Sources sought notices
A sources sought notice is an agency asking who is out there before it writes a solicitation. No contract comes from responding, which is why most firms ignore them, and why responding is one of the highest-return things a small contractor can do.
2,392
small business set-asides are open right now. Many of them exist because two or more small firms answered a sources sought notice months earlier and triggered the rule of two.
Why it decides the contract
The responses tell the contracting officer whether enough capable small businesses exist. If two or more do, the rule of two obliges them to set the work aside. If nobody answers, it goes out full and open and you compete with everyone.
Your response also shapes the requirement itself, the NAICS code chosen, the size standard, sometimes the scope. All of that is fixed before the RFP is written, and it cannot be changed afterwards.
What to put in one
Short. Your company details including UEI and CAGE, your business size under the stated NAICS code, your certifications, and two or three pieces of past performance that match the described work with contract numbers. Answer any specific questions they asked directly. This is a capability statement with the agency's own questions attached, not a proposal.
The timing advantage
A sources sought notice typically appears months before the solicitation. Respond, and you know the work is coming, you know roughly what it will ask for, and the contracting officer has seen your name in the context of this requirement. Firms that only watch for RFPs are discovering the same work with three weeks left.
Questions people ask
Is a sources sought notice a solicitation?
No. It is market research. No award follows and there is nothing to bid on.
Should I respond if I am not certain I could deliver?
Respond if you could realistically do the work with partners. Overstating capability is a bad idea, but so is staying silent because you are not certain.
How long should a sources sought response be?
One to three pages. They are triaging capability, not evaluating a proposal.
Does responding improve my chance of winning?
Indirectly and substantially. It can cause the work to be set aside, and it puts you in front of the officer before competition starts.
What is the difference between sources sought and an RFI?
Very little in practice. Both are pre-solicitation market research and both are worth answering.
Related
What is an RFP? · Set-aside contracts and the rule of two · Capability statement · Browse open solicitations