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This information and links below were given during the October 14 webinar sponsored by CreateSpace about selling books to the military and government agencies. It is excerpted from Brian Jud’s book, How to Make Real Money Selling Books.
1) Selling to Government Agencies
Where to start
Official City Sites.org (http://officialcitysites.org/) is an online resource for state, city, and local information. Here you will find contact information as well has procedures for dealing with each state.
Selling to the Federal Government
Registration is required to compete for federal government procurement and contracts. Before you register as a contractor and begin bidding on proposals read about these programs and services that help small businesses successfully compete for federal contracts in the Small Business Guide to Federal Contracting (http://www.business.gov/guides/contracting/small_biz.html).
Register with the government's Central Contractor Registration (http://www.ccr.gov/) database. For help, use the Central Contractor Registration Handbook a pdf document found at http://www.ccr.gov/doc/CCR_Handbook.pdf
Complete an Online Representations and Certifications Application (https://orca.bpn.gov/).
One way to find the department that is responsible for publishing books in your content area is to go to http://bookstore.gpo.gov/. This is the official online bookstore for U.S. Government publications for purchase from the U.S. Government Printing Office
FedBizOpps.gov (http://www.fedbizopps.gov/) is the single government point-of-entry (GPE) for Federal government procurement opportunities over $25,000.
There are 93 Procurement Technical Assistance Center in the US (http://www.dla.mil/db/procurem.htm). The complete list may be downloaded at http://www.aptac-us.org/new/. Other helpful sites may be found at http://www.governmentexpress.com/resources.html, including these:
· Federal Acquisition Jumpstation (http://nais.nasa.gov/fedproc/home.html) is a central starting point to quickly access federal procurement documents with links to Internet sites of federal procurement information.
· FedWorld (http://www.fedworld.gov) is a comprehensive central access point for searching, locating, ordering and acquiring government and business information.
§ USA.gov (http://www.firstgov.gov) is an easy-to-search, free-access website designed to give you a centralized place to find information from local, state, and U.S. Government Agency websites.
Selling successfully to the U.S. government can be intimidating, but you can make it less daunting by doing your homework before you begin selling. Here are some resources to help you sell your products and services to the Federal government.
§ The federal government's Business Partner Network (http://www.bpn.gov/) is the single source for vendor data for the Federal Government.
§ Find forms online for doing business with many government agencies.
o Department of Defense: http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/infomgt/forms/formsprogram.htm
o General Services Administration is the government's chief acquisitions agency. It spends billions of dollars annually on products and services offered to all federal agencies (http://www.gsa.gov/)
o GSA forms library: http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/formslibrary.do
o The GSA's Public Buildings Service (PBS) “provides superior workplaces for federal customer agencies at good economies to the American taxpayer,” and the forms for doing business here may be found at http://gsa.gov/pbs/pc/hw_files/how_1.htm
§ Acquisition Central (http://www.acquisition.gov/) is a website for the federal acquisition community and the government's business partners. From this site you can access shared systems and tools to help you conduct business efficiently. Google also has a separate engine for searching government sites: www.Google.com/ig/usgov.
§ You can learn up-to-the-minute advice about selling to the government on Mark Amtower’s “Off Center” radio show. This airs every Friday at 2:00 and may be found online at www.federalnewsradio.com or if you are in Washington, DC you can find it on 1050 am.
