REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
Organization: Michigan Community College Association (MCCA)
Project: Marketing Plan Development and Deployment
Overview: MCCA invites proposals from qualified firms to assist the Association in the development and deployment of a comprehensive marketing plan.
Project Contact: Adriana Phelan, Ph.D. Vice President 222 North Chestnut Lansing, MI 48933 Office: (517) 372-4350 Cell: (734) 474-3812 Email: [email protected]
Due Date: Until 5:00 p.m. EST, October 2 nd , 2012
Proposals are to be emailed to Adriana Phelan ([email protected]) no later than 5:00 p.m., 10/2/12. Upon receipt, a confirmation email will be sent. It is the responsibility of the Vendor to confirm that the bid was received on time.
RIGHT TO REJECT any or all proposals and to waive informalities in bidding as its interests may require, is reserved by the Organization. WITHDRAWAL OF ANY PROPOSALS is prohibited for a period of one hundred twenty (120) days after the proposal due date.
1 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
ACKNOWLEDGMENT FORM
TO: Adriana Phelan
RE: Marketing Plan Services
DATE: Tuesday, October 2nd, 2012
Pages: __ page(s), including this cover sheet
As requested, please accept this form as notice that we intend to participate in the proposal process for the following categories:
( ) Category 1 – Marketing Plan Development and Deployment ( ) Category 2 – Creative Writing Services ( ) Category 3 – Media Buy Services
In addition, please note the following:
( ) We have questions that need to be addressed before we can prepare our proposal. We have attached our request for additional information.
( ) We have all of the information we need in order to prepare our proposal.
As part of this notice of our intent, I hereby certify that our company meets the following minimum qualifications:
A. We have been in business providing the services proposed for at least five years.
B. Our experience in this business includes meaningful experience providing the services proposed for at least two other clients with projects comparable to the size, scope, and complexity of MCCA’s project.
Signed ______Title ______
Company ______Phone No. ______
Contact Person ______
2 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
OVERVIEW
The Michigan Community College Association is seeking a vendor to perform the following marketing and communications functions:
1. (a) Development of a comprehensive strategic marketing plan, and (b) Deployment and administration of marketing plan 2. Creative writing services 3. Media purchasing services: television, radio, print, and on-line
Vendors may bid in one or all three categories. Vendors choosing to bid in category 1 must bid on both (a) and (b) but should present pricing separately as will be required in the Form of Proposal.
Successful vendor in the development, deployment and administrative services category may also be required to provide or assist in procuring and coordinating services with other vendors in the areas of: Website content and design development services Social media campaign development
Timeframe for marketing plan development: 90 Days Marketing plan deployment launch date: January 2013
GENERAL INFORMATION
The MCCA prefers to maintain only one (1) contact throughout the proposal process. Please appoint one (1) representative of your company with the responsibility for communicating with the MCCA on all matters relative to this Request For Proposal.
The vendor's proposal shall contain a cover letter on letterhead signed by an authorized representative of the company. The vendor's name, address, and the signature of the person duly authorized to execute contracts for the company shall be clear and legible. The cover letter should also indicate that the effective period of the proposal will be for a minimum of 120 days.
Upon review of proposals, up to three (3) vendors may be invited to introduce their team and make a formal presentation to the MCCA’s review team. Every effort will be made to provide at least a one week notice.
Proposals are not to exceed fifteen (15) pages, including attachments.
3 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
BACKGROUND
The Michigan Community College Association (MCCA) is a membership organization, and the primary advocate for Michigan's twenty-eight public community colleges. The organization is committed to providing leadership on issues affecting our member colleges.
The MCCA, with a Board of Directors composed of the president and trustee from each member college, is organized to achieve the collective state legislative agenda and other goals of its member colleges, and to advocate the benefits of community college services for the citizens of the State of Michigan.
The MCCA’s high-level strategic goals are to: Be the most effective advocate for community colleges; Improve the image and credibility of community colleges; Foster collaboration, connection, and partnership among the community colleges and stakeholders; and Provide meaningful professional development for Trustees, Presidents and stakeholders.
