Company size also plays to strength in winning these opportunities. Many bids at all levels are set aside and reserved for small businesses. Many prime contractors are required to procure the services of small businesses for subcontracting opportunities.

So many brand name companies are falling prey to the economic downturn which shows no signs of abating anytime soon. It has magnified the reality of this winter of our financial discontent. Yet many smaller companies are thriving, though, by forging ahead in the world of government contract work. For many of these companies creating bids for government contracts is foreign territory. But seeing the federal stimulus money trickling down has provided a much needed respite in this unforgiving economic climate.

Niche industries have found a record amount of government RFP work to help weather these tempestuous conditions. Privately owned mid-sized industries had to quickly learn how to navigate these constantly changing economic twists and turns or else face an almost certain death. Their ability to act swiftly in government contract bidding has been an imperative component, not only in their survival but their thriving bottom lines as well. The revenue allocated for government contracts in the first month of 2010 eclipsed the previous high by a substantial amount. That trend has continued and there is substantive data suggesting this is just the beginning. That will be music to the ears for a wide variety of industries that are utilizing government contracting to offset losses in the private sector.

For example, architectural services are thriving in government contracts despite the abysmal private construction market. Construction rental equipment companies are leasing tractors and forklifts to state and local government entities or private companies fulfilling government contracts. At the moment, the most valued segments of market growth and survival are traced back to federal, state, and local government initiatives and capital.

Other companies like small IT firms are finding recourse in revenue through going after Health IT initiatives and electronic medical records (EMR). Public school software, school bus tracking and GPS/geo-location are other small niche segments in which these flexible technology companies are shifting focus. Each example is just a tiny snapshot of the enormous amount of possibilities that are a derivative of the federal stimulus money finally reaching its designated targets.

Fortune 500 companies are seemingly set in their ways in regard to government bids. In the past government bids were treated with sublime disinterest outside of long standing contracts. The rise of their smaller competitors who can move more quickly and precisely portends more questions than answers from the former corporate elite. In the interim you can expect to see continued growth from small to mid-sized companies savvy enough to maximize this record amount of government contract spending.

Author Bio: Mr. Ward is the VP of Business Development at BidPrime.com, an online reseller of federal, state, and local government bids and contract intelligence. Previously, he served as VP of Sales and Marketing at Cardiovascular Services of America (CSA). Prior to to CSA, he served as VP of Sales at MEDAxiom. View more healthcare government bids.

Category: Business
Keywords: government bids, stimulus contracts, state and local bids, government contracts, rfps

1. Practice. When you are making a sales presentation, you will want to have every aspect of it down cold, including facts, figures, and exactly when you will be referring to your presentation materials. A great way to do this is the old tried and true method of practicing in front of a mirror. Even better is if you can corral a trusted friend or colleague (your dog doesn’t count) to listen to your presentation and give you some honest - hopefully constructive - criticism. Things to keep in mind are to keep the pace pretty quick in general, but it also helps to vary the tone of your voice and the speed at which you are speaking just a little bit. You don’t want to be up there droning on.

2. Research Your Audience. Chances are, you will be giving your sales presentation to a lot of different potential clients. Don’t get in the habit of giving the exact same spiel to each and every one. Do a little bit of research beforehand to learn what you can about the business you are presenting to. Know their mission statement, and subtly tailor your presentation to showing how your proposals will fit into it. Read their press releases. Have some familiarity with their vernacular. Anything that you can do to show that you understand them, and that your products and/or services fit into whatever it is they are trying to accomplish will help your presentation immensely.

3. Don’t BS (for lack of a better term.) No matter how well you prepare, no matter how well you know your subject, no matter how good you are at expecting the unexpected, someone is going to hit you with a question that you simply do not know the answer to. The key here is to not make something up on the spot. It’s okay to say something like: “Wow, that is a great question. I’m going to have to get back to you on that,” as long as you - guess what?– get back to them as soon as you can with a quality answer. The key is to compliment the questioner, show a little humor if possible, and don’t spend too much time on it. Go right back to your strengths.

