Live Mentoring Session on 7/24 for small biz in govt contracting with Amex OPEN Advisor on Teaming

Last year, small businesses received $91.5 billion in government contracts. Landing contracts takes planning, persistence and ingenuity. For many business owners, the road to success comes in the form of subcontracting and/or teaming -- banding together with fellow small business owners to pursue larger prime contracts. According to American Express OPEN’s government contracting survey, three-fourths of small business contractors have had some procurement revenue from subcontracting and teaming, averaging 34% of their procurement revenue.

Pursuing subcontracting and/or teaming can be an excellent way for small businesses to gain procurement experience, expand their networks, improve their chances for contracting success, and obtain additional opportunities. For example, the same survey revealed that nearly one-quarter (22%) of active small firm contractors have accessed additional subcontracting opportunities after being recommended to a large prime contractor by a prime that they had performed successfully for in the past.

On July 24^th from 3pm – 4:30pm EST, Denise Rodriguez-Lopez, American Express OPEN Advisor on Teaming, will host a live chat on the American Express OPEN Victory in Procurement group on LinkedIn to guide small businesses on how partnering with another company can give their business the break it needs to surge ahead. This is an exclusive opportunity for business owners to have Denise answer questions LIVE on teaming and subcontracting.

Anyone can join the American Express OPEN Victory In Procurement® (VIP) group on LinkedIn, where members are able to:

·         Post and respond to Teaming needs/opportunities

·         Interact with Teaming experts

·         Learn of upcoming government contracting opportunities (on the “Jobs” tab)

·         Learn about upcoming events

Government Contracting Excellence Recognized by AMEX OPEN's 2012 VIP Awards

Even amidst pressures to reduce deficits, the U.S. government remains the world’s largest single purchaser of goods and services with federal contract spending amounting to just over $535 billion in fiscal year 2011. With all of this federal government money on the table, small businesses are working harder to land the government as a customer – in fact, according to American Express OPEN’s government contracting survey, small business contractors invested $103,827 seeking federal contracts in 2010, an increase of 21% over 2010.

American Express OPEN will spotlight small business achievements in government contracting with the third annual Victory in Procurement (VIP) Awards.  The VIP Awards are part of American Express OPEN’s Victory in Procurement (VIP) for Small Business– a national program that helps small business owners capitalize on the enormous growth opportunity provided through government contracts. Now through May 1, nominations are being accepted for the following three categories:

• Government Contractor of the Year
• Woman Contractor of the Year
• Teaming Contractor of the Year

Three business owners will be selected and honored at an upcoming VIP event on June 15^th in Washington, D.C. They will also be considered for panel discussions at future events as well as marketing and PR opportunities courtesy of OPEN. More information on the awards, including a link to the application, can be found at http://www.openforum.com/governmentcontracting/resources/awards.  Interested business owners will need to fill out the application and email it to VIPAwards@mbooth.com by May 1, 2012.

Related articles

• How to Get Rich on Government Work (inc.com)
• Contests & Awards: Entrepreneurial Women, Procurement Mentorship & More - April 9 (smallbiztechnology.com)

AmEx Offers Free Mentorship Opportunity for Small Business Government Contractors

Government contracting has proven a viable means of opening new revenue streams for small businesses. In fact, small business contractors are more likely to exceed $1 million in revenue versus their non-contracting peers with nearly half (47%) earning revenues in excess of $1 million versus the 5% of all small businesses that have achieved that level of business success. For novices or those looking to diversify their work in the space, however, identifying a mentor to help navigate these muddied waters can prove difficult. Not anymore.

Image via Wikipedia

Small contractors across the country now have an opportunity to take part in the Victory in Procurement (VIP) mentorship program from American Express OPEN. Participants will be educated on a host of topics, including the GSA schedule, business certifications, teaming arrangements and the importance of networking. 

The mentorship program consists of 12 hours of one-on-one virtual communications with a government contracting experts Lourdes Martin-Rosa, American Express OPEN Advisor on Government Contracting, and/or Dona Storey, American Express OPEN Advisor on Procurement. To apply, interested business owners will need to fill out the VIP Mentorship Application, and email toVIPMentorship@mbooth.com. Applications will be due by May 1, 2012.