Specific purposes of the MCCA are to: Represent member colleges when taking collective action; Influence legislative action at the state and federal levels; Facilitate the exchange of ideas, information and best practices among member colleges; Maintain relationships with various stakeholders (elected officials, state departments, agencies, groups, associations, foundations etc.) which may have an impact on community college affairs in Michigan; Provide a range of value-added services to member colleges; and Advocate the benefits of community colleges for Michigan's citizens.
The core principles of this membership organization: Community colleges are an integral and vital component of higher education in Michigan; Community colleges have a primary role to play in economic development and job training; Collective action through the MCCA can benefit both member colleges and Michigan's citizens; and Collective support of member colleges will enhance the achievement of their individually- defined missions and roles.
For more information, please visit the MCCA’s website at http://www.mcca.org.
4 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
TERMS & CONDITIONS
1. Please submit proposal as required by the objectives and conditions outlined herein (including all ancillary information and supporting data) no later than 5:00 PM, Tuesday, October 2, 2012. Late proposals will not be considered. Electronic submissions only. It is the responsibility of the Vendor to confirm that the bid was received on time.
2. Discrepancies in, omissions from, or any uncertainties regarding the specifications shall immediately be brought to the attention of Adriana Phelan via email at [email protected]. If clarifications are needed, written instructions or an addendum will be forwarded to all invited vendors. The MCCA will not be responsible for oral interpretations. Issues/Questions received after Friday, September 28, 2012 cannot be responded to.
3. MCCA reserves the right to solicit additional information to determine which vendor best meets the needs of the Association. Additional information may include (but is not limited to) past performance records; list of available personnel; description of work which will be done simultaneously with the MCCA project; or any other pertinent information.
4. The MCCA reserves the right to waive any irregularities; accept the whole, part of, or reject any or all proposals; and to select the vendor which, in the sole opinion of the MCCA, best meets the Association's needs. The MCCA also reserves the right to negotiate with vendors so that its best interests are served.
5. The MCCA cannot be responsible for any expenses incurred in the preparation of any proposal or presentation, nor does the MCCA assume any contractual obligations by issuing this request for proposal.
6. By responding to this inquiry vendor certifies that it is an independent Contractor, licensed and bonded and is solely responsible for employment, acts and omissions, control and direction of its employees.
7. Vendors shall not use the name of the MCCA without the prior written permission of the MCCA.
8. Vendor agrees that any personal injury to vendor or third parties or any property damage incurred in the course of the performance of services shall be the responsibility of vendor.
9. Vendor warrants that the vendor’s and/or the MCCA’s use of products, process, techniques and methodologies recommended by vendor or developed by vendor shall not infringe upon the copyright, patent or other proprietary rights of others.
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10. Vendor shall indemnify the MCCA, its board members, officers, employees, and agents from and against any costs, losses, damages, liabilities, expenses, demands and judgments, including court costs and attorney fees, which may arise out of vendor’s performance, except to the extent caused by the sole fault or negligence of the MCCA.
11. Vendor affirms that to the best of its knowledge, there exists no actual or potential conflict between vendor and the MCCA, and its services under this agreement, and in the event of change in either its private interests or service under this agreement, vendor will inform the MCCA regarding possible conflict of interest which may arise as a result of such change. Vendor also affirms that there exists no actual or potential conflict between an MCCA employee and vendor that has not been disclosed.
12. MCCA is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action employer. Successful vendor and its subcontractors (if any) shall not discriminate unlawfully against any employee or applicant for employment; nor shall they deny the benefits of this agreement to any person on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical handicap, mental disability, medical condition, marital status, age, sex, or sexual orientation. Vendors shall insure that the evaluation and treatment of employees and applicants for employment are free of such discrimination.
13. The MCCA will use some or all of the following (not in any specific order) in the evaluation of the vendor and services:
i. Vendor's ability to fully satisfy each term and condition; ii. Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with staff in an organization of like size to the MCCA (references from other clients); iii. Demonstrated ability and experience in creating and executing a major campaign for an organization of like size to the MCCA; iv. Demonstrated ability to manage a multi-faceted strategic campaign; v. Experience working with other educational organizations or Associations; vi. Experience tracking and evaluating campaign effectiveness; and vii. Experience in relation to developing and/or assessing a social media plan.
Any other factors that arise in the evaluation process that are not stated above can be used in determining which proposal will be successful.
