Issue Date: April 7th, 2023 – 12PM EST
The Maryland Department of Commerce’s Marketing, Communications, Tourism, and Film units (Commerce) are seeking a media monitoring service that will capture, measure and report on feature stories related to business, commerce and economic development within Maryland; travel to Maryland for leisure travel, recreational pursuits and participation in special events; and articles mentioning the business of tourism and of film making in Maryland as supported via the marketing and public relations efforts of Commerce. As a component of the media monitoring service, Commerce is also seeking media database services. Monitoring and Evaluation Service:
1. Capture U.S. and Canadian print (newspaper, magazine, paywalled content), online and broadcast (tv, radio) mentions that:
a. Report the business of tourism and film in Maryland.
b. Feature travel to any destination within Maryland.
c. Feature cultural activity in Maryland in conjunction with travel.
d. Pertain to Maryland Office of Tourism’s publications, programs, and products.
e. Discuss film projects in Maryland.
f. Capture the Maryland Department of Commerce business coverage.
g. Match search keywords as provided.
2. All articles must be assigned an advertising value and publication circulation for purposes of determining return on investment (ROI).
a. When an article appears in print, then measurement values need to be provided for both the print and online version(s) of the article.
b. If article appears in print only, vendor may send tearsheets of the original article and/or provide a scanned copy of the originally published piece.
3. Monthly reporting and analysis capabilities must be available via vendor website with user friendly software.
4. Vendor software must feature: i. Storage and viewing of clips for one minimum of year; preferably for full length of contract.
Listing of clips: Must include article title, media source type, date of publication, ad value, circulation, and media source location (city, state). iii. Software tools must allow for easy compiling and exporting of all clip information mentioned above (ii) onto compatible MS Excel or Google spreadsheets. iv. Software tools must allow for importing and/or manual input of links/clips not captured through the service and incorporate these clips into their search, reports, and export functions. v. Software tools must allow for editing, downloading, and sharing of individual broadcast clips.
5. Monthly report summary in Google docs, MS Word or other MS Office software; total monthly media monitoring must be on website software or sent electronically. Reports must include listing which includes media source, article title, date of publication and comparable ad value. (Information must be available and will be used for accounting and auditing purposes.)
Search Capabilities:
- Searches shall be conducted using a series of keywords, phrases or ideas as related to and supplied by Commerce.
2. Dynamic search function that allows robust filtering capabilities, ie. exclusion of mere mentions, advertisements/advertorials, calendar listings, etc.
Media Database Services:
1.In conjunction with clipping services, company must provide a searchable media database component.
2. Search function must be able to target media outlets by city, state, region, country, type of outlet (i.e. newspaper, magazine, trade publication, syndication, etc.), circulation, target audience and tourism, film, or commerce topics.
3. Searchable database should also include individual journalists (editors, staff writers, columnists, and freelancers), broadcast producers and reporters, bloggers and social media influencers.