Ask HN: Resources for winning US government contracts?
The Covid slowdown has me considering changing from private companies to government contracts.
I spoke with someone at usfcr.com and got some preliminary information. I trust what they told me but they're also selling their services.
Is there an unbiased resource that'll help me understand what it would take to start with the government contracting industry, specifically for web development?
My concerns
How fair is the playing field? I'm looking to get smaller contracts that total about $200k/year. Are these contracts awarded to an inner-circle of companies/lobbyists that I'd have trouble working my way into?
I'd prefer to work on intranet and public website contracts. How do I find out if there are enough contracts in that range to make it worthwhile?
Is there any data on which programming languages government websites use? PHP, ASP, something else?
Right now, I get most of my work through word-of-mouth. For govt contracts, I'd have to do a lot more selling and I'm concerned it'll consume most of my time.
The USFCR rep told me a popular way to win contracts is to network with procurement officials. I'm also assuming I'll need to bid many times before finally winning a contract.
What's a reasonable amount of time I should budget for sales per awarded contract?
Thanks for help and advice!