Advertising RFP Issued By SFAA Division of Procurement Services

April 8, 2025

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Title: Digital Advertising & Marketing Services

RFP #14067822

Scope: Coastal Carolina University (CCU) is soliciting proposals for a source to provide digital advertising services which will serve the varying needs of CCU as a whole and its individual departments in accordance with all requirements stated herein.

CCU Background: CCU is a dynamic, public comprehensive liberal arts institution located in Conway, just minutes from the resort area of Myrtle Beach, S.C. CCU offers seventy-two (72) areas of study toward the baccalaureate degree, and 18 master’s degree programs, plus two (2) educational specialist degrees. CCU began offering its first doctoral program – the Ph.D. in marine science: coastal and marine systems science – in Fall 2014. More than ten thousand (10,000) students from across the country and the world interact with a world-class faculty and enjoy a nationally competitive NCAA Division I athletic program, an inspiring cultural calendar, and a tradition of community interaction that is fueled by more than 180 student clubs and organizations. CCU comprises one hundred fifteen (115) main buildings on six-hundred thirty-three (633) acres, including the Coastal Science Center and the Burroughs & Chapin Center for Marine and Wetland Studies, located on the East Campus in the Atlantic Center on U.S. 501, and the General James Hackler Golf Course at Coastal Carolina University, a public 18- hole golf facility located adjacent to the campus. CCU also offers courses at the Myrtle Beach Education Center, and in Litchfield and Georgetown. A 1,105-acre tract, including a portion of Waties Island, provides a natural laboratory for extensive study in marine science and wetlands biology on an Atlantic coast barrier island. CCU was founded in 1954 as Coastal Carolina Junior College and became an independent university in 1993. CCU is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) to award the baccalaureate, master’s, specialist, and doctoral degrees. Additional information on CCU may be found at http://www.coastal.edu/

Current Digital Marketing Processes: University Marketing and Communication currently utilizes digital marketing solutions to assist with branding and recruitment initiatives for not only CCU as a whole, but for the individual departments and collegesthat comprise CCU. CCU has been utilizing digital marketing for the past eight (8) years and has recently invested additional advertising allocations into this medium. CCU continues to seek digital marketing opportunities to brand CCU and to recruit prospective students.

General Requirements: CCU desires to select a source to provide, at a minimum, the following digital marketing services:

1. Provide CCU with a full range of high-quality services reasonably expected from a digital marketing partner.

2. Provide information about and implement campaigns designed to contribute to University Marketing and Communication’s overall mission of telling CCU’s story and to increase brand awareness and enrollment among highly qualified students.

3. Provide processes for ensuring that all digital marketing that is performed is in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations.

4. Cooperate fully with CCU employees and provide timely responses to questions as needed.

5. Comply with procedural instructions of CCU.

6. Research/Analysis/Performance/Results

a. Provide market analysis/research to advise on the best approach for acampaign.

b. Track all analytics for the campaigns disseminated and provide any necessary tracking measures to interface with CCU’s digital platforms.

c. Must provide a dashboard for analytics that is updated daily, at a minimum.

d. Provide end-results and recommendations for improvement at the close of each campaign.

e. Key Metrics: Ensure they focus on important KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) such as ROI (Return on Investment), conversion rates, traffic growth, lead generation, and customer acquisition costs.

f. Data Interpretation: They should offer insights and actionable recommendations based on data rather than just presenting numbers.

g. Innovative Tools: Utilize tools like heat maps, A/B testing, or user behavior analytics to optimize campaigns.

7. Campaign(s) – Quotes and Payments

a. Contractor shall be responsible for payment for any platforms, CCU approved third-party affiliates, and lead list necessary to fulfill a campaign. Payment forservices shall only be made to the awarded contractor.

b. The cost for development and distribution of a campaign will be included in the initial proposal or quote for each campaign, as well as an estimated, minimum cost per campaign. CCU anticipates approximately forty (40) campaigns over the course of a fiscal year.

c. Although CCU will frequently provide creative, contractor must include costs of creative in the initial quote if requested by CCU. If creative cost is notincluded in campaign quote when requested by CCU, contractor shall bear all costs associated with the design.

d. Contractor shall honor all initial quotes provided, unless scope of the project, such as time frame, changes.

e. Contractor must maintain price competitiveness. CCU will evaluate price publications issued annually by various advertising groups to determine price competitiveness and return on investment.

f. Contractor shall offer a menu of required/preferred sources and be willing to tailorthe range of services to a specific group.

g. Quote will include suggestions for the type of digital marketing that would help fulfill the campaign objectives, reach the appropriate target audience, and deliver reasonable results.

h. A variation in campaign prices is expected depending on the impact and shall be tailored to suit the specific needs of CCU. For example, the cost of a mobile campaign that runs for two (2) weeks and targets a specific area would differ from a campaign that runs for a month and targets a separate area or perhaps the entire state.

i. Must offer the ability to control spending at detailed levels.

8. Third-Party Affiliation(s)

a. CCU does not typically partner with brands associated with alcohol, tobacco, weapon or explicit content for digital marketing, and contractor must take appropriate measures to ensure CCU’s message is not endorsed on these types ofsites.

b. CCU has the right to review, upon request, the complete list of appropriate top tiers sites to be used per campaign; contractor will be responsible to maintain a list of blacklisted sites.

9. Customer Service/Account Management Requirements

a. Provide a timely response for a campaign quote request.

b. Must be flexible to situation-specific needs of CCU.

c. The contractor shall not delay timelines or implementation of a campaign that would impact the cost proposed in the quote.

d. Meet with the Office of University Marketing and Communication bi-weekly to review and optimize campaigns and make recommendations about new platforms available.

e. Contractor must provide complete training on any software/asset that CCU is expected to be involved with (analytics, dashboards, campaign generation platforms, etc.)

10. Minimum services to be provided:

a. Strategy and analysis for campaign development

b. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

c. Search Engine Marketing (SEM), including pay-per-click.

d. Mobile and banner displays, including but not limited to targeting/retargeting, geotargeting.

e. Social media paid ads.

f. Broadcast TV placements.

g. Billboard placements

h. Work with CCU to determine specific goals and metrics so funds can be appropriately allocated for maximum reach and effectiveness.

i. Place, monitor and optimize digital campaigns based on agreed upon goals.

j. Email marketing and communication funnel development

k. Conversion rate optimization