Colorado Department of Transportation Looking For A Media Buying Agency

The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDT) is looking for a media buying agency. CDOT’s goal in seeking to contract with a media buying firm is to help execute comprehensive, effective, and relevant paid communications with the public on a variety of transportation issues, and to help influence behavior change among the public.

The majority of tasks assigned will involve media buying related to traffic safety issues, but may also include transportation initiatives, projects related to construction, transportation issues and other media buying projects for various CDOT departments or CDOT subgrantees. The approximate annual funding level for media buys was $900,000.

The following are examples of types of issues that may be addressed by projects conducted by the selected media buying vendor:

• Distracted driving is one of the leading causes of deaths on Colorado roads. Sixty-eight people were killed in distracted driving crashes last year and there were 15,574 distracting driving crashes last year. CDOT must find new ways to communicate to influence positive behavior change and reduce fatalities in Colorado.
• The Division of Transit and Rail will be expanding Bustang’s interregional bus operation (introduced in 2015) to additional rural areas. The success of interregional bus will depend on the public’s understanding of its purpose and its value from conception through operations. This will require refining the brand for the new services, as well as educating the public about the benefits of the new system, identifying and addressing conflicts created by the system, and marketing the new system.
• Drug-impaired driving, as recreational marijuana moves fully into Colorado’s every day, continues to be an issue in Colorado. Additionally, there is a lack of education about the impacts of certain prescription medications on a person’s ability to drive safely.  The issue of marijuana-impaired driving will continue to be a hot topic and requires working with a variety of stakeholders including the marijuana industry, law enforcement and other state agencies.  CDOT must finds ways to educate the public about the dangers of drug-impaired driving, while balancing the political issues of being one of the first states to legalize recreational marijuana.
• CDOT is at the beginning of a monumental shift in transportation technology with self-driving vehicles, truck platooning, adaptive traffic signals. Communications must be supportive of how CDOT is engaging and leading that change as well as support asking the public and other critical stakeholders to join us for the ride. Communications include supporting overall brand recognition of RoadX, project communications strategy including support during any planning/environmental, public research, operations communications and marketing efforts to support adoption and understanding of different initiatives.

STATEMENT OF WORK:

The CDOT Office of Communications uses media buying services for major campaigns such as Click It or Ticket, the Heat Is On, Drive High, work zone safety, Bustang, RoadX and winter driving.  These campaigns may be federally mandated and used to promote clear and timely communications with the residents of Colorado.  These services will be used in all cases when the timing of the message and the target audience can be ensured through the use of paid media.

The selected proposer must have knowledgeable and qualified staff with the skills and experience to work on these projects.  The media buying services involved in the overall scope of work include:

• Researching the audience demographics of different media outlets as to ensure messages reach the target audience;
• Requesting proposals for media placement from identified media outlets;
• Analyzing proposals to establish the most effective placement for reaching the target audience;
• Analyzing proposals for cost effectiveness;
• Preparing media buy plans for review and input by the CDOT project manager;
• Placing ads with media ahead of the establish media buy date;
• Negotiating rates;
• Negotiating significant added value for each media buy;
• Coordinating all of CDOT’s media buys so as to achieve the best possible rate for all buys;
• Arranging invoicing and payment of media buys
• Request and review affidavits towards ensuring all media ran and all added value delivered;
• Provide customized reports to the CDOT project manager post-buy;
• Provide evaluations and reports of completed media buys to the CDOT project manager;
• Provide information/reports to other CDOT contractors whose work includes conducting evaluations regarding media buying.

Proposal due by October 26^th, 2016 to:

Colorado Department of Transportation’s (CDOT) Purchasing

4201 E. Arkansas, Room 200

Denver, CO 80222