Preliminary Information about SBA 8a Program

Are you a woman or a minority or a service disabled veteran, owning a business? Or do you offer products and or services that are purchased by the Federal government? If you are any of these or a business owner looking for new sales strategies for your business then you must be aware of the SBA 8a program. Well, if you really don’t know what this program is about or what it does, you are indeed missing out a lot growth opportunity for your business.

8a program is a Small Business Administration’s program, through which U.S. SBA helps small companies owned by socially or economically disadvantaged individuals develop and expand their businesses. Since money is now streaming into federal contracting, the SBA 8a program will surely bring significant development in the financial condition of your business.  But whether you would take the effort to prepare the application or not, depends completely on your personal decision. However, the time and energy spent on preparing this application is definitely worth considering the fact that the SBA 8a program has the potential to give access to millions of dollars of federal contracts.

How to Prepare Yourself

But, first you need to identify whether your company is eligible to apply for this federal designation. Initially the process might seem to be too lengthy and time-taking. But, if done correctly, the end result is worth the effort. First, focus on meeting all the application eligibility criteria. To do this you must visit the official SBA website and review the online presentation to get a better understanding of the SBA 8a program.

Once conforming to all the SBA 8a criteria, you must essentially get registered in 4 preliminary databases. It is only after registering in all 4 of these databases you will get a chance to start off with the online application. The 4 databases are:

• EIN – EIN is the abbreviation for Employment Identification Number issued by the IRS.
• CCR – The Central Contractor Registry is the most important federal marketing tool.
• DUNS – It is mandatory for all companies to be registered with Dun & Bradstreet.
• GLS – GLS or Global Login System is the source where the SBA 8a application is placed.

Once you get access to the GLS, you can get ahead with your application process initially by reviewing what documents you would require to prepare your application like your personal or professional tax records, business records including all corporate documents etc.  

Well, the information given here is enough to get started with your preliminary SBA 8a program application preparation. So, what are you waiting for? Set your mind and take the maximum advantage of this program to develop your business and establish your identity in the global market.