December
Contact
Arkansas Procurement Technical Assistance Center
Phone: 501-671-2390
Email: APEX Accelerator@uada.edu
University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture
Cooperative Extension Service
2301 S. University Avenue
Little Rock, AR 72204
Arkansas APEX Accelerator Counselors are Ready to Help You Navigate BETA.SAM.GOV
Ever since the transition from the federal government's previous solicitation portal (FBO.GOV) to the current BETA.SAM.GOV, many clients find that they are having challenges finding or managing opportunities on BETA.SAM.GOV.
If you find you are having similar issues, check in with your Arkansas Procurement Technical Assistance Center counselor. We can walk you through many facets of the new BETA.SAM.GOV portal, including:
- Signing up to access the portal
- Customizing filters to find specific types of opportunities
- Setting up "saved searches"
- Following opportunities and receiving notifications when solicitations are changed or updated
Once you become comfortable with the portal, the next question that many contractors
have been asking, "Where's the Interested Vendors List?"
Before we address this question, let's define the "Interested Vendors List" or IVL.
As the name implies, the IVL is a place where vendors can express their interest in
bidding or submitting proposals on specific opportunities. The IVL is very helpful
if you seek subcontracting opportunities with prime contractors who have expressed
interest in the opportunity you want to pursue. You can add yourself to the IVL by
logging in to your BETA.SAM.GOV account as a registered user.
So, where is the IVL in BETA.SAM.GOV? The good news is that it's still there, but
the contracting officer has to "turn it on" to make it visible to the public.
The bad news is that most solicitations do not have the IVL turned on by default.
If you face this issue, here are a few simple steps you can take to gain access to
the IVL.
Step 1: As soon as you see a solicitation on BETA.SAM.GOV that you want to pursue, check whether the contracting officer has turned on the
IVL for public viewing. If it's visible to the public, you'll find it in the left-side
navigation bar after opening the solicitation notice.
Step 2: If you don't see the IVL, contact the contracting officer listed in the solicitation
notice. Advise them that you are interested in subcontracting opportunities on this
solicitation and ask if they can turn on the IVL and make it visible to the public.
Step 3: If the contracting officer isn't able to turn on the IVL for public viewing due
to "system limitations," request they publish the list as an attachment to the solicitation
at their earliest convenience. You may also ask that they post an updated IVL a couple
of days before the solicitation due date to capture any firms not included in the
earlier published IVL.
The bottom line: If you are frustrated, confused, and need help, contact your Arkansas APEX Accelerator counselor.