Northern Virginia Community College Seeks Marketing Firm

The intent and purpose of this Request for Proposal (RFP) is to establish a contract through competitive negotiation with qualified source to provide a Branding Strategy, which includes the development of a website, for Northern Virginia Community College, an agency of the Virginia Community College System, Commonwealth of Virginia, which is acting on behalf of the broader Northern Virginia community, and hereinafter referred to as the Agency, College or NOVA.

Background:

NORTHERN VIRGINIA COMMUNTIY COLLEGE: www.nvcc.edu

Founded in 1964, Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) is the largest public institution of higher education in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the second-largest multi-campus community college in the United States. Located in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, NOVA enrolls more than 78,000 credit students annually at six campuses in Alexandria, Annandale, Loudoun, Manassas, Springfield and Woodbridge, three centers and its Extended Learning Institute for online learning in 140 certificate and associate degree programs. Each year another 30,000 individuals participate in non-credit, continuing education, workforce development and other programs, services and activities on the College’s campuses. NOVA is also one of the most internationally diverse colleges in the U.S., with a student body consisting of individuals from more than 180 countries. As one of 23 community colleges in Virginia, NOVA is poised to provide higher education opportunities to the diverse populations living in the area.

GO VIRGINIA: http://govirginia.org/

“GO Virginia is a bipartisan, business-led economic development initiative that is changing the way Virginia’s diverse regions collaborate on economic and workforce development activities.”

“GO Virginia supports programs to create more high-paying jobs through incentivized collaboration between business, education, and government to diversify and strengthen the economy in every region of the Commonwealth.”

Scope of Work:

The Contractor shall offer a strong community-wide branding strategy and website plan with the goals of maintaining market awareness and building a cohesive brand and image of the Tech Talent Pipeline. The Contractor shall provide a full range of branding services that first and foremost include a cohesive and compelling brand identity. The development of a brand identity should include an understanding of the target audiences and a website that encapsulates the brand and serves as a community resource. The Contractor must understand the important role that the website will play in developing the rising workforce population and increasing available tech talent in the Northern Virginia Region.

Specific Requirements: The Contractor shall provide the following:

Creative Services:

• The Contractor shall propose a creative approach, development and production of the Tech   Talent Pipeline brand identity. Developing a brand identity is the first and foremost task of this initiative. The brand development strategy should include branded creative, as well as recommended print and digital materials tailored to campaigns and budgets. The approach should include plans to address the diverse stakeholders and audiences of the initiative, including but not limited to the following:

o K-12 teachers – Equip teachers to encourage and motivate students of all backgrounds to pursue careers and develop interests in information technology.

o K-12 parents – Provide parents with the resources and tools necessary to help them encourage their children to pursue IT careers.

o K-12 students – Develop K-12 students’ interest in technology careers by appealing specifically to their demographic; work with students to learn how to best engage this population.

o Veterans – Engage veterans in exploring jobs in information technology.

o College students – Instill interest in students enrolled in a 2-year or 4-year institution in IT careers.

o Career changers – Provide opportunities and exploration for adults currently in the workforce who are considering a career change.

• The Contractor shall work with the College to develop a website that encapsulates and represents the brand identity of the Tech Talent Pipeline. The website should target a diverse audience of students in kindergarten through 12th grade, as well as those in college, changing their careers, and parents who are researching potential career opportunities for their children. The Contractor should be aware that the website will rely heavily upon real-time labor market data to engage students in careers in technology. A third-party source will provide the code for real-time labor market data to be incorporated into the final design of the website.
• Platform must provide flexibility to integrate multiple data streams and allow for additional components in the future.
• TheContractor shall prove skills that are related to having the creative process to develop branding and a website that will enhance community awareness of the Tech Talent Pipeline and Northern Virginia’s job opportunities and career potential in technology.
• Development and execution of a distinctive, unifying, integrated theme and message that supports the brand and is appropriate for each of the target audiences. Recommendations will be based upon knowledge of the Tech Talent Pipeline initiative and intended outcomes. Marketing campaign outcomes should be measureable and reported to the College using industry standard metrics.
• The Contractor shall work with the College to develop both an annual marketing and communications plan for the Tech Talent Pipeline.
• The Contractor shall prove skills that are related to having creative process to develop branding and public relations that will enhance community awareness of the enhanced offering and be incorporated in the annual plan.
• The Contractor shall propose a new strategy for the purposes of promotion, including but not limited to social media engagement and advertising, advanced behavioral targeting and communication.
• Development and execution of a distinctive, unifying, integrated theme and message that supports all of the key product lines and is appropriate for each program’s target audience. Existing positioning strategies and marketing plans will be shared with the contractor. The Contractor’s experience and NOVA’s existing data should be applied whenever possible in developing a plan crafted to the specific needs of NOVA.
• The College must review and approve all advertising and marketing materials created by the Contractor. Advertising and marketing materials that are determined by the College, in its sole discretion, to be unacceptable shall be recreated by the Contractor at no additional cost to the College.
• The Contractor shall work with the College to develop and complete special projects as assigned.
• Coordinate activities across program areas with NOVA staff and partners.
• Revise recommendations and execution based on analysis of interim results.

Additional Services:

• Experience with corporate recruiting or talent pipeline initiatives.

o Multiple locations marketing experience.

o With large audiences of diverse stakeholders, including: K-12 teachers, K-12 parents, veterans, college students, and those looking to change careers.

• Integrated marketing to multiple service areas, i.e. counties.
• Experience with brand development, creative collateral, and strategy.
• Experience with dynamic and creative data visualization.
• Experience with integrated marketing for the online community.
• Provide contract references regarding previous work in creative brand development, strategy, and website design.
• Experience with integrated marketing to a diverse community, preferentially experience with: military and veterans, K-12/secondary, and higher education.

Due Date:

July 9th

Address:

Electronically submitted through the eVA e-procurement solution.

French West Vaughn is a strong Virginia based PR Agency.