Decide to bid: the questions to ask first
A fit score is a starting point, not a decision. Work through these questions before you commit time to a bid.
3 min readLast verified October 2026
Learn
Plain-English lessons on government contracting, from registration to your first bid.
Our lessons are written from official sources. Each one shows the month we last checked it.
6 lessons
Deciding to bid
Fit, cash, capacity, teaming and certifications.
Cash flow and capacity
When the government pays, how to plan for the gap before the first payment, and how to avoid taking on more than you can deliver.
3 min readLast verified October 2026Teaming and subcontracting
How to work under a prime, how teaming agreements and joint ventures work, and the limits on subcontracting that protect set-asides.
3 min readLast verified October 2026Past performance when you have none
Having no federal contracts yet is not a dead end. Here is what counts as experience and how to present it honestly.
3 min readLast verified October 2026Certifications: doors, not contracts
What SBA certifications do, what they never do, and how to approach them honestly. Most first bids need none.
3 min readLast verified October 20268(a), HUBZone, WOSB and SDVOSB programs compared
The four main SBA contracting programs side by side: who each one is for, the core test, what it opens, and how to apply for free.
3 min readLast verified October 2026