MARKETING RFP ISSUED FOR AGRICULTURE AND AGRI-FOOD CANADA
Introduction: To expand the presence of Canadian food products in Vietnam, a refreshed Canada Brand will be launched in 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 that will feature a targeted, digital and ecommerce marketing consumer campaign. Considerations In the context of this project, food includes, but is not limited to:
§ Secondary agriculture and processed foods and beverages, including maple syrup/sugar, honey, vegetables, dried and frozen fruits, cuts of meat, confectionary, and prepared meals
§ Processed fish and seafood
§ Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages
§ Functional foods, and health and wellness products that are widely considered food Excluded and out of scope:
§ Outputs of primary agriculture (i.e. primary commodities such as bulk wheat or live animals)
§ Agriculture or fishing industry machinery and tools
§ Foodservice and meal delivery platforms (e.g. UberEats)
§ Agri-food technology, food packaging 2. Background The Canada Brand was launched in 2006 to give the Canadian food and agriculture industry a competitive advantage through a common strategy and set of tools, and to raise the profile of and help differentiate Canadian food products from the competition globally. The strategy and its elements were developed in collaboration with industry and the government.
At its peak, over 700 Canadian agriculture, food and seafood businesses and associations, were using the Canada Brand to enhance their promotions. It offered a member portal where assets such as logos, taglines, stock photos and style guides were available to members. It also supported trade and consumer events in the market. COVID-19 has dramatically changed how businesses operate and market and has accelerated the importance of the digital space. To take advantage of the power of digital marketing and ecommerce, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Page 31 of 48 (AAFC) decided to update the Canada Brand tools and platform under a “Pivot to Digital” concept. The refreshed Canada Brand will include digitally optimized graphics, video content, messaging and a consumer website. Vietnam has been selected as a pilot market for a focused Canada Brand campaign of up to four special occasion promotions with an established ecommerce platform provider.
3. Objectives While Canada is perceived positively in Vietnam, a limited awareness of specific Canadian food and beverage products or brands in the market persists. To expand Canadian food & beverage products’ presence in the market, a refreshed Canada Brand will be launched in Vietnam in 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 that will feature a targeted digital and ecommerce marketing consumer campaign.
The Objective:
1) To leverage the refreshed Canada Brand and a positive international image of Canada as a supplier of safe, high-quality food from a pristine, sustainable environment made by trustworthy people.
2) To grow consumer awareness, drive demand for, and generate increased sales of Canadian food products in Vietnam, particularly those available on the Canada Showcase of the selected ecommerce platform.
Targeted Products: 1) Secondary agriculture and processed foods and beverages, including products such as maple syrup/sugar, honey, vegetables, dried and frozen fruits, cuts of meat, confectionery, prepared meals;
2) Processed fish and seafood;
3) Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages;
4) Functional foods, and health and wellness products that are widely considered food. Excluded and out of scope: Commodities such as bulk wheat or live animals; agriculture or fishing industry machinery and tools; food service and meal delivery platforms (e.g. UberEats); agri-food technology; and food packaging.
4. Scope of Work:
To support the above stated objectives, the Project Authorities require a contractor to act as the Executing Agency and liaise directly and regularly (daily) with Project Authorities to: Page 32 of 48
1) Adapt and translate Canada Brand and other Canadian content and, as necessary, create new content to ensure the overall campaign is cohesive and targeted towards a Vietnamese audience
2) Develop and implement cohesive and comprehensive ecommerce and digital campaign strategies, including tactics for each platform and channel (for example, web presence, social media and email marketing) and communication with vendors over a period of two years up to March 31, 2024.
3) Coordinate with a creative agency in Canada who is responsible for the development of creative material for advertising purposes over the 2022- 2023 and 2023-2024 fiscal years. The three main functions of the Contractor are the following: I. Project Management and its implementation
§ Key roles include:
§ Delivering all requested components as detailed in this Statement of Work
§ Ensuring all elements of the campaign are cohesive and contribute to the overall objectives
§ Adapting content received from Project Authorities and stakeholders introduced by Project Authorities (provincial offices, industry associations, etc.) to target Vietnamese audience (Canadian advertisements, graphics, messaging, etc.)