Each mentee that completes the program will be awarded a certificate of achievement and an online badge to be displayed on their website.  Mentees will also be given free PR during the program. Additional information on the program, including a link to the application and details on the mentors, can also be found at http://www.openforum.com/governmentcontracting/resources/mentor.

The VIP Mentorship program is free to business owners as part of American Express OPEN's Victory in Procurement™ (VIP) for Small Business initiative - a national program launched in 2009 designed to help small business owners capitalize on the enormous growth opportunity provided through government contracts. Since 2009, OPEN has mentored twelve small business owners looking to grow their business through government contracting.

Related articles

• Small Businesses Working Harder for Federal Contracting Opportunities (openforum.com)
• For the Good of Your Business: Develop a Mentoring Mentality (insatiablesolopreneur.com)

Teaching Women Business Owners How to Pitch to the Federal Government

Did you know there is roughly $27 billion in contracts set aside specifically for women business owners? Thanks to the Small Business Administration’s Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Program, which went into effect on February 4, women business owners have a greater chance to win government contracts. In fact, the Kauffman-RAND Institute for Entrepreneurship Public Policy estimates that the program could benefit approximately 684,000 of these companies.

American Express OPEN and Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP) are offering a free, one-hour tutorial next Wednesday, June 29 to teach entrepreneurs how to market their companies to government agencies.

This educational webinar is part of the Give Me 5 program, a national initiative created by American Express OPEN and WIPP to help women business owners get a leg up on selling to the world’s largest customer: the U.S. government. This online event will be hosted by Lourdes Martin-Rosa, President, Government Business Solutions and American Express OPEN Advisor on Government Contracts.

Additional information can be found below:

Give Me 5 110: Pitching your company to the federal government

Date: Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Time: 3-4pm EST/ 12-1pm EST

Where: Virtual

Business owners who are interested in registering for the Webinar should visit: http://www.wipp.org/events/event_details.asp?id=165187.   Additional resources for business owners can be found on www.openforum.com/governmentcontracts.

Related articles

• Fresh List of 40+ Small Business Events (businessinsider.com)
• Events for Entrepreneurs and SMBs (businessinsider.com)

How to Succeed in Facebook Advertising

Facebook Ads are an enormous opportunity for advertisers to create awareness, acquire fans and market to them. Applying advanced testing and optimization strategies that connect the dots from awareness to engagement to sales conversions help ensure success on the world’s largest social network. According to American Express OPEN and SEMPO’s Small Business Search Marketing Survey, 44 percent of small business owners currently use social media (Twitter, Facebook, etc.) as an online marketing tactic for their businesses.  

To help small business owners learn best practices and practical tips for driving maximum performance with Facebook Ads, American Express OPEN’s SearchManager and SEMPO are offering a free online web conference on Thursday, June 9. This one-hour session will teach small business owners about:

• Split-testing strategies that factor in audience segmentation, ad copy and image selection.
• How to overcome ad fatigue.
• Driving awareness to conversion through remarketing and cross-network conversion tracking.
• Using SearchManager's new Facebook Advertising Suite to create and optimize Facebook Ads at scale.

This educational webinar is will be presented by Peter Chun, Senior Director, and Max Kalehoff, VP, Marketing at Clickable. Additional information can be found below:

Facebook Advertising -- Advanced Strategies

Date: Thursday, June 9, 2011

Time: 1:00 EDT / 10:00 PDT

Where: Virtual (register here)

Cost: FREE

How to Succeed in Facebook Advertising

Facebook Ads are an enormous opportunity for advertisers to create awareness, acquire fans and market to them. Applying advanced testing and optimization strategies that connect the dots from awareness to engagement to sales conversions help ensure success on the world’s largest social network. According to American Express OPEN and SEMPO’s Small Business Search Marketing Survey, 44 percent of small business owners currently use social media (Twitter, Facebook, etc.) as an online marketing tactic for their businesses.  

