Do Business Well

Government

The United States government is the single largest user of product in the world. There are many different ways to sell this market.

• The GSA (General Services Administration) buys most of the product for the various government offices. This is done primarily through a bidding process. Items that go out for bid have specifications associated with them that your product must meet to qualify. Many of these specifications must be laboratory tested for proof before your first shipment.

As you might expect, there are reps who specialize in selling to GSA. You can wade into the paperwork maze on your own if you wish, but be prepared to learn a whole new ball game.

• Base exchanges (BX’s) and commissaries serve our men and women in uniform. The BX’s are one of the largest retailers in the U.S. They, along with the commissaries, buy massive amounts of product. The largest of these is AAFES (Army, Air Force Exchange Service) located in Dallas, Texas.

It is very important to find a knowledgeable manufacturer’s rep if you want to sell the BX’s. Otherwise you’re faced first with the job of unraveling the government system of doing things, and then selling the buyer.

C. Many agencies, including the military, have discretionary budgets that do not go through GSA or the major military buying offices. Sometimes they are required to put these requirements outto bid. Other times they can be sold without bid, as long as you’re willing to meet the price of the primary supplier.

State, county, and city governments are also big users of manytypes of products and services. Write to the respective procurement offices to have your company name put on the bid list.

If you qualify as a small business or if you are minority owned you should be able to bid on items that are “set aside” for such enterprises. The agencies who do the purchasing can help you determine how to qualify.

International

You may be surprised at the opportunities your little three-person operation may find in the international arena. American products and know-how are in great demand around the world. (Even the Japanese consider it high fashion to wear American clothes, watch American movies, and listen to American music.)

You may be able to attract a certain amount of export business just by putting up a sign in your booth at a trade show mentioning your interest in establishing international distributors. At the same time, keep your eyes peeled for individuals whose badges or accents give them away as potential overseas customers.

You can prospect for opportunities in other lands by checking with various federal, state, and city government branches. Many of these have programs designed to help small businesses gain access to foreign markets. Your local or national chamber of commercealso has helpful information.

Again, there are reps who can help you. Some are based here and travel abroad. Others are based in the country you want to sell.

A side benefit of developing your international business is that you’ll be able to write off much of the travel you do.

Premium

Would your product look good in or on a box of corn flakes? Would a major national fast-food chain give your item away with a cheeseburger, fries, and soft drink? Could other companies use your product or service as a prize for a sales contest? Is there any way to print a name on your merchandise so that it becomes abillboard?

There are many, many items that can be made to fit into the premium business. It may seem as if the industry is dominated by pens and calendars. However, in the bicycle industry we have seen seat bags, hats, helmets, water bottles, jerseys, pants, and number plates, to say nothing of the bicycle frame itself, used as sales media.

To pursue these opportunities, determine where your product fits, pick up the phone, and begin networking.

Visit the Premium Incentive Show in New York City. If you believe it would be profitable, take a booth. There are several magazines for this industry that also might suggest opportunities for you and your firm.

Mail Order

You can take advantage of this huge and growing method of retailing by selling to the major catalogs and home shopping shows. I have personally had no success in finding representatives that work this territory. We have found our way into these catalogs through distributors who have good connections, by calling the buyers direct, and by meeting their representatives at trade shows.

Other Dealer Networks

Can your item be sold in another, almost unrelated industry? If it won’t work exactly the way it is presently configured, could it be changed in some minor way to work? For example, in the padlock business we sold the following industries. In each case the method of distribution is shown after the industry name.

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