The Government as a Rich Business Client

But just because you must register at CCR, don't think business will instantly pick up. "Although the CCR is a primary way federal agencies learn about prospective vendors, it's up to the small-business owners to aggressively market their firms to those agencies," explains David Loines, acting deputy director for government contracting at the SBA.

Credit is king: A sure-fire way to get some government business, even if you don't land a contract, is to accept its credit card, called SmartPay. According to Mark Amtower, author of "Government Marketing Best Practices" (Government Market Press), agencies can buy up to $3,000 worth of products and services at any given time on these credit cards without needing a contract. "Sooner or later, they will say it'll be better to have a contract. Then you start migrating up the food chain," he says. Meanwhile, federal spending by SmartPay in 2007 totaled $18.3 billion; at the state and local levels, it was $54 billion.

Network: Setting up a pitch meeting with the mayor or congressman probably won't help. You need to learn who the decision makers are, and often it's the career government employee who has the legal authority to buy goods and services. "It's still people buying from people," says Larkin, who is also author of "Veterans Business Guide: How to Build a Successful Government Contracting Business" (TargetGov). "They must have a relationship based on knowledge that you can do what you say you can and a trust that you can do it for the long term." So chat up the facilities supervisor at the local courthouse to see if they're looking for a new lawn-mowing company. Own an oil-change shop? Visit the local police department and find out who changes its cruisers' oil.