4. Make Sure Your Materials Stand Out. There are many methods of putting together and presenting your sales materials, price lists, and catalogs. A great idea is to go to your copy and print shop, or take a good look around online, and truly take into consideration all the different document-binding options and what they might be conveying about your business. Plastic comb document binding is probably the least expensive option, but it is also the most common. If you want to stand out, consider packaging your documents in a style that will make your audience want to hold on to the book. Some more elegant and permanent solutions are Wire-o binding, or thermal binding. Search these online to see what a difference they can make.

Author Bio: If you are interested in more information about the different Binding Systems, that can help you put together a great sales presentation, you might want to visit MyBinding.com. They carry a full line of Binding Accessories, of all styles, types and capabilities. Check it out today!

Category: Business
Keywords: sales presentation,great sales presentation,make sales presentations,great presentation

1. Collect all of the policies that are currently in place, and start to put together a Word document of them. You definitely want to get input from as many people as you can, especially managers and supervisors, but also talk to as many employees as possible and get input from them. Sometimes certain ways of dealing with situations arise among employees and between departments over time, and come to be understood as de facto policy. It is a good idea to put these in the handbook if you find them satisfactory.

2. In order to create an employee handbook that is readable, understandable and will stand the test of time,you will need to have the handbook professionally written. If you are in a larger company, you may have a communications department or other staff that is capable of handling the task. If not, you will need to hire an outside writer.

3.You will also need to make sure the handbook gets a going-over by a qualified attorney. Again, larger businesses may have people on staff that are qualified to do this. If not, do a search of local attorneys who specialize in workplace law. Make sure that you include all the info that your attorney suggests, and to plan a little bit for future growth as well.

4. Important things to include in your employee handbook are: sections dealing with all forms of harassment, a clear drug and alcohol policy, and a section dealing with the proper use of all property and resources belonging to the company. You will also want to make sure that you have a system of clear steps that are to be taken for any employees that want to report instances of fraud or mistreatment, so that they can do so anonymously and without fear of retribution. They should also have a method of registering complaints that does not cause them to fear for their job safety.

5. Though such items as dress codes, as well as attendance rules, and the various disciplinary actions your employees may face are probably already in place somewhat, it is a good idea to codify these things as much as possible in order to create a standard in black and white that is clear and fair to all. There should also be a section where you list and number the types of policies that apply to everyone in the company, such as holidays, sick and vacation days, etc.

6. Include a section that lists and explains the benefits that your company offers. You don’t necessarily have to go into great detail here, but it is important that you give them a reasonable overview, and a list of resources such as websites where they can go to find more details if need be.

7. Speaking of websites, it is a great idea to have the handbook accessible online, perhaps in a password protected area that is not available to the general public. Having it downloadable in PDF form is fine.

8. Put the document together using a binding style that is both rugged and fairly editable, just in case changes need to be made over time. Three-ring binding is probably the most common, but plastic comb and spiral wire will do the job as well.

9. Employees should read the handbook before they begin at your company, and should be required to sign a sheet of paper stating that they have read and understand the policies therein.

Author Bio: If you are interested in more information about how the right Document Binding Style, can help you create a great employee handbook, you might want to visit MyBinding.com. They carry a full line of Binding Accessories, of all styles, types and capabilities. Check it out today!

