During my career, I have seen a huge number of companies that prepared federal proposals without doing the business development work needed to win.  This includes both small and large business.

Following below is a list of 19 questions every bidder should ask before investing in a federal proposal.

1. How early in the procurement cycle was this opportunity identified?

2. Do we know the end user?

3. Do we know who wrote the bid?

4. Do we know who will evaluate the bid?

5. Do we know anyone outside the customer who has a

close relationship with the customer and has been providing us with insight?

6. Do we know others in the customer’s organization?

7. Do we know the incumbent?

8. Do we know how the incumbent has done?

9. (Small Disadvantaged Business – SDB) Is this a set-aside of a previously open procurement?

10. (SDB) Do we meet the set-aside requirements?

11. (SDB) Can the incumbent re-bid under the set-aside?

12. Does the customer have other bidders in mind?

13. Have we assisted the customer in defining the

requirement in any of the following ways? (budget estimate, whitepapers, specifications)

14. Do we know the customer’s hot buttons?

15. Do we know what the customer fears going wrong?

16. Why are we seeking this opportunity?

17. Do we know exactly why the customer would choose us?

18. What are the critical factors in bidding? (conflicts with other proposals we are bidding; proposal writing time, etc.) .

19. How much of our intelligence is based on fact rather than wishful thinking?