Lamar University Issues Digital Marketing RFP
Lamar University is seeking a digital marketing agency. Lamar University was founded in 1923 a few blocks from the current location as South Park Junior College and enrolled 125 students in its first fall semester. The name changed to Lamar College in 1932 in honor of Mirabeau B. Lamar, second president of the Republic of Texas and the “Father of Education” in Texas. In the early 1940s, Lamar separated from the South Park school district, which had created the college, and moved to its current location.
Lamar University is among the fastest growing Texas colleges and universities, and is a member of The Texas State University System. LU offers more than 100 programs of study leading to bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees. The 270-acre campus in Beaumont is about 90 miles east of Houston and about 25 miles west of Louisiana.
University is seeking assistance with Lead Generation Digital Marketing for the First Time in College (FTIC) and Transfer student population. This effort is focused on generating applications and enrollments. This effort is focused on students who will attend University in Beaumont – not the online programs offered by University.
Vendors should be able to provide strategy and execution for lead generation marketing. These initiatives are primarily digital and include paid search, display, social, retargeting and other forms of digital media. Must be able to work with University personnel to maintain the microsites related to digital marketing and supply all creative and production for all digital ads. Must have technical expertise to maintain lead forms and integrate with the University Customer Relationship Management. In addition, University wishes to aggregate any digital marketing through the vendor and reimburse the vendor for digital marketing spend as well as any associated fees. In addition, there could be periodic needs for print marketing as defined by University. Finally, University is looking for bi-weekly reports on the progress of the effort detailing marketing spend by channel, how many impressions, clicks and leads generated, etc. – plus any other data necessary to determine investment decisions.
Examples of vendor not meeting performance expectations include, but are not limited to, the following:
- The cost per lead is too high, and the vendor cannot find a way to reduce it.
- University is not getting the number of leads we want. We have been averaging about 200 per month. If that dropped significantly we would likely select another qualified vendor.
- University determines that the leads are not turning into applications.
- The technology does not work – e.g. the leads do not post correctly either to the call center or to our Customer Relationship Management.
- The firm will not commit to meeting with University weekly to review the leads.
Due Date:
April 10th, 2019.
Address:
Stacy Elizondo, CTPM
Lamar University Purchasing
Otho H. Plummer Building Room 120
4400 Martin Luther King Parkway
Beaumont, TX 77705
Agencies with relevant experience includes Kite Hill PR and Shift Communications.
