STATE OF TENNESSEE MARKETING RFP ISSUED

The State will procure marketing and advertising services that will include brand development, creative, production related to traditional and digital advertising and reporting on analytics of generating visitation to Tennessee and to the State’s websites in its efforts to increase in-state and out-of-state tourism growth.

a. Contractor shall utilize and enhance the existing strategic plan or at the request of the State, create, develop and implement a revised or new comprehensive domestic and international strategic plan for marketing Tennessee tourism for State review and approval. Such plan shall include traditional and digital advertising as well as media placement in support of the brand.

b. The Contractor shall provide updates to the strategic plan throughout the term of the Contract as requested by the State and propose marketing and media strategies to expand promotional efforts effectively into new markets, maintain successful traditional markets and test markets. 

c. Contractor shall research and be knowledgeable of current domestic and international travel and tourism marketing trends and make recommendations to the State as to how to best promote Tennessee tourism to groups including, but not limited to niche audiences and specific demographics, such as geographic and psychographic tourism consumer targets by means of paid, earned and owned media opportunities.

d. Maintain an understanding of the overall objectives of the State and it’s prior and current marketing strategies, to effectively recommend and implement strong media and creative initiatives.

e. Contractor shall research and render a marketing analysis, with criteria/assessment points as provided by State, of the effectiveness of the State’s advertising campaigns and media purchases implemented at regular intervals during each year of the Contract. Such analysis should include but is not limited to: tracking of all advertising and media placement efforts against agreed upon key performance indicators on an ongoing basis no less than once a month. . Changes to media placement tactics, markets or brand creative to improve campaign performance will be made with the State’s prior approval as warranted.

f. Contractor shall utilize the State’s consumer database information generated through the State’s website, www.tnvacation.com (the “Website”), e-mails received, lead generation, and reports received by the State from the State’s call center contractor to assist with the development of an effective marketing strategy for the State.

g. Provide professional advice and make recommendations for the development of marketing strategies and promotional activities to benefit the State’s marketing programs.

A.6. Marketing Services. 

a. Traditional Advertising. Contractor shall perform traditional advertising services for the State as described below:

1) Provide creative services such as concept development, copywriting, art direction, layout and design, video and image collection, graphic design, asset organization and management, and other creative services needed to support, develop and track the State’s brand and marketing campaign(s); 

2) Provide production services capable of supporting all aspects of a given campaign, including but not limited to: Print design; television spots; radio spots; direct marketing; outdoor advertising; and other forms of production services necessary to support the State’s marketing campaign(s); and, 

3) Make adjustments or changes to the campaign(s) as required to meet the State’s advertising objectives.

4) Manage projects and track the status of required tasks to complete advertising campaigns as directed.

b. Digital Advertising. Contractor shall be responsible for understanding the overall objectives of the State’s digital tourism advertising program to effectively create and produce digital advertising which generates Impressions for the department’s websites

(Retire TN, tnvacation.com, etc.) social media channels, Pandora station, YouTube and other online platforms resulting in increased visitation and Engagement.

1) Implement a digital tourism promotion advertising concept(s) with art direction, copy and design, image collection, graphic design and other production services as requested by the State to support, develop, track, manage and maintain such digital advertising campaign(s); 

2) Make adjustments or changes to the digital advertising campaign(s) as needed to meet the State’s digital marketing objectives;

3) Integrate social media and user-generated initiatives to develop and maintain the platforms throughout the term of the Contract.

4) Utilize available research to support Contractor’s digital advertising recommendations, subject to the State’s approval; and,

5) Render complete marketing analysis as the effectiveness of the State’s digital advertising campaign(s) implemented during each year of the Contract.

6) Provide senior-level supervision of the digital advertising services, and document and communicate with the State as to the status and timeline of each on-line advertising campaign weekly or upon request by the State. c. Media Placement. Contractor shall be responsible for understanding the overall objective of the State’s marketing programs to effectively recommend and place traditional and digital media placements that generate visitation to Tennessee and the State’s websites resulting in increased Engagement, visitation and travel to and in Tennessee as well as distribution of the Tennessee Vacation Guide.

1)      Contractor shall render media placement and related services for the State pursuant to the strategic marketing plan which shall include but not be limited to:

i. Provide recommendations for media placement that will accomplish outlined campaign goals, including projected Impressions or results, for the State to approve prior to purchase/buy;

ii. Coordinate with the State and others, as may be required, to ensure that appropriate production materials are obtained to satisfy media placement requirements in a timely fashion to media vendor(s);

iii. Provide the State with reports to document the media was placed as required; provide post-buy analysis and media audits; and change tactics, with the State’s prior approval, as necessary for a given media placement campaign; and,

v. Conduct and provide research, surveys and studies as requested by the State or as needed to support digital advertising and media placement recommendations and decisions.

2) Provide oversight or support of Co-op media placement opportunities with tourism Organizations, attractions, etc. as needed or as requested by the State.

3) Provide on-going, senior-level account supervisors who communicate and document the timing and cost status of all media placement projects as well as provide necessary reports, estimates, accounting documentation and other financial information necessary to comply with the Contract’s payment terms and conditions.

4) The media buy fees shall include, but not be limited to, the Contractor developing and managing (i) Media plans from a strategic level to the tactical details; (ii) Media buying across traditional media and digital/interactive media; (iii) Media benchmarking providing perspective to the State as part of the strategy development; (iv) Media billing and payment to any and all third parties; (v) Media reporting which shall include, but not be limited to, monthly competitive spend reports, content auditing, and post buy analysis; (vi) Ad prospecting; (vii)

Research; (viii) Planning; (ix) Negotiating rates; (x) Negotiating added value; (xi) Buying; (xii) Contract signing (insertion orders or IOs); (xiii) Maintenance/Stewardship buy; (xiv) Fulfillment of the buy; and/or (xv) Recap of the buy.

d. Email Database Management and Lead Generation. Contractor shall consult on database management; creation and development of messaging content; and lead generation services to support and increase the size of the State-owned database which includes, but is not limited to the following services: 

1) Contractor shall create and distribute outbound e-mails, newsletters, or other promotional announcements to subscribed customers that are maintained in the database as needed and advise for best practices related to lead generation programs that will increase the number and/or quality of customers maintained the State’s database, as follows:

i. Distributed e-mails shall be developed in conjunction with the State’s strategic marketing plan as it pertains to the State Website; ii. Content of e-mails shall be consistent with areas of activity and/or interest requested by the customers and maintained in the database; 

iii. