It is apparent how important keywords and phrases are in federal marketing materials like your capability statements, websites, pricing catalogues, social media, and especially federal registrations because the federal government has adopted artificial intelligence (A.I.) tools used in the entire procurement lifecycle. The new administration has mandated even greater adoption of A.I. and is using these tools to not just find experienced contractors, but also to keep contractors out of consideration if they use the wrong keywords and phrases.
It is critical to take time right now, as we enter the last half of the federal fiscal year when the majority of spending takes place, to take a hard look at your own federal registrations, your own website, your RFP responses, your social media accounts, your labor category descriptions, your product descriptions, your videos, your training tools, and literally anything that can be found by these extensive A.I. bots to scrub and remove any acronym, word, or phrase that the new administration considers non-supportive of its goals.
Initially, companies thought only those involved in DEI work were impacted. However, this situation impacts every industry, including professional services, construction, engineering, safety, research, information technology, training, logistics, manufacturing, product sales, health and medical, security, etc.
We will share with you an initial list of over 180 keywords and phrases now determined to be harmful to your chances of being considered for future contracts. This list was recently developed from information across many agencies, and while the initial administration focus was on DEI workforce issues, many of the words are used in multiple industries such as construction (accessible, barrier, environmental) as examples. Even the term socioeconomic is listed.
Since this public listing was created, other terms such as consultant and training have been called into question, and we have observed that literally every day, the administration identifies new terms, words and phrases they find unacceptable.
To give your own large or small business the best chance of winning, completing and getting paid on federal contracts, you are best served to create your own, industry-specific list that is constantly updated with acceptable and unacceptable keywords and phrases. Also, update all of your internal and external communication, marketing, proposal, past-performance records, and processes. Anything and everything is analyzed by A.I. tools now, including every kind of document, video, and all electronic content.
Contact TargetGov for more information and assistance to best position your business for success in these changing times. Call 410-579-1346 x 325 or email fast@targetgov.com.