§ Translation into Vietnamese content received in English to be used in social media and ecommerce pages
§ Creating new content tailored to Vietnamese market (photo shoots and video production, as needed)
§ Responsible for accurate translating and copyrighting of Canada website sections intended for Vietnam, in consultation with the Embassy of Canada in Vietnam and the Consulate General of Canada, Ho Chi Minh City
§ Communicating with all participating Vietnamese companies § Preparing press releases in Vietnamese and English (as necessary)
§ Planning for and implementing a launch event (virtual or in-person event) and other subsequent events to promote the Canada Brand
§ Providing project status and contact reports to Project Authorities (in English) on a weekly basis II. Digital Strategy and its implementation
§ Social Networking Service (SNS) key roles include:
§ SNS strategy: creating a SNS strategy (which may include hiring influencers) to increase followers and meet Canada Brand Page 33 of 48 objectives; setting up and managing multiple SNS accounts identified in strategy; scheduling themes and posts for the month/week/special occasion
§ Organic content creation (Vietnamese) for regular SNS posts targeting a minimum of two (2) per week. This includes seeking approvals from Project Authorities, writing posts, collecting or editing photos and posting information
§ Advertising management in Vietnamese (for example, advising which posts should be boosted through paid promotion services) to reach a wider audience and drive follower growth
§ Note: the development, production and purchasing of advertising is outside the scope of this Statement of Work
§ Communication, in coordination/consultation with Project Authorities, with local stakeholder offices (industry associations, provincial offices, and Destination Canada), Vietnamese importers/distributors and Canadian companies to collect information on new products, news or events for SNS channels
§ Communicating with Project Authorities, Canadian and local stakeholders for information on events and activities taking place in Vietnam and Canada which the Contractor would be responsible for amplifying on SNS
§ Providing on-going advice and support to Project Authorities with a mid-term review and a final report outlining best practices at the conclusion of the contract
§ Monthly status reports to Project Authorities on activities and results (in English)
§ Digital ads (in Vietnamese) key roles include:
§ Planning, creative direction and strategy for display ads and paid search and SNS ads, in consultation with the Project Authorities and a creative agency in Canada.
§ Note: the development, production and purchasing of advertising is outside the scope of this Statement of Work
§ Website (to be hosted in Canada) § Accurate translation into Vietnamese and providing and updating Vietnamese content for website, in consultation with the Embassy of Canada in Vietnam and the Consulate General of Canada, Ho Chi Minh City. Page 34 of 48 III. Ecommerce Strategy and its implementation
§ Key roles include:
§ Communicating with the pre-selected ecommerce platform to design a Canada Showcase grouping and showcasing the Canadian products available on a selected ecommerce provider.
§ Advising on the layout and setting-up of a Canada Showcase
§ Advising on the layout, theme and showcased products for each promotion
§ Ongoing management of the Canada Showcase and promotions
§ Note: the integrated promotional tools to drive traffic to this Showcase is covered through a direct contract with the ecommerce platform and is therefore outside the scope of this
Statement of Work
§ With Project Authorities and the ecommerce platform, designing a system/criterion for selecting Canadian products to be accepted into the Canada Showcase.
§ With Project Authorities, organizing a webinar/s to a Canadian and Vietnamese audience to introduce the Canada Showcase concept and encourage participation, coordinating with the selected ecommerce platform on Vietnamese companies confirming participation.
§ Liaise with Vietnamese companies (existing importers/distributors or interested importers of Canadian products) to introduce the Canada Showcase and encourage participation. The list of Vietnamese companies will be provided by Project Authorities.
§ Contributing to a strategy for increasing the number of Canadian products available on the selected ecommerce platform prior to launch of the Canada showcase by facilitating introductions to companies importing and selling through the selected ecommerce platform
§ Coordinating promotion development and updates on the Canada Showcase to Project Authorities (in English)
§ Monthly reporting to Project Authorities on activities and results
