Are you making it hard for me to refer you? Or remember you? You need to make it so easy to remember what you do… in just 3-4 words. Can you do that? Join me and I'll show you how. In this training, you'll learn: • The power of known for one thing • How FOMO (fear of missing out) kills your chances for success • Steps to become unforgettable in federal buyer eyes and with your potential teammates ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 27,835 others and subscribe to our GovCon newsletter | h...
Jan 14, 2026•32 min
Are you leaving money on the table as a subcontractor? Too often small business are when working with large primes But this is a known risk with subcontractors that can be easily avoided. Kate Ostdiek joins me to talk about post award and how to make sure you get the money you deserve. In this training, you'll learn: • Steps to take to avoice prime contractors not paying you what they should • Why large prime federa contractors don't pay small businesses • How to train your staff to avoid mistak...
Jan 13, 2026•31 min
We often think federal buyers buy from the best. That's just not the truth… They buy from the best of those who show up during their market research. It's vital you are visible wherever federal buyers or possible teammates look. In this training, you'll learn: • When federal buyers search for small business government contractors • Where federal buyers look to find small business vendors • How federal buyers choose which small businesses to meet with ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 2...
Jan 12, 2026•32 min
DCMA authorizes $1B daily payments to contractors. Every day, DCMS delivers 1.5M+ items to U.S. military forces. If you support the War Department and/or US military services like the Army, Navy and Air Force, then understand who supports them. In this training, you'll learn: • What the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) does and why they exist • How DCMA is organized to support its mission partners • Top reasons small businesses should understand DCMA's impact on their future success ___...
Jan 05, 2026•31 min
Every opportunity leaves a trail. Every buyer has a pattern, and every prime has a history. FPDS shows you all of it if you know where to look. Let me show you my top 10 FPDS tips for uncovering revenue. In this training, you'll learn: • How FPDS searches really work; the fields, filters, and tactics most people overlook • Discover the FPDS data that reveals buyers, primes, competitors, and expiring contracts • Walk away with 10 actionable FPDS workflows you can use tomorrow to find revenue ____...
Dec 12, 2025•31 min
If sales are lagging, it’s usually not your product, it’s your focus. Selling to multiple federal agencies spreads you too thin, confuses buyers, and kills your pipeline. The fastest way to grow as a small business is to pick one agency and dominate it. Let me show you how to pick that agency. In this training, you'll learn: • Understand why selling to multiple agencies is killing your federal sales efforts • Learn where to start (e.g., VA, DoD, DHS, HHS, or a sub-agency) based on your core comp...
Dec 11, 2025•32 min
My customer was feeling lost on who to call in the VA. Here's exactly how I helped her build a list of 200 people. These are folks from the government and industry who can help, guide, introduce or even buy. These are the people who will get her in the door to have sales meetings. In this training, you'll learn: • The exact method I use to build a 200-person VA target list in under 30 minutes • Discover where the real VA stakeholders “live”, like buyers, influencers, teammates, and partners • Wa...
Dec 10, 2025•34 min
Do you ever feel lost in federal sales? It's probably because you are not following a process. When you follow a proven process, you'll have repeatable and predictable results. You should expect that in your sales efforts. In this training, you'll learn: • The simple 7-step process that removes chaos from federal sales • Discover which step is currently blocking your revenue, and how to fix it • Walk away with a clear roadmap to grow federal revenue in FY2026 ___________________________________ ...
Dec 09, 2025•32 min
You can't sell if federal agencies don't have a problem. But YOU know they have a problem your product or service can solve. So, you need to start by helping them ADMIT they have a problem. In this training, you'll learn: • Learn why federal buyers won’t care about your solution until THEY admit a problem exists • Discover the exact questions that move a buyer from unaware, to problem aware, to ready to engage • Walk away with a repeatable conversation flow that opens doors, builds trust, and cr...
Dec 08, 2025•32 min
FPDS is one of the most valuable tools in your toolbox. Join me in this series and become an expert at using the Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS). This is the second of a planned series about FPDS. In this training, you'll learn: • Why searching FPDS is vital to your sales success as a government contractor • Basic search techniques to find 'slam dunk' opportunities you can pursue • Advanced search criteria to narrow your search results ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 27,523 ot...
