GP&M Advisory Services – Fraudulent Marketing Firm
Government contracts are coveted since they are deemed to be more profitable and stable hence the majority of GP&M Advisory Services for companies and individuals strive to win such contracts. Small, middle, and large business entities strive day and night to win such tenders and are ready to part with considerable amounts of funds when individuals or other entities promise to increase their chances to win such tenders. GP&M Advisory Services is among companies that target companies and individuals with a high appetite for government contracts and promise to enable companies to win tenders, some of which are not accessible to the general public. The question of whether or not GP&M Advisory Services keeps its promise of enabling companies to access government contracts is the subject of the current investigation.
GP&M Advisory Services Overview
GP&M Advisory Services was founded on 15th April 2015 by Bill Hunter (https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/1480112D:US). The company has its headquarters in Largo, Florida. The entity can be considered a government contract management and procurement firm. The GP&M Advisory Services claims that if you need General Services Administration/Veterans Affairs (GSA/VA) Multiple Award Schedule contracts, System for Award Management/ Dynamic Small Business Search (SAM/DSBS) contracts, and other government contracts then you should not hesitate to contact them. The company also claims to be the only certified, licensed, bonded, and insured private entity that offers such services (https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/gp-m-government-procurement-marketing). More evidence should however be evaluated to substantiate such claims.
What are the unique programs or features offered by the GP&M Advisory Services?
The GP&M Advisory Services offers the Premier Government Readiness (PGR) Program which aims at providing entities with the necessary knowledge and skills to win government contracts. In 2018, the company announced that it had received a Private Small Business Development Grant which would enable the entity to offer the PGR Program (https://www.facebook.com/GPMGovReg/\).
The effectiveness of the program in enabling government contract vendors to access contracts through the Simplified Acquisition Process (SAP) remains a mystery. The grant was only available for 200 small businesses. Business entities that were not selected under the grant are therefore expected to pay for the program. The grant can therefore be viewed as a legitimate feature of the company or a method to market the program.
Did You Know?
Simplified Acquisition Process SAP aids the federal government in expediting the goods and services sales and purchase.
The company also offers Premium Government Vendor Capabilities Statements services. A capability statement is a single-page document that provides details of the key competencies of the business to potential customers. A capability statement can be viewed as a resume for the company to target customers. GP&M Advisory Services claims that it can help customers to create premium government vendor capabilities statements that would make it almost automatic for the company to win government tenders. Government entities consider various factors before awarding contracts including previous contractual agreements and the reputability of the vendor among other factors. The claim that a premium capabilities statement created by GP&M Advisory Services will guarantee a vendor of a government contract can therefore be misleading. A well-structured resume can increase the chances of being employed but does not guarantee that the individual will be employed. Employers consider other factors like performance in interviews and qualification when choosing the winner among applicants.
How to Do the GP&M Advisory Services Interact with Customers?
Companies can use various platforms to communicate with customers including social media platforms, phone calls, and emails among others. The communication channel is a crucial element of customer service as it influences customer satisfaction and allows customers to express their frustrations. GP&M Advisory Services mainly uses phone calls to communicate with customers. The GP&M Advisory Services calls prospective customers to determine whether they are interested in the government contracts at the time (https://www.revdex.com/reviews/gpm-advisory-services/l18247186). The company has adopted enhanced technology, mainly, Robocalling, to communicate with customers. Robo-calling allows the company to pitch its services to numerous customers at the same time hence reducing costs incurred to hire customer service agents. The company also increases the chances of getting more customers as the Robot can call numerous customers at a go. Although the company benefits from Robocalling, the system has received criticism from customers. Contrary to human calls, Robocalling creates a one-sided conversation as it only informs customers about current projects and cannot listen to the customers’ ideas. Additionally, customers have complained about the system calling the customer too many times. The system calls the prospective customers randomly hence calling a particular target customer numerous times within a short time. Customers have also complained that it is extremely challenging to opt out of the Robocalling system. Since the system is robotic, not human, a prospective customer cannot inform the system that he or she is not interested in the services. The company does not provide prospective customers an option to opt out of the calls either on their website or during the call.
The company uses various customer service agents once a client subscribes to the company’s services. The agents work with the customer to ensure that they apply effectively to government contracts. Some of the company’s most popular agents include Leena, Nicole, Ashley, and Dana. Numerous customers have had a good experience working with the agents. Customers who have interacted with Dana Sanders have claimed that she is professional, responsive, and has a warm personality. The majority of customers have claimed that she works tirelessly with the customer to ensure that the contract application process is smooth and successful. Customers have also claimed that the staff takes customers as part of the team which is a positive remark. Customers also demonstrated that the company’s staff are not rude and respond to all customers’ queries and concerns. They appreciate the dedication of the staff to ensure that the vendors have access to government contracts.
Does the GP&M Advisory Services provide access to contracts not advertised to the public?
One of the boldest claims made by the company is that it can provide vendors with micro contracts that don’t get advertised. Although the company does not claim on its official website or social media platforms, various customers demonstrated that they agreed to purchase the services of the company after being convinced that they would access such contracts. Different government departments use different avenues to advertise their contracts.