§ Find a guide to Department of Defense contracting opportunities (A Step-by-Step Approach to the DoD Marketplace) at http://www.acq.osd.mil/osbp/doing_business/DoD_Contracting_Guide.htm. Similar information for other agencies may be found at these sites:
1. US Dept of Health and Human Services: http://www.os.dhhs.gov/grants/index.shtml#contract
2. US Dept of Housing and Urban Development: http://www.hud.gov/offices/cpo/index.cfm
3. US Dept of Interior: http://www.doi.gov/osdbu/
4. US Dept of Justice: http://www.usdoj.gov/jmd/pe/
5. US Dept of State: http://www.statebuy.state.gov/
6. US Dept of Transportation: http://www.dot.gov/ost/m60/
7. US Dept of Treasury: http://www.ustreas.gov/offices/management/dcfo/procurement/
8. US Dept of Veterans Affairs: http://www1.va.gov/oamm/
Contract work
There is a site (www.fedmarket.com) that offers a products and services that can help you sell to a variety of government agencies. The subjects under which they sell their products include: GSA Schedule Services and Products, Proposal Writing Tools, Lists and Contact Data, Bid Opportunities as well as books and ebooks that can help you. These are fairly pricey, and you can find much of this information for free on one of Mark Amtower’s sites: www.GovernmentExpress.com or www.GovernmentMarketingBestPractices.com. More help may be found online:
· Register as a contractor (http://www.business.gov/guides/contracting/register.html)
This site includes GSA Schedules and teaming and subcontracting arrangements
· Find federal contracting opportunities and learn how to locate and bid on them. (http://www.business.gov/guides/contracting/opportunities.html)
· Learn the rules, regulations and standards that govern the federal procurement process. (http://www.business.gov/guides/contracting/far.html)
The U.S. Small Business Administration
· The SBA provides a step-by-step guide for selling to the government, with tips on bidding, marketing, and competing for government contracts and links to free online courses (http://www.sba.gov/). It published a report, Doing Business With the Federal Government that can be downloaded at www.sba.gov/opc.
Selling to the Military
Selling your titles aboard ships
There are approximately 180 Ship Stores on U.S. Navy commissioned ships; crewmembers may place an order for almost any item through NEXCOM (Navy Exchange, http://www.navy-nex.com).
Inquiries and correspondence should be directed to the Ship Stores Program, Exchange Service Command, 3280 Virginia Beach Boulevard, Virginia Beach, VA 23452-5724, Telephone: (757) 502-7473/7474
The Domestic Military Market
1. Office of Small Business Programs (http://www.acq.osd.mil/osbp/) Here you will find Department of Defense information, publications, and programs to assist small, disadvantaged, or minority businesses to compete for DoD contracts, including The Guide to DOD Contracting Opportunities (http://www.acq.osd.mil/osbp/doing_business/DoD_Contracting_Guide.htm)
- Defense Logistics Agency (http://www.dla.mil/db/) provides links to government websites
Selling to exchanges
Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) oversees a global organization of over 12,000 facilities worldwide. Its URL is http://www.aafes.com/.
There is a handbook online for selling to the military. This, along with many other resources can be found at http://www.defenselink.mil/other_info/business.html. You will find similar information for individual branches and agencies at these sites:
· US Air Force: www.selltoairforce.gov
· US Army Corps of Engineers: http://www.usace.army.mil/business.html
· US Army Security Assistance Command: http://www.usasac.army.mil/Business/mainbiz.htm
· US Navy: http://www.donhq.navy.mil/OSBP/
· US Dept of Energy: http://www.pr.doe.gov/
· US Dept of Veterans Affairs: http://www1.va.gov/oamm/
The National Guard Family Program “exists to establish and facilitate ongoing communication, involvement, support, and recognition between National Guard families and the National Guard.
The Program facilitates this through education, outreach services, and partnerships by leveraging resources, training, and constantly capitalizing on new capabilities, concepts, and technological advances.” Contact the National Guard Family Program at 1411 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington VA 22202-3231 703-607-5414; http://www.guardfamily.org/. You can find the contact person for each State Family Program Office at http://www.guardfamily.org/Public/Application/ResourceFinderSearch.aspx
Military Media
Armed Forces Journal, Defense News Media Group, 6883 Commercial Drive, Springfield, VA 22159
703-750-9000; http://www.afji.com/
Military Markets Magazine, Army Times Publishing Company at www.militarycity.com or at any one of our service specific sites: www.armytimes.com, www.navytimes.com,
www.airforcetimes.com, www.marinecorpstimes.com.
Family Magazine is the magazine for commissary shoppers, and Salute Magazine:
the magazine for active duty military (http://www.familymedia.com).
Stars and Stripes is a newspaper for service members, government civilians and their families in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the Pacific. Stars and Stripes offer national and international news, sports and opinion columns. The mailing address for the central office is 529 14th Street NW, Suite 350, Washington DC 20045-1301; Phone: (202) 761-0900, Fax: (202) 761-0890; Marketing: , http://www.estripes.com/index.asp.
Military Living, PO Box 2347, Falls Church, VA 22042-0347; Phone: (703) 237-0203, Fax: (703) 237-2233; http://www.MilitaryLiving.com.