Dec 02, 2025•31 min
Can you support Digital Transformation for the US Army? Program Executive Office Enterprise (PEO Enterprise) is at the forefront and delivers enterprise solutions driving Army dominance. In this training, you'll learn: • What PEO Enterprise is and how it is organized • Top priorities and key challenges industry can support • How to request meetings with key leaders within PEO Enterprise ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 27,523 others and subscribe to our GovCon newsletter | https://lnk...
Dec 01, 2025•32 min
I have won many contracts by responding to an RFI. You can have similar success if you 'write for the win' during federal buyer market research. In this training, you'll learn: • How I my initial review of a Request for Information (RFI) • My step-by-step process for quick planning around an outline of the page layout • Ways I find to engage with the federal buyer before responding to an RFI or Sources Sought Notice ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 27,326 others and subscribe to our G...
Nov 21, 2025•32 min
FPDS is one of the most valuable tools in your toolbox. Join me in this series and become an expert at using the Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS). This is the first of a planned series about FPDS. In this training, you'll learn: • What FPDS is and why it is helpful to small business government contractors • Major sections of FPDS and how they help you find opportunities • Top information that can be found in FPDS ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 27,326 others and subscribe to ou...
Nov 20, 2025•33 min
Don't get caught in a reserch whirlpool. At some point you must have meetings with federal buyers to have success. In this training, you'll learn: • Why it starts with having a clear set of objectives you want out of the meeting • How setting a purpose gets everyone on the same page as you • To control a meeting for your success and that of the other participants ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 27,326 others and subscribe to our GovCon newsletter | https://lnkd.in/es6qfwgk 👀 Follow ...
Nov 19, 2025•32 min
President Trump ordered the Department of War to overhaul the entire defense acquisition system, and they did. This new strategy affects every contractor, including small businesses. If you want to stay ahead in FY2026, you need to know exactly what’s changing. In this training, you'll learn: • The biggest shifts in the Department of War’s FY2026 Acquisition Transformation Strategy • Where the new opportunities will emerge first • How to position your company to benefit from these changes ______...
Nov 17, 2025•32 min
Federal buyers like AFLCM, use Industry Days to tell us what they need. I use them as ways to identify opportunities that can be won. In this training, you'll learn: • What information is shared during industry days. • How I 'scrub' industry day slide decks to find the most valuable information • Steps I take to turn slides into opportunities ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 27,232 others and subscribe to our GovCon newsletter | https://lnkd.in/es6qfwgk 👀 Follow me (Neil McDonnell) o...
Nov 11, 2025•32 min
Finding staffing contracts in federal agencies is a process It can seem overwhelming until you know the steps… here's mine. In this training, you'll learn: • How I identified almost 100 'staffing' contracts to pursue in FY2026 • How I determine which are the best fit for me • What I do after identifying opportunities that look like a good fit. ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 27,232 others and subscribe to our GovCon newsletter | https://lnkd.in/es6qfwgk 👀 Follow me (Neil McDonnell) ...
Nov 10, 2025•32 min
The WOSB Program should deliver value to WOSBs… but it does not. This is not my opinion, it is a fact based on awarded contracts. And this isn't a complaint, it's a recognition driving me to train WOSBs how to have success despite the certification. In this training, you'll learn: • The facts about the WOSB program • How the SBA gaslights WOSBs • What to do to win contracts as a woman-owned small business ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 26,811 others and subscribe to our GovCon newsl...
Nov 08, 2025•31 min
If you do what all your competitors do, you'll be an also ran. Doesn't mean you won't write a decent proposal, but it does mean you won't appear any different. But it's not that hard to stand out from your competitors by writing better proposals. In this training, you'll learn: • Why starting early matters most • Being success must begin with being clear and compliant • Compelling requires you identifying more than explicit paint points or objectives ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 2...
Nov 08, 2025•32 min
Stop teaming with your friends! That's bad for you and them. You both end up losing too often. Instead, team up with the best company to help you win the contract. Of course that might sometimes be your friends, but often it really is not. You both deserve to win more. In this training, you'll learn: • How to set the criteria needed for a perfect teammate on each opportunity • Why it is important to vet possible teammates before committing • Establish a written agreement early on all key points ...
