NFIB

Winning a Contract All Over Again
06/ 21/ 2002

Anyone who has been involved in the winning of a major contract will tell you about the extraordinary effort involved. Securing large contracts (which often can assure profitability for a small business for months or even years) involves extensive planning, coordination, patience and the willingness to work nights and weekends. But once the contract is won and the actual work begins, the second phase of winning the contract begins--and it's usually just as important as the first phase. Jeffrey Moses explains in today's Workshop.

A two-person writing and graphic design firm in Kansas City, Mo., was awarded the contract to write a manual for an organization that scouted major league baseball teams. The small firm performed so well that the scouting organization decided to expand the manual into a book. When the book was complete, the design firm got the job of marketing it to booksellers and distributors. They continually gave the work their best efforts, and one thing led to another. Soon, another book was needed. And then another.

Over the next five years, the two-person firm wrote six books for the scouting organization, one of which was produced by a major New York publisher. In addition, the two members of the firm wrote and designed the backs of TOPPS baseball cards two years in a row, helped design a computer game based on baseball statistics and traveled to baseball and book conferences all over the country. They met with sports celebrities such as Yogi Berra, Mickey Mantle, Ted Williams, Whitey Herzog and many others.

All of this came about simply as a result of dedicated effort after the contract was won. Other companies may have treated the manual just as a manual, and finished the job in a month or two. By trying to win the contract all over again, the firm was rewarded with multiple contracts, the extent of which was not imaginable at the beginning of the work.

Here are some tips to help your business win the contract all over again:

1. Don’t take the contract for granted, even for one day. There is only one chance to give the buyer a great first impression of your company. Even from the first days, the quality of your work will determine if you're rehired when the contract period expires.

2. Don’t let halfhearted work, errors or delays in the first few days or weeks result in the contract being revoked. It's happened before and will again. Don't let your company become an example.

3. Be so diligent and competent that when it's time to review the contract, the clients are so impressed with you that they don't bother looking at any other company. To achieve this, all financial and timeline details of the contract should be adhered to as agreed upon. Never try to bend the rules that have been established in hopes of getting a little extra pay or extending deadlines.

4. Make customers feel important, and show that you respect and value them. When you were competing for the contract, you answered calls promptly. Continue to do so, and work just as hard to get answers to the customer immediately.

5. Work as if you were trying to win additional work (and payment). Just as you went all-out while competing for the contract, you should go all-out in every phase of your work. Take initiative when solving problems. Work to become a "partner" with the company, not just a supplier. Exceed expectations in every detail, and once your clients see what you're capable of, they'll begin to take advantage of your full potential.

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