Military associations
· The American Logistics Association (ALA) is a non-profit trade association dedicated to promoting, protecting and enhancing the quality of life for active duty, retired, and reserve military personnel and their families. ALA's members are manufacturers, manufacturer's representatives, brokers, distributors, publishers and service providers who sell or provide products and services to the military resale systems and MWR/Services industries.The term "military resale systems" is used to include all military exchanges, commissaries, Department of State stores and Veterans' Canteens (now partnered with AAFES). The American Logistics Association is located at 1133 Fifteenth Street, Suite 640, Washington, DC, 20005; (202) 466-2520; http://www.ala-national.org/. Information is provided to members through its publications, meetings, conferences and networking opportunities.
· Gold Star Wives of America (GSW) was chartered by Congress in 1980 to provide its members with information on benefits/programs for which they might be entitled. 5510 Columbia Pike, Suite 205, Arlington, VA 22204; Phone: (888) 479-9788 http://www.goldstarwives.org
· National Military Family Association (NMFA) serves the families of the uniformed services through education, information and advocacy and is dedicated to identifying and resolving issues affecting them. 6000 Stevenson Ave., Suite 304, Alexandria, VA 22304-3526 Phone: (703) 823-NMFA Fax: (703) 751-4857 , http://www.nmfa.org
· The Retired Officers Association aims to benefit members of the uniformed services and their families and survivors through efforts to preserve earned entitlements and to maintain a strong national defense. , http://www.troa.org
· United Armed Forces Association (UAFA) serves all ranks and branches of the armed forces - active duty, reserve, veterans, retired military and their dependents and civil service employees. P.O. Box 20672, Waco, TX 76702 Phone: (888) 457-7667
· Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) provides programs and services that strengthen comradeship among members, perpetuate the memory and history of fallen soldiers, foster patriotism, defend the Constitution and promote service to our communities and our country. 406 West 34th St., Kansas City, MO 64111. Phone: (816) 756-3390 E-mail: or go to http://www.vfw.org
Chats — Topic rooms
· Talk with others in the military community, post a message on a bulletin board or respond to a message at http://www.militarycity.com/forums/
· Defense Visual Information Directorate's Discussion Forums has forums organized in conferences. These conferences provide a way to share ideas about new products, including books http://dodimagery.afis.osd.mil/dodimagery/forums/
· Military Brats Online is an online community linking the children of the U. S. military with their heritage and each other. Military Brats can read about reunion and school announcements, link with past friends, family and online resources. http://www.militarybrats.com/
Military websites
· www.military.com is the largest military and veteran membership organization
· www.militaryfamily.com supplies United States military bases -- stateside and overseas --with tools to help them manage the challenges and hardships of military life. Its on-site bookstore has a selection of titles for service personnel and their families.
· www.militaryonesource.com offers education and support for service personnel and their families.
· www.militaryfamilybooks.com/ offers a wide selection of books for grownups, books for kids and books on deployment/reunion, general interest, grief, military life as well as multimedia selections. To submit your book, create a package including a review copy and cover letter telling them why it should be included. Send your package to MilitaryFamilyBooks.com, 8362 Tamarack Vlg, Ste 119-106, Woodbury, MN 55125.
· www.onmilitarymatters.com sells new and used military books, both fiction and nonfiction. It also has a military magazine, board games, military art and many other categories in which you could sell your content. Contact On Military Matters, 31 West Broad St, Hopewell NJ 08525.
· The Military Book Club (http://www.militarybookclub.com/) features military history books on a wide range of topics including WWII books, American Civil War books, WWI books, Vietnam books, Special Ops selections and more! A similar site may be found at the Military and Aviation Book Society, http://www.militarybookclub.co.uk/
Military Museums
There are military museums on many topics. For more information on selling to museums in general, see Section Eleven.
· USAF Museum, 1100 Spaatz St., Wright-Patterson AFB, OH 45433; (937) 255-3286 http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/
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Brian Jud is the author of How to Make Real Money Selling Books and now offers commission-based sales of nonfiction, fiction and children’s titles to buyers in special markets. For more information contact Brian at P. O. Box 715, Avon, CT 06001-0715; (860) 675-1344; Fax (860) 270-0343; or www.premiumbookcompany.com twitter.com/bookmarketing
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