by Jackie Santisteban, President, The Government Sales Advisors

1. Strategies For Winning
Government Business
Presented by:
Jackie Santisteban MBA, CDR, USN (R)
Government Business Development Consultant
Government Sales Advisors

2. Winning Sales Strategies
1. Commitment
2. Patience
3. Perseverance
4. Dedicated Resources—Money, Time, People
5. Have the Right People in the Right Positions
6. Having the Basics in Place******
a. Business Cards
b. Differentiators
c. Capability Statement
d. Sell Sheet
e. Web Site with Government Page
f. Strategic Plan with Realistic Goals and Execution

3. Business Cards
Use Your Business Cards as Marketing Tool
FRONT OF CARD
1. Name of Business/Company
2. Point of Contact Information
a. Name
b. Title
c. Phone Number
d. Email Address
e. Address of Company or use Home Address
3. Company Logo anywhere on the front

4. Use Your Business Cards as Marketing Tool
BACK OF CARD
1. Name of Business/Company Across the Top
2. DUNS #
3. CAGE CODE
4. GSA #
5. SIN # (list relevant ones)
6. NAIC# (list relevant ones)
7. Company Website URL at the bottom of the card
Business Cards

5. Define and Clarify Your
Differentiators
Differentiate your company and product or
services
Create a dynamic Winning Capabilities
Statement

6. The Rules of Brand
Differentiation
While “breaking all the rules” sounds like something that would
set you apart, this is a case where following the rules really
distances you from your competitors.
The Rules:
1. Your differentiator must be true. In other words, you can’t
just make one up. You have to live it. If you promise a
differentiator but fail to deliver, you will damage your brand.
2. It must be important to your client.
3. It must be supportable. Prove it. That is the challenge that
every differentiator must overcome.

7. Finding Your Differentiation
The following five steps will help you find a real differentiator for
your business – and not just find it, but own it.
1. Choose an approach to differentiation
There are two basic approaches to identifying your
differentiators:
Making conscious management decisions that differentiate your
firm from the competition. Put another way, you can decide how
you will be different.
Discovering the existing characteristics that distinguish your
firm. This is a process of discovering differences, not creating
them.

8. 2. Assess possible differentiators through research
Whether considering new, differentiated directions for
your business or trying to understand your existing
differentiators, you want to conduct research on yourself
and on the marketplace.
Why? Because often times companies misperceive their
audiences’/customers priorities, their own relevance to
client needs, and even who their competitors are.
Research empowers you to base your decisions on facts
rather than hunches.
Finding Your Differentiation

9. 3. Using Differentiators to Pursue Government
Business
Choose the ones that you will focus on to define your
business in the government marketplace.
Consider how you might combine some of the
differentiators you’ve identified to craft a unique identity.
Decide which opportunities you want to pursue and
carefully select your differentiators accordingly.
Finding Your Differentiation

10. 4. Validating with the marketplace
Once you’ve identified your differentiators it’s important to
validate them with the marketplace
Verify that it’s relevant and that you can carry it out
Can you back up the claim effectively
Evaluate your proposed differentiators to see whether
competitors are taking a similar tack
Make certain that what you’ve identified is true, relevant,
and supportable
Finding Your Differentiation

11. 5. Living your differentiators
Once you choose and validate your differentiators, it’s
time to live them. You need to prove them every day.
Your differentiators must be communicated.
Ensure that your website and marketing materials
describe, reflect, and prove your differentiators.
When you speak to potential customer you need to speak
to your differentiators.
If no one knows it, it’s not a differentiator
Finding Your Differentiation

12. Examples of Differentiators
1. Specialize in an industry.
2. Specialize in serving a specific role within your
client’s organization
3. Specialize in offering a particular service
4. Offer a truly unique technology or process
5. Focus on understanding a particular target audience
6. Specialize in serving clients of a certain size
7. All of your staff shares a specific characteristic or
credential
8. Focus on solving a specific business challenge

13. A Critical and Dynamic Document
The Capabilities Statement must be unique to each
contracting opportunity it cannot be a template or boiler plate
type document. Each time your business submits for a
government contracting bid, the capabilities statement must
be unique to that potential opportunity.
It is a critical document that if developed correctly, can bring
new opportunities in government contracting to your small
business.

14. Capabilities Statement –
Your Identity
A capability statement is a promotional or marketing
statement about your business and its capabilities and skills
that advertises who your company is, what it does, and why
you are the best company to be hired.
A capability statement is not only required when dealing with
the government, but also when seeking to work as a sub-
contractor for a company that is the prime contractor on a
government contract.

