The Site Visit Advantage Most Government Contractors Miss

Site visits are one of the most valuable opportunities you can get before submitting a government proposal.

You're getting access to the actual location where the work will be performed. You can see things that may not be obvious in the Statement of Work, ask questions, verify your assumptions, and potentially meet people involved with the opportunity.

Yet a lot of contractors either don't attend or simply show up without a strategy.

If you're going to invest the time in attending a site visit, make sure you're getting as much value from it as possible.

Why are site visits one of the highest ROI activities before submitting a proposal?

A site visit can improve almost every part of your proposal.

You get a better understanding of the requirement because you're seeing the work firsthand instead of trying to visualize everything from a document.

That can lead to better pricing because you're able to identify conditions that could affect your costs.

It can improve your execution plan because you have a clearer understanding of how you'll actually perform the work.

And all of that gives you more confidence when you're writing your proposal.

You're no longer guessing about what the site looks like or how certain parts of the project will work.

You've been there.

What should you actually do during a site visit?

Don't just walk around and listen.

Observe everything.

Take photos when permitted. Write down questions as they come up. Pay attention to anything that looks different from what you expected after reading the solicitation.

Most importantly, verify your assumptions.

If you priced something based on an assumption about access, equipment, staffing, measurements, or existing conditions, the site visit is your opportunity to determine whether you were right.

I also recommend meeting the other people attending.

That doesn't mean turning the site visit into a sales event. Introduce yourself professionally and learn who is there.

You may meet the contracting officer, government personnel, potential teaming partners, or even competitors.

Those relationships can become valuable long after the site visit is over.

What if you can't attend the site visit yourself?

That doesn't necessarily mean your company shouldn't be represented.

A teaming partner may be able to attend for you.

You may have a local employee who can go.

You could also send another trusted representative who understands what information you need them to collect.

The important part is making sure they're prepared before they arrive.

Give them the solicitation. Give them your questions. Tell them which assumptions you need verified and what information would affect your pricing.

Then debrief with them immediately afterward while everything is still fresh.

Having someone there who knows exactly what to look for is much better than simply deciding the site visit is too far away and skipping it completely.

What should you do immediately after a site visit?

Don't throw your notes on your desk and go back to writing the same proposal you were writing before.

The site visit should change something.

Organize your notes while everything is still fresh.

Share what you learned with your proposal team and teaming partners.

Go back through your pricing and determine whether anything needs to change.

Then look at your technical approach.

Did you discover a problem that should be addressed?

Did you identify a risk your competitors might overlook?

Did you see an opportunity to perform the work more efficiently?

The information you gathered should make its way into your proposal.

Otherwise, there wasn't much point in attending.

What's the biggest mistake contractors make with site visits?

Just showing up.

Attendance by itself doesn't improve your chances of winning.

Some contractors walk through the facility, listen to the presentation, leave, and then write essentially the same proposal they would have written if they had stayed home.

That's a missed opportunity.

Another mistake is not talking to anyone.

Site visits give you a rare opportunity to put faces to names and begin building professional relationships.

But the biggest mistake is failing to apply what you learned.

You should leave knowing more about the project than you knew when you arrived.

Use that information.

Should you attend every site visit?

No.

Sometimes the numbers simply don't make sense.

First, determine whether attendance is mandatory. If it is and you want to bid, the decision has probably already been made for you.

If it's optional, consider the size and complexity of the opportunity.

A site visit for a large or complicated contract may easily justify the cost of airfare, a hotel, and a day of your time.

A small opportunity across the country might not.

You also have to consider whether you actually need to be the person attending.

Sometimes a local teaming partner can represent your interests and gather everything you need at a fraction of the cost.

Treat the site visit like any other business decision. Compare the potential value against the investment required.

Final Thoughts

A site visit isn't just a tour.

It's an opportunity to gather information your proposal competitors may not use effectively.

Observe the site. Ask questions. Verify your assumptions. Meet people. Take good notes.

Then take everything you learned and use it to improve your pricing, execution plan, and proposal strategy.

Showing up gives you information.

What you do with that information is what creates the advantage.

About Derek James

Derek James is the founder of GovKidMethod. By age 30, he had won 32 federal contracts worth more than $15 million. Since then, he's helped small businesses win more than $75 million in government contracts by teaching practical proposal writing, positioning, and bidding strategies that contractors can actually apply.

Ready to Go Further?

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Access the free GovRFP Proposal Writing System here:
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