SBA to Conduct Series of Government Contracting Events
“Spring Fever” Events Poised to Help Small Businesses Expand

The U.S. Small Business Administration’s West Virginia District Office announced a series of training events crafted to help West Virginia small businesses prepare to do business with the federal government. The events will focus on three topics, Doing Business with the Federal Government, Marketing to the Federal Government, and The 8(a) Certification Application Process.

The U.S. government is the largest purchaser of goods and services in the world, spending nearly $520 billion in 2008. Contracting can be an excellent option for businesses searching for expansion opportunities and for ways to keep their companies viable during the current economic downtown. The SBA oversees various certification programs which can provide minorities, women, veterans and other social and economic disadvantaged individuals with the tools necessary to engage in federal contracting.

“We want to assist West Virginia’s small business community more than ever, especially with the current economic situation,” said Judy McCauley, director of SBA’s West Virginia District Office. “We provided training to over 400 businesses during our government contracting training last fall. That tells us the West Virginia small businesses are hungry; they want to succeed, and we want to give them all the tools and help they need.”

The Doing Business with the Federal Government events are scheduled for March 24, April 21 and May 19 in Clarksburg; March 25 in Morgantown; March 31 in Huntington; and May 14 in Charleston. The Marketing to the Federal Government is scheduled for March 18 in Lewisburg and the 8(a) Certification Application Process training will be held the afternoon of March 24 and May 19 in Clarksburg.

The events are free of charge and open to the public, however seating is limited and pre-registration is requested. To register, contact Naomi Bassel at (304) 623-7447 or via email at naomi.bassel@sba.gov.

Individuals looking for more information on contracting, or wanting to know if contracting is right for their business, can visit SBA’s free online training web site at www.sba.gov/training. To access the courses, click on “Free Online Courses” on the right side of the screen.

“We teach small businesses what they need to know and do to succeed in the federal marketplace,” said Melissa Loder, business development specialist with SBA. “It can be a wonderful journey on the road to success.”