Guides / How-to
How to respond to a Sources Sought notice
A Sources Sought notice isn't a bid. It's an agency asking who out there could do a job before it decides how to buy it. A short, specific reply costs you an hour and can shape whether the contract is set aside for small businesses like yours.
What it is
Before a solicitation, agencies do market research. One common tool is a notice on SAM.gov labeled Sources Sought, or a Request for Information (RFI). It usually describes the work, gives a NAICS code, and asks interested companies to send information by a date. Responding is voluntary, doesn't commit you to bid, and isn't an offer; the government won't award a contract from it.
Why small firms should answer
- It can lead to a set-aside. If the contracting officer has a reasonable expectation that at least two capable small businesses (or firms in a program like HUBZone or SDVOSB) will make fair offers, the work can be set aside for them. Your reply is evidence. SBA explains this in its contracting guide.
- You get early notice. Sources Sought notices often come months before the solicitation, which gives you time to visit the site, line up staff and register in SAM.gov if you haven't.
- The contracting office learns your name. That helps with smaller purchases that may never be posted publicly.
What to include
Answer exactly what the notice asks, in the order it asks, within any page limit. If it doesn't specify, two to five pages is plenty. Typically:
- Company name, address, point of contact, and your Unique Entity ID from SAM.gov
- Your size for the notice's NAICS code, and any certifications (8(a), HUBZone, WOSB or EDWOSB, SDVOSB)
- Whether you intend to bid if a solicitation is issued
- Relevant experience: two or three similar jobs with size (square footage, acreage), scope, dates and, if allowed, a reference
- How you'd staff and supervise this job, including how you'd meet the place of performance
- Direct answers to each question in the notice
- If asked, helpful feedback on the draft work statement or the NAICS code. Keep it factual.
Don't send prices unless they're requested, and don't send marketing brochures in place of answers. Mark anything proprietary as the notice instructs.
Sending it
- Send it to the person and by the method in the notice, before the response date and time (watch the time zone).
- Use the subject line or reference number the notice asks for.
- Follow the notice on SAM.gov so you hear when the solicitation posts. It may come out under a new notice number.
Finding them
On SAM.gov, filter Contract Opportunities by notice type "Sources Sought" along with your NAICS code and state (search walkthrough). The weekly Bid Brief includes Sources Sought notices for facilities trades when we find them, and our open-bids tracker shows the notice type on each listing.
General information from the Bid Brief team, not legal or contracting advice. Each notice's own instructions control. We aren't affiliated with SAM.gov, SBA or any government agency. Last reviewed Nov 4, 2026.
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More guides
- How to find federal janitorial bids on SAM.gov: Step-by-step search: codes, filters, notice types, saved searches and amendments.
- How to read a federal solicitation and its wage determination: Where the scope, price schedule, instructions, evaluation and minimum wages are in the paperwork.
- Checklist: bidding your first federal janitorial contract: A printable checklist from registration to start-up, for small cleaning companies.
- How set-asides work for small cleaning and landscaping firms: Small business, 8(a), HUBZone, WOSB and SDVOSB set-asides, size limits and the rules that trip people up.
- How to respond to a Sources Sought notice: What a Sources Sought or RFI is, why small firms should answer, and what to put in a short reply.