Nov 08, 2025•31 min
SAM.Gov is the foundational tool for government contracting. By mastering it's data and how to use SAM.Gov, you will win more contracts. It's not magic, it's just the process for how federal buyers communicate with small businesses. SAM stands for the 'System for Award Management'. In this training, you'll learn: • How to find oppportunities in SAM.Gov • What information is in each opportunity and how it can help you • How to set up SAM.Gov to never miss an opportunity __________________________...
Nov 08, 2025•31 min
I get it. It sucks that the federal government is shut down. But we can't control that, only the actions we take. Here are 5 tips for this week that will ensure we keep moving forward even though our customer is not. In this training, you'll learn: • How to keep your pipeline moving even when agencies aren’t buying • The daily habits that separate winners from worriers • What relationships you can (and should) build this week • Why momentum, not funding, is your greatest advantage ______________...
Nov 08, 2025•32 min
Some of the most helpful tools for GovCons are on GSA's site. Successful small businesses master federal tools like those that GSA makes available. In this training, you'll learn: • How to find tools you can use • Which tools will help you as you try to win contracts • Where GSA is going in this 2025/2026 transition ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 27,128 others and subscribe to our GovCon newsletter | https://lnkd.in/es6qfwgk 👀 Follow me (Neil McDonnell) on LinkedIn™ and hit the 🔔 ...
Nov 08, 2025•32 min
Most proposals sound the same in the federal market. Great ones stand out because of clear Win Themes. A Win Theme ensures all of your activity leads to differentiating your company in a way buyers will value. In this training, you'll learn: • What are Win Themes • How Win Themes strengthen proposals sent to federal buyers • Simple framework you can follow to create your own Win Theme ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 27,128 others and subscribe to our GovCon newsletter | https://lnkd....
Nov 08, 2025•30 min
I just returned from two, back-to-back Defense focused events. Here's how I ensure they have lasting value and how you can too. In this training, you'll learn: • How to triage all the leads you identified from the conference • Short-term steps to take that will turn a lead into part of your network • Long-term steps to make sure your new leads don't fade out of your network ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 27,128 others and subscribe to our GovCon newsletter | https://lnkd.in/es6qfwgk...
Nov 08, 2025•31 min
Federal buyers and teammates are stalking you online. They're trying to find you and decide if you're worth their time. This is called in-bound sales and counts for 99% of your business' growth. In this training, you'll learn: • Where federal buyers go to look you and your company up • What signals tell a federal buyer not to select you • Why teammates and buyers check you out before meeting ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 27,128 others and subscribe to our GovCon newsletter | https:...
Nov 08, 2025•32 min
I know it can seem like there's nothing we can do while the government is shut down, but that's not the case. Winners make things happen. Others either 'watch it happen' or 'ask what happened'. To survive the shutdown, you need to be one of the companies 'making it happen'. In this training, you'll learn: • What is really shutdown during the FY2026 government shutdown? • What can small business government contractors do now? • 5 things you can keep doing to increase your chances of coming out on...
Oct 21, 2025•30 min
As a government contractor, you'll meet so many people. We call them stakeholders when we group them like you see below. By understanding who they are, you can create plans for meeting them. In this training, you'll learn: • About Federal Buyer Stakeholders • About Teaming Partner Stakeholders • About (free and paid) Supporting Stakeholders ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 26,718 others and subscribe to our GovCon newsletter | https://lnkd.in/es6qfwgk 👀 Follow me (Neil McDonnell) on ...
Oct 18, 2025•32 min
If you do not specialize, you will not succeed. This is true for athletes - they don't play every sport. This is true for doctors - they don't specialize in every part of the body. And this is true with government contractors. In this training, you'll learn: • What is a core competency • Why buyers need you to specialize not be a generalist • Why a lack of a clear, core competency will prevent your success ___________________________________ 🔥 Join 26,718 others and subscribe to our GovCon news...
Oct 18, 2025•31 min
Everyone says you need to meet with federal buyers and teammates? But how? Is the most common question. If you can land 1st meetings with a buyer, you can get a 2nd meeting. And anyone who can have two meetings with a buyer has started and is building a strategic relationship that will lead to sales. In this training, you'll learn: • Why you should have 1 intro meeting per day with someone new • How I prepare to contact a federal buyer or teammate • My process for getting the meetings with peopl...
Oct 18, 2025•29 min
