IS YOUR MESSAGE TIMELY AND TARGETED CORRECTLY?

Federal contractors spend a lot of time on business development, one part of which is developing the message they want to send to different federal agencies.  Sometimes, though, this process becomes an end to itself, taking significantly longer to get out the door than originally planned.  Results we’ve seen recently include a company that wanted to get out a message for fiscal year-end, but is just rolling it out now, and a company that managed its messaging so precisely that the terminology they’re using is now out of date.  The result in both cases is a message that won’t get the pop the contractor had hoped for.  The bottom line on your messaging is that it only works well if it is timely and targeted with necessary specificity.  This means that those directly involved with federal business must work with their internal counterparts who may not be as familiar with market timing as they are.  It also means understanding that some messaging can be broad and multi-agency in nature, while others can only be properly used in specific agencies.  Telling the Commerce Department that your product is Berry Amendment-compliant, for example, means little as that standard is only applicable to DOD acquisitions.  It can also make your company look amateurish.  Getting maximum bang for your marketing buck requires both conducting research to ensure you’re in sync with federal priorities, and an understanding of the time of year when certain messages can have the most benefit.  One more thing that may seem obvious, but is not:  Make sure your message is proofread before it’s issued.  You’d be surprised.