your application only once electronically, instead of having
to complete a separate paper application for each contract bid. Government contracting officials
can then quickly and easily review your vendor information online whenever they want.
Once your company is in the database, you can access and update your information any time at
http://orca.bpn.gov. When responding to a solicitation, you either certify that your ORCA
representations and certifications are current or make any necessary changes. You’ll need to
register in ORCA if the solicitation requires your company to be listed in the CCR. Be aware,
however, that because ORCA records are considered public information, anyone who knows a
registrant’s DUNS number and has access to the Internet can search for the registrant's
records.
Before you register with ORCA, you will need two items active in the CCR: a record and an
MPin. An MPin gives a CCR registrant access to the Past Performance Information Retrieval
System (PPIRS), ORCA, and grants.gov.
For more details about ORCA and how to complete your ORCA application, consider
downloading the ORCA handbook, which contains instructions on how to register with and
search ORCA as well as a glossary of the terms used in the ORCA questionnaire.
Start Bidding on Government Contracts
Contract work can be found at all levels of government, in a wide variety of industries. Here are
some places new government contractors go to look for work.
GSA Schedules
The GSA (General Services Administration) awards contracts to companies offering reasonably
priced commercial items. The GSA Schedules program initiates long-term contracts that, rather
than placing a specific order for a company’s products or services, merely list the prices that the
federal government has agreed to pay for such goods or services. These contracts serve as a
menu of sorts, from which federal agencies can order what they need.
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5. To get on a GSA schedule, you must first respond to a GSA Schedule Solicitation, which can be
found on the GSA website at http://www.gsa/gov. The GSA will decide whether the prices your
company offers to the federal government are reasonable, compared to the prices your
company charges commercial customers. The federal government prefers to be a “most favored
customer,” so offering a discount on a GSA Schedule is a good idea.
The GSA’s Center for Acquisition Excellence (www.gsa.gov/cae) offers an excellent online
course, “How to Become a Contractor – GSA Schedules Program,” that walks contractors
through the GSA Schedules process.
It’s important to remember that getting on a GSA Schedule may not bring you any work at all. A
GSA contract only means is that the federal government has agreed to pay certain prices for the
goods or services you provide. Many new contractors are thrilled get on a GSA Schedule, only
to have their hopes dashed when no new orders arrive. Still, inclusion on a Schedule is a good
first step in doing business with the government.
FedBizOpps
FedBizOpps is an online resource for federal government contracts worth more than $25,000.
This portal was created by the government to help commercial vendors and government buyers
find each other. As a commercial vendor, you can browse opportunities in your area as well as
those from specific agencies. Opportunities are posted to FedBizOpps directly by federal
agencies. For more information, visit http://www.fbo.gov.
Increase Your Chances for Success with Market Research
Because the GSA Schedules program and FedBizOpps are run by the U.S. government, they’re
high-profile and attract a large number of contractors, which means there’s major competition
for the contracts listed by these sources. FedBizOpps also has the added disadvantage of not
including state or local government contracts, or those worth under $25,000.
Many companies find it difficult to track all of the opportunities in their industry and area. You
can hire someone to locate these opportunities for you (as well as monitor them for changes
and addenda). This daunting task will require this person to continually search through the
websites of thousands of government agencies.
As an alternative, you can simplify the process by having a business intelligence company such
as Onvia deliver relevant government contract opportunities directly to your email Inbox every
day. This way, instead of going directly to FedBizOpps to track down government contracting
leads, you can receive an email containing those FedBizOpps-listed leads as well as listings of
state and local bids and RFPs.
For more information on how to win in the gBusiness market, call Onvia at 800-575-1736 or visit
www.onvia.com. An Onvia representative can arrange for a free sample of opportunities
specific to your business needs and market areas.
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