The GSA was created to (1) save the federal government money by setting up a one stop shop for government agencies to purchase your company's goods and services; and (2) speed up the contracting process between the government and your company.
A Little Background
As you may know, for most of our nation's history the federal government's different agencies have been responsible for their own purchasing policies and programs. This meant that each agency had to track down the product it wanted to purchase, negotiate terms for each purchase and pay for the purchase through a complex system of individual vendor background checks and approvals.
The process was time consuming and difficult. When a vendor was finally approved, the vendor ended up with a monopoly (for that agency anyway) because purchasing agents didn't want to go back through the approval process again with a different vendor.
In addition, the process also meant that different agencies paid different prices for the same products. Some agencies purchased in larger volumes and were offered lower prices per unit while other agencies purchased smaller volumes and paid much more per unit.
You may recall the public outcry back in the early 90s when it was discovered the military paid several hundred dollars for a hammer it could have bought at Lowe's for $10.99. The GSA is intended to remedy that type of spending and open up the purchasing process to more vendors.
GSA Has Simplified The Purchasing Process
Today, almost all government agencies use the GSA to purchase goods and services. The GSA has created a centralized website for government agencies to shop for the products and services you sell.
The website is easy for agencies to use and contains almost every product on the market today, including the products your company sells. With that in mind, why is your company not on the website? Why are other companies that sell your same products and services getting all of the government's business?
The questions are only partially rhetorical. The real answer to the above questions is that the difficulty for selling to the government has been shifted to your company and away from government agencies. Now your company is responsible for registering your products to be included in the catalog. This process can be full of legal traps and difficulties.
You may want to consult with an experienced GSA contracting specialist for help with completing the GSA registration process.