The world's largest business is actually the U.S. government. It buys about $240 billion in goods and services every year, such as all-purpose supplies, building construction, information technology and office space. And by law, a portion of those goods and services must be bought from qualified small business.

That translates into a lucrative sales venue for both big and small businesses. The General Services Administration (GSA) serves as the government's purchasing agent. The road to making sales to the GSA can be an arduous one though.

So first consider these attributes you'll need before jumping in:

1. Dedication to a long sales process.
2. Adherence to procedures set forth in contracts.
3. Ability to weather long payment cycles.
4. Willingness to be proactive, rather than waiting for the bidding process to begin.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Learn how government contracting works

Know the steps involved in landing a government contract.

I recommend: Sign up for free online training courses on government contracting from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). You can also visit Business.gov or Onvia for an overview, resources and tools to help you navigate this complex, multi-step process.

Research what the government regularly buys

It's a good idea to familiarize yourself with the types of products and services the government routinely purchases. Make sure the GSA is actively looking for the goods or services your company provides before going any further.

I recommend: Visit the GSA Web site to see what types of products, services, technology and building/construction are sought.

Take advantage of your small-business status

The GSA actively seeks to award contracts to small, small disadvantaged and HUBZone (Historically Underutilized Business Zone) businesses as well as businesses owned by veterans, service-disabled veterans and women. The GSA has also established goals for awarding subcontracts to small business.

I recommend: Discover a number of resources designed to help small businesses access the GSA's procurement opportunities. The SBA helps you determine your business classification (woman-owned, veteran-owned, etc.).

Find opportunities

The GSA has made it easy to find contracting opportunities over $25,000 by listing them on a single Web site.

I recommend: FedBizOpps.gov is the main hub for procurement programs that exceed $25,000. Search the site for opportunities by date, location, government agency, procurement code and more.

Apply for a D-U-N-S number

To do business with the government, you must have a D-U-N-S number from Dun & Bradstreet. A D-U-N-S number is a universally recognized nine-digit sequence that's used to identify businesses worldwide.

I recommend: Request a D-U-N-S number at the D&B Web site.

Actively target buyers

Instead of waiting for government agencies to post a Request for Proposal (RFP), be pro-active. Create a list of specific government officials who can buy your wares and develop relationships with them just as you would in the private sector. Ask your target buyers to inform you of upcoming pre-bid meetings. Schedule meetings with your contacts and follow up regularly by phone or email to get a foot in the door.

I recommend: TargetGov.com's Government Buyer's Guide provides a list of verified government contacts you can target.

Perform on-time and on-target

Once you land a project, you'll receive lengthy contracts that you must read thoroughly. Government contracts differ from some commercial contracts, so keep that in mind. Contracts can be terminated for failure to meet deadlines or misreading product specifications.

I recommend: Understand your responsibilities to avoid having your contract terminated.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Consider subcontracting from bigger companies already doing business with the government. The SBA has a searchable database.
• •  Request a procurement history before bidding on a project.
• •  Know how and when your customer buys your services.
• •  Steep yourself in Federal Acquisition Regulations and contract requirements.

Want a new customer? The world’s biggest buyer of anything and everything is somebody you already know. His name is Uncle Sam, and thanks to new economic stimulus legislation, he’s got more money to spend than ever before — hundreds of billions of dollars in new spending on top of federal government purchases that already totaled over $425 billion per year. And he’s itching to spend it.

The big deal for small business is this: By law, at least 23 percent of all government buying must be targeted to small firms. Billions sometimes goes begging because the government can’t find enough qualified small businesses to take the money. Selling to the government — the business-to-government (B2G) market — can provide serious revenue for your business. And it may not be as complicated as you think. What’s more, this isn’t only for “big” small businesses. Even one-person or home-based small businesses can be awarded contracts.

Still, you can’t simply raise you hand to get money (unless you run a bank, perhaps); there is a formal “process” with plenty of rules. Your three basic steps are these:

1) Get comfortable with how the contracting process works;
2) Find out if your business is qualified to sell to the government, and whether it’s the right move for you;
3) Register and start pursuing opportunities.

Must-Know Government Websites

Start at the U.S. Small Business Administration website which has an excellent introduction to government contracting opportunities for small business. It includes these key components:

• How small businesses sell to the government
• How the government defines a “small business” for this purpose
• Myths and realities of government contracting

To start the process, you’ll need to first classify your business, and then register your company to take part. This Government Contracting Checklist for Small Business can help you sign up, start up and smarten up.

Federal Business Opportunities (FedBizOpps.gov) is the U.S. Government’s central online marketplace for government contracting. At FedBizOpps, commercial vendors (that’s you) and government buyers (the guys with the money) can post, search, monitor and retrieve opportunities. Anyone can search for opportunities without having to register or login (but you’ll have to register to actually apply for contracts). Once you register, you can search for specific opportunities for your type of business, organized by NAICS code.

NEW! Economic Stimulus Act Opportunities: This is brand new to the FedBizOpps site, and has the absolute latest of selling opportunities coming out of the economic recovery bill. In the time it took me to write this, another dozen showed up.

Central Contractor Registration (CCR) is the primary registrant database for the entire U.S. Government. It collects, validates, stores and disseminates the information to a variety of government agencies.

Government Contracting Field Staff: Government contracting is full of acronyms that stand for a variety of officials involved in the process - PCRs, CMRs, COCs, and more. This explanation of who does what will help.

Private Sites that Offer an Assist

Given the size of the government contracting market, there are hundreds of firms and websites that offer training in the process, consulting and access to listings. You’ll find a wide range of helpful options under “Government Procurement” at Business.com.

Onvia.com helps businesses find government as well as private sector contracting opportunities. Their new site Recovery.org is devoted entirely to tracking economic recovery spending at all levels of government - and includes real time access to projects available for bidding.

TargetGov.com offers tools that help contractors connect to the right people within federal, state and local governments. Search the Government Buyers Guide to find the specific procurement officials for your category of products or services.