Is your small business looking for new revenue streams?
After the events of the last few months, countless small businesses are considering new strategies for increasing revenue and looking for ways to recover post-COVID-19. To help, I want to highlight government contracting as a potential option!
Opportunities for MWBEs in New York State
In my opinion, government contracting should be an essential strategy for any small business, especially in NYC. The City of New York has committed to awarding 30% of all contracts to MWBEs by 2021. Additionally, the city’s mayor has announced they will be allocating $25 billion to MWBEs by 2025. And that’s just on the municipal level.
New York State has also committed to award 30% of all contracts to MWBEs. Plus, we have the JFK Redevelopment project, a multi-billion renovation/rebuild of the terminals at JFK, with a 30% participation goal for MWBEs.
There are dozens of opportunities there to help small businesses get back on track!
COVID-19 and Government Contracts
While aiming to land government contracts should be a goal of MWBEs at the best of times, it’s especially important right now.
Even during the shelter-in-place order, many government agencies and projects remained open and active. Their commitment to MWBEs remained strong, even throughout the crisis. For example, I recently read an article where the Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced they awarded $73 million in contracts during COVID-19, of which 30% were awarded to MWBEs.
How to Land a Government Contract during the Crisis
Businesses are now starting to reopen after months of physical distancing orders, but that doesn’t mean the crisis has entirely passed. Here are a couple of things you need to know if you’re considering adding a government contact to your revenue stream during COVID-19.
First and foremost, you need to be certified so that the agencies know who you are and recognize you as a local small/minor and women-owned business. Second, you need a strategy and an understanding of how and what the government buys so you can properly market yourself. This part is especially important because of the way doing business has changed in the last few months. We’re not currently networking and “out there” in the same way we used to be. Therefore, you need to learn alternative methods to connect with government agencies. Finally, you must be sure that you have the right tools so that when the opportunity presents itself, you’re prepared.
Learn How in Our Upcoming Online Workshops
Admittedly, there is a lot you need to know if you’re going to be trying to land government contacts. That’s why the NYC Department of Small Business Services regularly holds workshops to help MWBEs take their first steps!
The next workshop we have coming up is Marketing to the Government. That workshop webinar is taking place on Wednesday, June 17th, from 10 AM to 12 PM EDT. In this workshop, you’re going to learn how to conduct market research, so you have an understanding of what the government buys. It will also provide you with strategies and tools on how to market yourself to government agencies and prime contractors.
The second workshop/webinar we have coming up is about insurance. Insurance is often one of the things that prevent small businesses from entering into the government marketplace. They feel that, before they start marketing themselves and bidding on contracts, they need to be fully insured. That is not necessarily true, and you can learn all about it in the Understanding Insurance Requirements webinar. This workshop is taking place on June 24th from 10 AM to 12 PM EDT. In it, we’ll talk about best practices for meeting the necessary insurance coverage for government contacts. There are many types of insurance available to small businesses, so you need an understanding of what you need to provide to an insurance broker so you can get the most competitive quotes.
As these are both online events, everyone can attend them from the comfort of their own home. Once you register, I’ll send you instructions on how to participate in the webinar. I can’t wait to see you there!
