When selling solutions to federal buyers, you must recognize the difference between bureaucratic and real requirements. Keep in mind that the bureaucracy may not see the solution as you do. In the alternative, the end user might agree with you about the real problem but have his or her hands tied by the bureaucracy.

You may think you have the answer to the federal government's prayer and your solution may, in fact, solve a real problem. Unfortunately, the government's priorities are often not aligned with reality and they aren't really looking for any solutions. The government buyers have thousands of vendors pounding on their door. Their perception of a problem may be different from yours and how they perceive their problems is not always rational. Companies can spend years beating their heads against the bureaucratic wall trying to sell their miraculous solution when, in fact, they never actually had a chance because they were out of step with bureaucratic priorities.

Suppose that you sell an improved flax vest or Humvee armor. It is reasonable to think that you have a solution for soldiers on the firing line in Iraq. Furthermore, your solution would solve a real problem. But what if the bureaucracy does not recognize the problem and has different priorities. The problem may go away before you make a sale to the Department of Defense. So, it's important to recognize the difference between real needs and bureaucratic needs. The real needs may not be recognized by the bureaucracy and you may have to wait for the bureaucracy to catch up to reality, if ever.