The South Dakota Office of Child and Family Services, Maternal Child Health Program (MCH) is seeking proposals from advertising agencies to provide health communications and marketing services in support of enhancing life for all South Dakotans by improving the health and well-being of the state’s women, infants, children and adolescents. The purpose of the resulting contract will be to recruit a strategic partner to grow and shape the program’s health communications and marketing efforts.
Communications Goals: The MCH program’s health communications efforts focus on the following goals:
- Reducing infant mortality
- Improving the health and wellness of women, infants, children and adolescents
- Promoting preventive medical and dental care for women, infants, children, and adolescents
- Early identification and intervention for developmental delays
- Reduced use of and exposure to tobacco
- Awareness of health behaviors to prevent obesity
- Connecting clients to other services such as WIC, Bright Start Home Visiting, STD prevention, family planning, immunizations, and the South Dakota QuitLine.
- Distilling and disseminating data to stakeholders, partners, and the public.
Key Audiences: The MCH program’s messaging typically targets the following audiences:
- Low-income families
- American Indian families
- Adolescents
- Healthcare providers
- Community partners and stakeholders
- Women of childbearing age
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS: The successful Vendor will provide a full range of health communications and marketing services under the direction of a responsive client service team. The campaign requires at least weekly contact with the client, periodic status calls and quarterly strategy meetings. The Vendor will assist the South Dakota Department of Health (SD DOH) in the creation and/or procurement, production and dissemination of components of campaign aimed at populations specified by the State. The Vendor will be required to build on and use existing campaign resources (For Baby’s Sake and South Dakota WIC) and materials from the SD DOH and other national and state resources.
CREATIVE SERVICES: The Vendor will work collaboratively with State staff on creative development including the following: advertising concepts, messages, themes, slogans, design of advertising and publication layouts, production of videos from concept through storyboard to final production, copywriting for print, video, radio, television, social and digital media, a high quality digital photo collection (South Dakota specific), design of promotional items, and web development.
MEDIA PURCHASE/PLACEMENT SERVICES: The Vendor will be required to evaluate media and provide schedules that deliver advertising in appropriate media environments to the specified audiences efficiently and at satisfactory levels. The Vendor will be asked to evaluate and execute media plans which may include, television, radio, print, social, digital, and out-of-home media outlets. The Vendor will be required to purchase advertising time and space in South Dakota media.
DIGITAL/SOCIAL MEDIA SERVICES: The Vendor will maintain, track, monitor, provide reports and implement strategies to increase reach and engagement of the following social media accounts:
- For Baby’s Sake (facebook.com/ForBabySakeSD): This page is designed to encourage conversation, provide information and resources to help all South Dakota women have healthy pregnancies, raise healthy babies, and lead healthy lives.
- South Dakota WIC Program (facebook.com/SouthDakotaWIC/): This page promotes the WIC program services and provides nutritional information to improve the health South Dakota families.
The Vendor will also be responsible for developing web content for www.SDWIC.org and www.ForBabySakeSD.com as well as for the Department of Health Website.
DEVELOPMENT, PRINTING, AND PROMOTION PROCUREMENT: The Vendor will be responsible for developing and designing documents in formats suitable for print and web, for printing of advertising, public relations, and promotional materials, and for procurement of promotional items. Past examples include toolkits, strategic plans, focus group reports, infographics, data briefs, and other reports.
PUBLIC RELATIONS SERVICES: The Vendor will work collaboratively with State staff on public relations efforts including the following: talking points, press releases, op-eds, media kits, and event planning and coordination. The Vendor will provide expertise in use of appropriate digital communication strategies and Internet-based communication tools which may include elements like longer-form videos and native advertising.
RESEARCH SERVICES: The Vendor will execute evidence-based advertising and marketing campaign strategies through analysis of national, regional and state research. The Vendor will refine strategies with qualitative or quantitative research methods, including but not limited to focus groups, surveys, online testing, etc. to pre-test strategies, concepts, slogans, or messages.
VIDEO, DVD, TV, MOTION PICTURE AND OTHER ADVERTISING SERVICES: The Vendor may be required to produce messages in video appropriate for digital and social media platforms (i.e. Facebook), DVD, TV and or motion picture quality formats satisfactory to the State.
Proposal due on April 21st, 2017 to:
DERRICK HASKINS, HEALTH COMMUNICATIONS & MARKETING ADMINISTRATOR
SOUTH DAKOTA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 600 EAST CAPITOL AVE.
PIERRE, SD 57501
PR firms who may be considered for this could include Ketchum PR or Kaplow PR.