The two primary places federal employees go to find a listing of vendors that are willing to sell goods and services to the federal government are Sam.gov (The System of Award Management) or the GSA Schedule System. This week I am going to compare the two systems to highlight where the advantages lie for each while reviewing eight different categories.
Comparison Sam.gov vs GSA Schedule
| Sam.gov | GSA Advantage | Best Choice | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Vendors | 500,000+ | 19,000 | GSA Advantage (+1) Rational: Limits the number of Vendors a Federal Buyer must search through. |
| To find a product or service | Step 1: Perform a search for firms in a given industry by NAICS code. Step 2: Cross reference the resulting firm’s capabilities statements to determine if that firm provides the product or service required. Step 3: Contact firm to obtain pricing on their product or service. Step 4: Determine if the firm can take a Federal SmartPay Credit Card. Step 5: Place the order |
Step 1: Type the product or service keyword into the search bar and press enter. Step 2: Review Pricing for applicable items. Step 3: Order Online. |
GSA Advantage (+1) Rational: Much fewer steps in the process. |
| Obtaining a price quote | Call or email sam.gov Registrant and ask for a quote. | Pricing is provided for the listed item. | GSA Advantage (+1) Rational: Pricing is listed. |
| Quality of product or service | Firm has not been vetted by anyone within the Federal government. | DnB Open Ratings has been performed providing a reference check from past clients which confirms the legitimacy of the firm | GSA Advantage (+1) Rational: Vendor scrutiny has already been performed by the GSA |
| Timeframe to Obtain this Listing (approximated) | 1 week | 4-6 months | Sam.gov (+1) Rational: Less Time consuming process. |
| Size of Purchases | Generally is limited to the Micro-Purchase Threshold of $10,000 | Generally follows the Simplified Acquisition Threshold of $250,000. | GSA Advantage (+1) Rational: Higher dollar value capabilities |
| Federal Vendor Small Business Sales | >$100K (sam.gov listing only no other certification or contracting vehicle) |
$1MM | GSA Advantage (+1) Rational: GSA Schedule holders have 10x the sales of a small business with only a listing on sam.gov |
| Flexibility | None Provided | Only 51% of items in a given order must be purchased directly off the small businesses GSA Schedule, the other 49% can be purchased at the same time through Open Market Items. | GSA Advantage (+1) Rational: GSA provides a level of flexibility sam.gov sellers do not possess. |
Results in a Scoring Matchup
Sam.gov 1pt was received do to the speed in which a firm can obtain a listing. All other Advantages fall to GSA Advantage.
GSA Advantage: 7
Sam.gov: 1
Based upon the information above it is easy to see why GSA Advantage is the Supplier Listing of first choice for Federal Contracting Officers.