Government departments are compelled to advertise their contracts to the general public. For example, government agencies should advertise contracts above USD 25,000 on the System for Award Management (SAM.gov) which was previously known as FedBizOpps.gov. Access to the websites is free of charge. It is therefore unlikely that the company has access to contracts not advertised since the departments have to advertise major contracts. However, the company knows various websites and platforms where government agencies advertise their contracts. The company can therefore access more contracts than a common person who has limited knowledge of navigating the massive advertisement platforms. Due to their unique expertise and experience, the company can likely provide customers with access to numerous contracts.
Customers expect that after providing their capabilities statements to the company, the company would filter out the contracts and match the customers with relevant contracts. However, customers have claimed that the company sends numerous irrelevant contracts to customers through email and expects the customer to filter out unwanted contracts. Customers claim that the company sends loads of contracts the daily majority of which are irrelevant and unrelated to the customers’ expertise and needs. For example, if a customer needs contracts to supply stationery, he or she receives hundreds of contracts to supply pharmaceuticals, detergents, and food among other commodities. Failure to tailor make the contract lists to meet the needs of the customers is frustrating to customers. Customers will therefore be assured of viewing numerous contracts but are not assured that the contracts will be in the relevant field.
How is the GP&M Advisory Services working environment?
The GP&M Advisory Services culture can be reflected by how it treats its employees. Companies that treat employees with respect are highly likely to have a good relationship with other stakeholders including customers. Frustrated employees are likely to be rude to customers. According to undisclosed employees, the company’s founder and owner Bill Hunter is a friendly person. Bill treats his employees with respect and encourages them to work harder (https://www.indeed.com/cmp/Gp&M-Advisory-Services-Inc/reviews). Bill has created a good working conditions. The company also occasionally provides lunch to its employees as demonstrated by undisclosed employees. The company also believes in its services and hence expects employees to defend and believe in the services. Although believing in the company’s services can be a positive approach, employees are discouraged to provide negative remarks concerning the services hence reducing chances of improvements.
One of the employees also complained of extremely short breaks between shifts or none at all (https://www.indeed.com/cmp/Gp&M-Advisory-Services-Inc/reviews). Breaks allow employees to recharge hence reducing work-related stress. Denying employees breaks or giving them short breaks reduces their productivity and increases their stress levels. Employees also complained of misinformation before being hired. One of the employees claimed that the company had promised that the customer service agents will only be responding to ready leads and hence will not be involved in pitching for new customers. However, once the employee was hired, the employee was required to pitch the services to new customers who had been contacted by the Robo system. The system, therefore, calls customers randomly whereby customers may or may not respond. If a customer calls back, the agents are expected to pitch the company’s services which range between USD3,000 and 7,500 on average. Based on the employee’s remarks, the company provides falsified information to prospective employees which is unethical.
Does GP&M Advisory Services deliver on its promises?
The GP&M Advisory Services has various selling points. First, the company promises to help companies to get government contracts. According to one of the company’s customers, the company failed to meet its promise due to various factors. The company promised that it would help the customer access numerous federal contracts. However, the company provided numerous contracts but they were not related to the needs and expertise of the customer. The customer complained that the system sent the wrong types of bids hence making it challenging to get a contract. The customer, therefore, demonstrated a bid disparity between what the company promised and what was delivered. On the contrary, another customer claimed to have signed up with the company and received the first government contract after six months. The customer claimed that Dana Sanders used her expertise and professionalism to help the company win its first contract
Due to the divergent customers’ views, some customers likely get the contracts while others don’t.
Secondly, the company promises to help customers create professional and advanced proposals and contract documentation that would significantly increase the chances of winning government contracts. According to the majority of customers, the entity delivers on its promise. Customers have demonstrated that the company’s staff, especially Dana Sanders work closely with the customer to create highly professional and quality documentation. The staff, therefore, has the claimed expertise and experience to ensure that the contract documents are of a high standard which is a positive attribute of the company. Government contract vendors with limited knowledge of creating the necessary documentation to bid for tenders would therefore benefit from the company’s services.
Does the GP&M Advisory Services provide refunds?
One of the customers claimed that GP&M Advisory Services failed to refund their cash after they were dissatisfied with the services (https://www.revdex.com/reviews/gpm-advisory-services/l18247186). The company has not made public any refund policy which increases the chances that the company does not offer refunds.
References
- https://www.google.com/search?q=GP%26M+Advisory+Services&ei=ZbzzYeTbMO6o4t4P09ecsAk&ved=0ahUKEwikouHrldT1AhVulNgFHdMrB5YQ4dUDCA4&uact=5&oq=GP%26M+Advisory+Services&gs_lcp=Cgdnd3Mtd2l6EAMyBQgAEIAEOggIABCwAxDNAkoECEEYAUoECEYYAFDUAljUAmD1BmgDcAB4AIABiAGIAYgBkgEDMC4xmAEAoAECoAEByAEEwAEB&sclient=gws-wiz#lrd=0x88c2e52a10c04cfb:0xafe6a62e261dcd0b,1,,,
- https://www.facebook.com/GPMGovReg/
- https://www.indeed.com/cmp/Gp&M-Advisory-Services-Inc/reviews
- https://www.bbb.org/us/fl/largo/profile/business-consultant/gpm-advisory-services-inc-0653-90219451
- https://www.revdex.com/reviews/gpm-advisory-services/l18247186
- https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/1480112D:US
- https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/gp-m-government-procurement-marketing
