# Sources Sought: why to answer them

> Market research notices need no registration and no past performance. Here is how to answer one well and what to do after you send it.

Last verified October 2026. Page: https://victavio.com/learn/sources-sought

A Sources Sought notice is the buyer doing market research. It asks who can do the work, how that work is usually done, and sometimes how the buyer should buy it. A Request for Information (RFI) does the same job. Nobody gets a contract from a Sources Sought response. So why answer?

## Why answering is worth it

- **The buyer learns your name before the bid.** Many buyers decide how to buy, and who to tell, during market research.
- **It can shape a set-aside.** If enough capable small businesses answer, the buyer may set the work aside for small businesses. That is the "rule of two" at work.
- **It needs no registration and no past performance.** SAM.gov registration is required to submit an offer, not to answer market research. SAM.gov registration is free, and you can answer while yours is processing.
- **It is practice.** Each response sharpens your story and your capability statement.

Give every response the same care as a bid. Its job is to start a conversation with the buyer.

## How to answer one well

1. **Follow their format.** If the notice gives a form or a list of questions, that is your response. Answer every question, in their order, using their numbers.
2. **Answer first, then show how.** Say what you would do, then the method, the people and the proof. Do not repeat their words back to them.
3. **Keep it short.** A short email and one PDF usually works. Stay under any page or file size limit, and use the exact subject line if the notice gives one.
4. **Include the basics.** Business name, UEI and CAGE code if you have them, NAICS code, size status, location and one point of contact.
5. **Be honest about gaps.** If you have no federal contracts yet, describe the similar work you have done for others.
6. **Close with a clear ask.** If it is true, say you are a small business under the notice's NAICS code. If no set-aside is planned, ask the buyer to consider one. Ask to be told when the solicitation posts.
7. **Send it on time.** Send it to the contact named in the notice, before the deadline in the buyer's time zone. Sending early earns no extra credit.

## After you send it

Sending is not the end.

1. **Confirm receipt.** If no confirmation arrives in a few days, send a short note asking them to confirm.
2. **Ask for 15 minutes.** Keep the request to a few lines: your response is attached, you would like 15 minutes to learn more about their needs, and here are two or three times over the next two weeks. Offer to come to them.
3. **Learn the plan.** Ask when they expect to post the solicitation and whether a set-aside is planned.
4. **Respect their rules.** Some notices say not to call or to ask for meetings. Do what the notice says. Never ask about other companies.

A meeting is never certain, and some research never becomes a solicitation. A meeting can also change the requirement in ways other bidders see. Answer often anyway. Over time, these responses put your business in front of the people who buy what you sell.

## Where to find them in Victavio

Sources Sought notices, RFIs and presolicitations that fit you appear in the "Get noticed early" lane. Save one to your pipeline to track the response date and your follow-up.

## Official sources
- [FAR Part 10: Market research](https://www.acquisition.gov/far/part-10)
- [FAR 15.201: Exchanges with industry before receipt of proposals](https://www.acquisition.gov/far/15.201)
- [FAR 19.502-2: Total small business set-asides](https://www.acquisition.gov/far/19.502-2)
- [FAR 4.1102: SAM registration policy](https://www.acquisition.gov/far/4.1102)

This lesson is general information, not legal advice. Rules change. Check the official source before you act.
Victavio is a Kilobytez LLC product.
Not a government agency. SAM.gov registration is free.