6 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
SCOPE OF WORK
1. Marketing Plan Development, Deployment, and Administration
It is anticipated that the comprehensive marketing plan will focus on the following:
Make recommendation for future brand campaign focusing on image and awareness building messaging strategy. The campaign should be focused on the value of community colleges – not the MCCA as an organization. The goal of the MCCA is to better position the 28 community colleges as a “great deal” (quality education, reasonable cost, and – specially – education/training that prepares students for successful transfer to baccalaureate education and/or leads to employment). Community colleges struggle with a branding challenge of being a low-quality/low-cost alternative to universities. We want to re-position the colleges as a high/quality, reasonable/cost alternative – preparing students for successful transfer to complete their baccalaureate degrees, or preparing students for employment in high-demand careers. The challenge for a marketing campaign is portraying the diverse mission of community colleges: transfer education and occupational training. The primary audience would be potential students and parents/families. Develop recommendations to pursue new media channels or formats, versus traditional methods, to increase reach of messages to include the use of social media as part of the integrated marketing plan. Includes the assessment and evaluation of social media tools, determination of what is relevant to our audiences, what is on the horizon, how to plan for the future and identification of the required resources to manage and successfully implement a social media plan.
The vendor shall assign an individual to be the Relationship Manager (designated point of contact). The Relationship Manager shall: Be responsible for all management activities under the statement of work Provide reports on implementation progress upon request Interact and collaborate with the MCCA staff as needed
2. Creative Writing
Creative writing services are needed to write and edit copy in support of the MCCA publications, including: brochures, social media, press releases, advertising, and other promotional materials.
3. Media Purchasing Services
The MCCA is seeking a vendor who will plan, negotiate and transact the purchasing of media services for television, radio, print and on-line media. It is expected that by joining a block media buy the MCCA will experience economies of scale.
7 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
FORM OF PROPOSAL
1. Provide name, address, and telephone number of your main office and any ancillary offices (if applicable). Identify the primary office from which this account will be serviced and managed. Provide a synopsis of your organization including the number of partners, senior managers, managers, supervisors, seniors and other professional staff.
2. Describe the team to be assigned to the project including a description of each team member’s professional experience as it relates to this project. Include resume/biographies of all proposed team members including principal areas of strength. Identify the proposed Relationship Manager who would be the point of contact for all business with the MCCA under this Agreement. Note: The team identified herein will be expected to participate in the presentation to the MCCA.
3. Describe your experience relative to; creating and executing a major branding campaign (category 1), providing creative writing services (category 2), and/or providing media buy services (category 3) for community colleges and/or an organization of like size to the MCCA. Provide reference information of at least two (2) clients each, for which you have provided these services.
4. Provide a case study that illustrates your agency’s approach, capacity, and creative ability to plan and execute a branding campaign (category 1).
5. Provide samples of your creative writings as it relates to the items identified in the overview (category 2).
6. Describe your process/protocol for planning and transacting media buys (category 3).
7. Describe what would be your firms approach to initiating a project of this magnitude.
8. Describe the methodology that would be used to track and evaluate the marketing plan’s effectiveness (category 1).
8 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
MICHIGAN COMMUNITY COLLEGE ASSOCIATION 222 North Chestnut Lansing, MI 48933
DUE DATE: 5pm, October 2, 2012
Contact: Adriana Phelan Office: (517) 372-4350 Cell: (734) 474-3812 Email: [email protected] ISSUED: SEPTEMBER 20, 2012 ======
THIS SIGNATURE PAGE MUST BE RETURNED TO ENSURE A VALID PROPOSAL. PROPOSALS SUBMITTED WITHOUT THIS SIGNATURE PAGE CAN BE RENDERED INVALID. SUBMIT RESPONSE VIA EMAIL TO ADRIANA PHELAN AT [email protected].
Marketing Services
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Company Name ______
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ACCEPTANCE: PLEASE ITEMIZE ALL PRICES, DISCOUNTS AND CHARGES. WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO ACCEPT ALL OR PART, OR DECLINE THE WHOLE. THERE IS NO OBLIGATION TO BUY. SPECIFICATIONS: ATTACH COMPLETE SPECIFICATIONS FOR ANY SUBSTITUTION OFFERED.
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