Hi there, nice to meet you 🙂
Do you want free bid opportunities sent to you on a daily basis?
Neat!
This post used to be about Procurement and Technical Assistance Centers (PTAC) but theyrebranded to APEX Accelerators. And to quote straight from the horse’s mouth “The APEX Accelerators program focuses on building a strong, sustainable, and resilient U.S. supply chains by assisting a wide range of businesses that pursue and perform under contracts with the DoD, other federal agencies, state and local governments and with government prime contractors.”
Still with me?
Still here for free daily RFPs?
Great!
Follow the steps belooow.
Just kidding, I need to go over one last thing before you get started. APEX Accelerators don’t all function as carbon copies of one another. You will need to use the instructions below as a roadmap that will guide you to your daily-free-bids destination if ya put in a little elbow grease. And something else to keep in mind: APEX registration requirements, counselors, tools, events, etc., will vary from place to place.
- Click here to find an APEX closest to you
- Register with your local PTAC office (free)
- Jot down a list of relevant NAICS codes with help from this tool
- Get in contact with your local APEX representative to request free Bid Matching services
- Get relevant bids sent to you every day!
Step 1. Click the link and select the APEX Accelerator closest to you. It might not be exactly in your city, but perhaps in a nearby county or larger service area.
Step 2. Once you complete Step 1 above, you’ll have to roam around your local APEX site for something along the lines of a “registration” button or “become a client” link to complete your local APEX registration.
Step 3. NAICS Codes categorize work.
You’re going to need to categorize your work before you get in touch with a counselor, as they’ll need to understand the type of work you do (via NAICS Codes) in order to filter out relevant bids to send your way. Pick as many or as few NAICS Codes as you want; just make sure you can actually perform the work and keep them safe somewhere for the next step.
Step 4. Might require you to email or call the local APEX office to notify them you’ve registered and are interested in obtaining their free Bid Matching services. You may have to try a few times, but do be persistent and proactive in your attempts to speak with a representative. APEX exists to help you and, to a certain extent, get funded to do so.
Step 5. After you successfully make contact with your local APEX representative, they should be able to establish your Bid Matching service. OR, they might have some additional requirements. Don’t know what those are, unfortunately, they vary by location. After you jump through any/all bid matching hoops, you should be receiving relevant bids in relevant locations in your inbox daily.
Long story long, if you register with APEX, you can get access to their free Bid Matching service. Other companies will offer you bid matching as a paid service ranging from several hundred to thousands of dollars. But, like many government-related services, there are often free alternatives intended to build equity in contracting and allow everyone to participate in government procurement. And APEX is a good place to learn about opportunities available to you.
And here’s a little bit of APEX history in case you’re wondering why the Accelerators exist in the first place, how they’re totally not a scam, and who pays them to help you. Did I mention they used to be called PTAC?
The APEX Accelerators, formerly known as the Procurement Technical Assistance Program (PTAP), was authorized by Congress in 1985 to expand the number of businesses capable of participating in government contracts . The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for the FY 2020 ordered the PTAP to move to Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment (USD(A&S)); and the DoD Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP) began to manage and operate PTAP with a new name, APEX Accelerators, effective FY 2023.
APEX Accelerators were created to help small businesses enter the B2G marketplace – or sell to the government. Registering with APEX is free, only takes a few minutes, and offers a host of small business benefits. Accelerators offer free workshops, one-on-one counseling, and matchmaking events to teach you how to connect with potential business partners and government buyers.
I encourage you to explore your local APEX site (from your Step 1 adventure), you might stumble upon some very useful resources, like an upcoming Government Contracting 101 webinar or an interesting speaker. IDK, check it out, hope you find something worthwhile.
I always did!