15. 1. Core Competencies Section
2. Past Performance Section
3. Differentiators
4. Corporate Data
5. Contact Information
The words CAPABILITY STATEMENT should be written in Bold
Type across the top of the document
Capability Statement -
Components

16. The Core Competencies section is the most important of the
entire document.
It essentially answers two questions “Who are you?” and
“What do you do?”
It is critically important that all the words are carefully chosen
and you do what you say you do.
Visiting your existing Mission Statement or Vision Statement is
a good first step
Capability Statement -
Core Competences

17. The Past Performance section should be included if the
experience is relevant to the project.
Past Performance Data Points:
1. Client/Customer Name
2. Prime’s Name
3. Project Name
4. Project Description
5. Location of Project
6. Dollar Value of Project
7. Year Completed or Dates of Project
8. Federal Contract Number
9. Points of Contacts for Reference with email and phone number
Capability Statement -
Past Performance

18. Capability Statement -
Differentiators
The DIFFERENTIATOR SECTION is your opportunity to
Communicate what sets you apart.
It should send a clear message to your Government
Customer/Contracting Officer or Others
1. Why Choose Us
2. What Sets Us Apart from the Competition
3. What Results You Deliver
4. Are You Trustworthy/How Do You Show It
5. Include Good Things a Customer Has Said About You

19. The Corporate/Company Profile Section should include:
1. Name of Founder
2. Number of Years in Business
3. Legal Structure (LLC etc)
4. Purpose of the Company
5. Company website URL
6. Company address
7. DUNS Number and CAGE code
8. Certifications – 8a, Hubzone, ISO 9001, etc.
9. NAICS Codes
10.GSA Schedule and/or other Contract numbers
Capability Statement -
Corporate/Company Profile

20. The Contact Section:
1. Be sure to list the correct person as the point of contact
2. It can be boxed or simply across the bottom of the page
3. It can read Contact Us or Contact
4. Include the Point of Contact’s Title, Name, Phone, Email
Capability Statement -
Contact

21. Tips for your Capabilities
Statement
Use a Proof Reader Whenever Possible
Or Use an Online Proof Reader such as www.grammarly.com
Pay Attention to Punctuation
A Professor Wrote a Statement on the Board and asked his
Students to Rewrite it Using Punctuation.
Some students wrote “A woman, without her man, is nothing”
Some students wrote: “A woman, without her, man is nothing”

22. Tips for your Capabilities
Statement
• Make it easily iden.fiable as being from your company
• Use color or other simple methods to draw a<en.on
• Make it easy to navigate
• One page preferred, but two is max
• Include thorough lis.ng of your products on the back if two
• If you have a long list of NAICS codes, include on back
• Maintain in a form that can readily be modified and then converted to a pdf file
• CREATE A “WOW” FACTOR

23. Tailor each Capability Statement to the Agency Mission or
to the Specific Opportunity
1. No long paragraphs
2. Use short sentences or bullet point which include key
words in Bold Type
3. Use it to grab customer’s attention
4. Keep the file small….keep it under 1MB
5. Keep the margins small use the whole page
TIPS FOR YOUR CAPABILITY
STATEMENT

24. 24
Example

25. 25
Example

28. 28
Example

29. 1. One page document ——-Can Use Front and Back
2. Similar format to your Cap Statement
3. Use pictures that are new and relevant to the Government audience
4. Make it easy to read/may require larger print
5. Have it professionally printed/use high quality card stock or glossy
6. If you have a long list of NAICS codes, include on back
7. Make sure you include a specific point of contact
8. Maintain in a pdf form that can readily be modified and/or emailed to
your Government or other potential customer
9. Make sure you include information pertinent to the Government
a. If you have Government projects include them, be specific
b. Gear it toward the Government
Sell Sheet

30. 30
Sell Sheet

31. 1. Have it professionally done/it is your face to the customer
2. Be sure you have a tab for Government
3. Be very specific about your successes in Government
List Projects etc.
List Products and Solu.ons for your Government Customer
4. Make it easy for the Government to Buy from yo
List your GSA schedule number
List NAICS codes
List SIN numbers
5. Have the right points of contact….make it easy for them to get a hold of you
6. Know who you want to sell to and gear it toward that agency
7. Include your Capability Statement in PDF form
8. Have the color scheme etc. match your Sell Sheet and Capabili.es Statement
WEB SITE

32. Winning Strategies for Selling to the
Government Recap
• Do your homework/research before your meeting
• Don’t rely solely on your status such as 8A, WOSB etc to get the
business
• Be patient and persistent. It is a 2 to 4 year sales cycle..keep at it.
• Get help when you need it and be willing to pay for it
• Have Realistic and Reasonable expectations and goals
• Be Passionate
• Know and Understand Your Competition
• Listen to your customer, ask questions*
• Follow Up Follow Up Follow Up*
• Join associations, go to the right trade shows, speak at
conferences, write articles
• Attend Government Industry Days

33. Jackie Santisteban MBA, CDR, USNR
Government Business Development Consultant
The Government Sales Advisors
http:/www.thegovernmentsalesadvisors.com
Cell 703-992-5460
Email: jackie@thegovernmentsalesadvisors.com