👉 There are 3 points of entry ('focuses') when you are trying to get into a federal agency for government contracting.
Who are you are talking to and what is their role?
➣ 𝗙𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 (sympathetic but no real power)
➥ Small Business Professional
➥ OSDBU Director, WOSB / 8(a) Leads
➥ SBA’s Procurement Center Representative (PCR)
➣ 𝗙𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 (the person with the problem or the goal )
➥ Program Office
➥ Leadership
➥ Management
➥ Worker Bees
➣ 𝗙𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗣𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿(the person with the $$)
➥ Contract Officer
➥ Contract Specialist
➥ Contract Officer Representative
➥ Head of Contract Activity (HCA)
#WednesdayTip for Federal Sales from Neil McDonnell
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There's three points of entry that you can go through when you're trying to get into an agency and sell to the Air Force as as an example. These three points of entry, we call them focuses, right? Focus is a receptivity, focuses of dissatisfaction and focuses of power. You can go through any door at any point, but it's really important to understand who am I talking to? Am I talking to a focus of power, the people with the money? Or am I talking to a focus of dissatisfaction, the people with the problem or the new goal that they want to? Cheap or am I talking to the focus of receptivity, somebody who's sympathetic to your wanting to get into an agency, but really have no particular problem you're going to be able to solve for them and they have certainly no power to sign a contract. And so these 3, when you understand who you're trying to get in or who you're talking to, then you'll be able to prepare your, your meeting preparation material better. You'll be able to send better emails when you're just even trying to land that meet.
I remember reading Neil Rackham's books on major sales, cycles and the customer decision process when I was back in school. This falls along the same lines of 'know your audience', do your research and bring reasonable informed expectations.
LinkedIn Strategies to Increase Your Small Business Visibility
2moI remember reading Neil Rackham's books on major sales, cycles and the customer decision process when I was back in school. This falls along the same lines of 'know your audience', do your research and bring reasonable informed expectations.