8(a) Construction vs. IT Consulting Marketing Differences
Today I wanted to illustrate the difference between where an 8(a) Construction firm and an 8(a) where an 8(a) IT/Consulting firm should go looking for federal business. I pulled one of the most common Construction NAICS Code 236220 and I pulled three common IT/Consulting codes 541611, 541511, and 541512. There were 64 agencies that purchased from 8(a) firms Construction Services compared with the broader 133 agencies that purchased IT/Consulting Services.
In the federal construction market 70% of all contracting dollars are spent by the Department of the Army, Navy and Air Force. Therefore any marketing strategy for an 8(a) construction firm should focus on these three DoD agencies. Go looking at your nearby military installations.
For IT/Consulting the landscape is much different. 70% of the 8(a) IT/Consulting dollars are spent by 12 agencies. These are listed below and the department of the Army is still the dominant agency it represents fewer than 10% of Federal IT/Consulting spending compared to over 42% for 8(a) Construction. If any of you would like the complete lists send me an email reply to this email and I will be happy to do so.
This analysis more or less goes back to the old Will Sutton quote, “I Rob Banks Because That’s Where the Money Is.”
8(a) Construction
| NAICS Code: 236220 Commercial and Institutional Building Construction | $2.8 Billion Total | |
| # | Agency |
2013 8(a) Spending by Agency |
| 1 | DEPT OF THE ARMY |
1,119,006,266 |
| 2 | DEPT OF THE NAVY |
555,397,873 |
| 3 | DEPT OF THE AIR FORCE |
273,683,607 |
| 4 | GSA PUBLIC BUILDINGS SERVICE |
196,922,309 |
| 5 | VETERANS AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF |
182,712,731 |
| 6 | STATE, DEPARTMENT OF |
63,308,150 |
| 7 | NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH |
59,696,745 |
| 8 | EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION |
44,976,125 |
| 9 | NATIONAL PARK SERVICE |
36,256,379 |
| 10 | NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY |
32,990,742 |
8(a) IT/Consutling
| NAICS Code: 541611, 541511, 541512 (these are the most popular consulting and IT codes | $4.0 Billion Total | |
| # | Agency |
2013 8(a) Spending by Agency |
| 1 | DEPT OF THE ARMY |
388,491,649 |
| 2 | CENTERS FOR MEDICARE AND MEDICAID SERVICES |
326,630,370 |
| 3 | DEPT OF THE AIR FORCE |
213,687,196 |
| 4 | STATE, DEPARTMENT OF |
187,307,017 |
| 5 | ENERGY, DEPARTMENT OF |
135,590,869 |
| 6 | VETERANS AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF |
133,548,010 |
| 7 | U.S. COAST GUARD |
132,939,742 |
| 8 | FEDERAL ACQUISITION SERVICE |
127,517,186 |
| 9 | DEPT OF THE NAVY |
127,215,788 |
| 10 | DEFENSE INFORMATION SYSTEMS AGENCY (DISA) |
124,516,769 |
| 11 | DEFENSE INFORMATION SYSTEMS AGENCY (DISA) |
124,516,769 |
| 12 | CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL |
106,929,186 |