As the clock ticks down to the end of the federal fiscal year, businesses can still take advantage of last-minute opportunities, Government Product News senior editor Mike Keating writes.

Congress’ last-minute work on the budget will boost federal procurement as the end of the 2011 federal fiscal year approaches on Sept. 30, according to Lourdes Martin-Rosa, an advisor on government contracting at New York-based American Express OPEN. Due to the late passage of the fiscal 2011 budget, the race to exhaust the remaining funds — estimated at $120 billion — is fiercer this fourth quarter than last year’s.

“With Congress holding up funding until April 2011, the Continuing Resolution debate will definitely increase fourth-quarter spending,” Martin-Rosa tells IMT. “Most of the contract dollars are now flowing down to the agencies, and they are definitely motivated to spend the money before it’s taken away.”

Look for accelerated purchasing and contracting activity at federal agencies as the federal fiscal year draws to a close, predicts Scott Orbach, president of Bethesda, Md.-based EZGSA, a consulting firm that assists government contractors looking for more federal revenue and helps vendors locate prospective federal buyers.

“There’s some pent-up demand in federal departments to acquire goods and services,” Orbach says. “What we are probably going to see is one of the biggest Septembers in recent memory, and probably the last really, really big September, in spending terms, for a while.”

As the curtain comes down on the federal fiscal year, Neil Gordon, owner of Chestnut Ridge, N.Y.-based Decorating with Fabric, will do what he always does to land last-minute federal business. “It all comes down to networking — getting out there, meeting prospects, getting business cards and capturing e-mail. About 95 out of 100 jobs I get are from relationships, and that’s for all types of business, and government contracts are no different.

“I was at an architectural firm recently doing a ‘lunch and learn,’ and I got 10 e-mail addresses from the architects, who had just spent an hour with me discussing my product. Some of the architects do government work,” Gordon continues. “They might not have a need for my product today, but who knows, maybe in a year or 18 months from now, they might have a need, and the educational e-newsletters that I send out twice a month keep me top of mind. So when they have a need for my product, they remember me, hopefully. It’s all about trying to get those odds down in your favor.”

Gordon’s firm, which holds a GSA contract, sells draperies and window coverings, blinds, shades and shutters to government facility managers, architects, designers and government purchasing departments in the New York metropolitan area. School districts, municipalities, libraries and state/local/federal offices are some of DWF’s public-sector customers.

During the hectic final days of FY2011, federal buyers will accelerate their purchases off the GSA Schedule, which has long-term government-wide contracts with vendors covering more than 11 million products and services.

“GSA Schedule vendors stand out this quarter,” Martin-Rosa explains. “The use of GSA Schedules for acquisitions becomes especially attractive to agencies during the fourth quarter, given their presumption of competition, the thoroughness of vendor vetting, their ease of use and expedited processes. In fact, the amount expected to be spent through GSA Schedules will be much higher in Q4 than Q3.”

Martin-Rosa recommends manufacturers and other businesses take steps to become approved vendors on the GSA Schedule, which can lead to increased visibility and credibility for a company. An online resource titled GSA Schedule: A Tool to Help Win Government Contracts is a good starting point.

“The federal marketplace still remains a predictable and steady market to sell products and services,” Jennifer Schaus, who directs Washington-based Jennifer Schaus & Associates, says. “Where else can you obtain information on budgets, agency-level forecasts, historical and future purchase information, competitive analysis and competitor pricing?”

Having this market intelligence provides smart vendors with actionable information they can use to plan and implement a federal government marketing strategy. “Because of this, the federal sector is still one of the most stable verticals to be selling into,” according to Schaus, whose consulting firm provides expertise to U.S. and European firms interested in entering the federal government market in the U.S. “The private sector has less transparency and more surprises. Commercial companies are typically not going to inform you of upcoming budget cuts or the company closing its doors.”

Michael Keating is senior editor for Government Product News and a contributing editor for American City and County, both published by Penton Media Inc. His second-half 2011 government budget forecast is available at GovPro.com. Earlier this year he wrote about DIY market research for manufacturers and the 2011 industrial buying outlook for IMT. Keating has written articles on the government market for more than 100 publications, including USA Today, Sanitary Maintenance, IndustryWeek and the Costco Connection. Mike can be reached through his website, MikeKeat.net.