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Last year, the US government awarded $178 billion to small businesses. On the latest episode of Financial Freestyle with Ross Mac, U.S. Small Business Administration associate administrator of government contracting Jackie Robinson-Burnette breaks down everything small business owners should know to win government contracts.

"What a lot of people don't know is that the government spends $600 billion a year," says Robinson-Burnette. "Congress mandates that we spend 23% of that with small businesses." Those small businesses include small disadvantaged businesses, including women-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses, and businesses that are in historically underutilized business zones.

"So many businesses don't know the government is looking for them," she says, explaining that government contracts range from custodial services to information technology to medical support. "We have contracts that are under $250,000, which is very small to the federal government, but it could be a huge opportunity for a small, especially a small minority or disadvantaged, business."

According to Robinson-Burnette, one of the most important things small businesses can do when applying for contracts is to be ready to complete the work if they actually receive the contract. The SBA offers training to help businesses prepare, including a mentor protégé program that pairs less experienced small businesses with experienced contractors.

Relationships are important when applying for government contracts. Robinson-Burnette recommends finding the government agency your business most aligns with. "If you are healthcare, you can consider Health and Human Services or Defense Health Agency," she says. "Instead of looking at Department of Treasury that may not buy what you sell, you can really hone in and focus on those agencies that really buy what you sell." Then, she says to contact the office of Small Disadvantaged Business to start building a relationship and find out what opportunities are coming up within the next year.

There are four types of certifications from the SBA for small disadvantaged businesses: the 8(a) certification for socially and economically disadvantaged companies; the Hub Zone certification, which serves companies in historically underutilized business zones; the veteran-owned certification; and women-owned certification. Some small business contracts are set aside specifically for each type of certification, so its advantageous for companies to apply for all the certifications they qualify for.