Category: Business
Keywords: employee handbook,great employee handbook,great employee,useful handbook,handbook gets

You’ve gotten them, seen them, perhaps even been a little bit annoyed by them, but the key is that you’ve held onto them. The items that we are talking about, of course are - in the current vernacular - known as “swag.” This, of course, refers to any item whether it’s related to your company’s services or not, that has your logo emblazoned on it. If at all possible, the best kind of swag for your company is small samples of your product. That’s not always going to work, however, especially if you offer services rather than goods. If that is the case for you, some tried and true ideas for swag include - cloth tote bags, pens, cups and mugs, etc. The idea is to get your name and number out among the masses, along with a good idea of what it is your company does. In order to get whatever swag item you have decided to produce into the right hands, you should keep an eye out for where lots of people are gathering. Conventions, concerts, festivals and the like. Sometimes, your neighborhood business alliance will put together entire bags full of swag and hire people to hand them out at these large events. If they don’t, perhaps you could gather a few together and do it yourself. There is no overestimating the power of swag.

Give Them Something of Value.

There are a couple of things to keep in mind when you are doing a non-targeted sales promotion. One is that you want to make sure that you are communicating your services strongly, and the other is to create a perceived value of your goods or services through the item that you are giving away. In order to do this correctly, you want to give the receiver of the item the idea that it is truly worth something and is usable, while keeping your costs to a minimum. It’s interesting to look at recent history when you are considering this. For instance, DVD’s used to be a highly valued promotional album, but now they are just as likely to be immediately discarded.

Some Ideas. One of the hottest promo items these days is flash drives that are emblazoned with company logos. At this point in time, anyway, they are small, inexpensive to you, and likely to be held onto by whoever receives them, three things that always make for a great promotional item. Another “evergreen” idea that we’ve seen not enough of, is small journals, calendars, or address books that are elegantly bound and eminently usable. The better the binding style of such an item, the less likely that it will be thrown away. Go to your local print shop, or just take a good look around online, and peruse all the different styles there are. Double loop wire booklets are that classic journal style, and that binding method works well for address books too. Calendars can be bound in a number of different ways, but you want to make sure you keep the size pretty small, in case your receiver has to carry it around for a long time at a festival or convention.

Author Bio: If you are interested in more information about how the right Document Binding Style, can help your sales promotion stand out, you might want to visit MyBinding.com. They carry a full line of Binding Accessories, of all styles, types and capabilities. Check it out today!

Category: Business
Keywords: sales promotions,non-targeted sales promotion,promotional item,great promotional item,address books

2. Subheadings Work. Few readers are going to take the time to read your whole sales piece. That is why you want to tell as much of the story, as economically as possible, in the subheading. Lead to the answer to your headline-question, but don’t give it all away.

3. Show A Need, Then Fill It. It is one of the oldest precepts of the business of selling is that the vast majority of people don’t buy products, they purchase how they are going to feel once they have the product in their hands or at home. That is why you should make a point of showing what the benefits are to your item or service.

4. Know Your Audience. This is where some research comes into play. If you are selling to a certain demographic, it is your job to know all there is to know about them. Not just how they will use your product, but how they use every product. You need to have a grasp on their motivations, needs, and desires. If you are pitching the same products to the different demographics, you will need to have separate sales material for each. There is no way around this.

5. Write Like You Speak. Make your materials conversational. If your product is a little hard to explain, you have to find that fine line between patronizing and overwhelming. Easier said than done, but if you want to score a direct hit, you need to write simply, but with a sense of purpose and logic as well.

6. Prompt Your Reader To Act. Immediacy is a very powerful tool. Give your reader reason to act and act soon, by offering free items or trials if they do what it is you want them to do by a certain time. Most people buy on whims, so a sale postponed is more than likely a sale lost.

7. Make Your Materials Stand Out. The higher quality your materials are the more legitimacy it lends your business, and the less likely the materials are to be immediately thrown away. Bind your materials together elegantly so your customers or clients feel as if they have gotten something worth keeping. Ask at your copy shop or look around online for a binding style that works for you by conveying the quality of your work.

Author Bio: If you are interested in more information about how the right Document Binding Style, can help your sales materials stand out, you might want to MyBinding.com. They carry a full line of Binding Accessories, of all styles, types and capabilities. Check it out today!

Category: Business
Keywords: sales materials,great sales materials,create great sales,create great,great sales,materials together