To help small business owners learn best practices and practical tips for driving maximum performance with Facebook Ads, American Express OPEN’s SearchManager and SEMPO are offering a free online web conference on Thursday, June 9. This one-hour session will teach small business owners about:

• Split-testing strategies that factor in audience segmentation, ad copy and image selection.
• How to overcome ad fatigue.
• Driving awareness to conversion through remarketing and cross-network conversion tracking.
• Using SearchManager's new Facebook Advertising Suite to create and optimize Facebook Ads at scale.

This educational webinar is will be presented by Peter Chun, Senior Director, and Max Kalehoff, VP, Marketing at Clickable. Additional information can be found below:

Facebook Advertising -- Advanced Strategies

Date: Thursday, June 9, 2011

Time: 1:00 EDT / 10:00 PDT

Where: Virtual (register here)

Cost: FREE

Webinar - Small Business Owner Receives Help in Leveraging Teaming Arrangements to Win Contracts

Through the power of collaboration and partnerships as well as developing a subcontracting and teaming plan, business owners can effectively capitalize on the more than $500 billion the U.S. government spends each year in federal contracts. In 2009, the federal government awarded $537 billion in contracts, making it the largest consumer in the world.

According to an American Express OPEN survey, business owners who team up with other small businesses to jointly bid on federal contracts see the greatest results: Two-thirds (68 percent) of active small business contractors who have pursued teaming opportunities have exceeded $1 million in federal contracts won to date, and 38 percent have exceeded $10 million. Also, businesses that partner with a larger prime contractor also report a higher success rate versus the average small business contractor: 61 percent of active small businesses that have performed as a subcontractor report that the total value of all of the federal contracts they have won to date exceeds $1 million, and 31 percent have exceeded $10 million.

As the fourth part of the special hour-long, one-one-mentorship webinars we’ve been promoting the last couple of months, Lourdes Martin-Rosa, American Express OPEN Advisor on Government Contracting, and Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP), will help one woman business owner develop an effective strategy for teaming.  These webinars are a part of the Give Me 5 program – a national program by American Express OPEN and WIPP to help women businesses owners access and win their share of government contracts.

Additional information can be found below:

Give Me 5 “Ready For Prime Time”: How to Leverage Teaming Arrangements

Date: Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Time: 3-4 p.m. ET / 12 p.m.-1 p.m. PT

Where: Virtual

Lourdes, who has nearly 20 years of federal contracting experience under her belt, will be able to provide all webinar participants with valuable information for accessing and winning contracts as well as help both small and mid-sized businesses find and market their unique value proposition to potential teaming partners. 

Related articles

• Latest Small Business Research: The News Is Not Too Bad (businessinsider.com)
• Social Media for Small Businesses Is Anything But Small (blogs.constantcontact.com)

Exclusive Delta Air Lines Deals from AmEx Daily Wish

A recent survey found that 86% of Americans are planning a fall getaway, despite lingering economic concerns. Luckily, American Express’ online marketplace Daily Wish has your ticket, thanks to the exclusive Delta Air Lines deals it will be offering on Wednesday, October 20.

• Get your Delta SkyMiles Number ready and save 60% on your plane ticket by getting a $1,000 Delta Air Lines travel voucher for just $400! The Delta eCerts Credit Voucher can be used on Delta or KLM Royal Dutch Airlines flights.

• Frequent travelers can enjoy the perks of the Delta Sky Club, including business services and complimentary snacks and beverages, with a 3-year membership for just $885 (regularly $1,265).

• Additional lucky travelers can take advantage of the personalized service, comfort and productivity of the Delta Sky Club with a 1-year membership for $350 (regularly $500).

The exact times of each sale will be announced on DailyWish.com on the day of the sale. Each week, Daily Wish is offering Cardmembers incredible, limited-time sales on a variety of sought-after, hand-selected products and experiences. All Daily Wish sales are conducted for a limited time, with a limited quantity available on a first-come, first-served basis. Cardmembers can visit DailyWish.com to sign up for weekly alerts to get the sale times in advance and ensure they don’t miss a second of the action, or an unbeatable deal.