We have all heard the stories of $500.00 hammers – and $10,000.00 Toilet seats – but how much do we really know about selling our products to the Government?
A few quick facts to get us started -
Did you know… The Government (at all levels) is the nations number 1 consumer? Over 220 BILLION dollars in product each year are purchased by the government
Did you know…The FOIA (Freedom Of Information Act) allows you to request from the government any document paid for with tax money?…that’s you…John-Q Citizen can ask for the invoices of all your competitors for items they sold to any level of government (City, State, County, Federal) . Under the FOIA, you could request the invoices for all the bars of soap P&G sold to the prison system of the state of New Jersey for the last 6 months of 2008. If you are in the soap business, and you want to increase sales by starting to sell soap to the prison system, that is a pretty valuable piece of information. (Just a side note – we used the FOIA to request the 911 call tapes we used in our Wacky 911 CD’s….yep, they are all real)
Did You know….The Government Purchase Card Program allows the government to make purchases up to $25,000.00 at a time on a “VISA” card?….. Used primarily to buy everyday items, the PCP is a way to allow the Government the flexibility to purchase goods and services from local manufacturers and retailers without the contracting process
Did You Know….”GSA Advantage” Is the governments “Online Store” where government agencies go shopping? Need a case of oil?….A French Horn?….. A Pool Table?……You would be amazed at what manufacturers sell on GSA Advantage.
These are just a few facts about the Government as a consumer.
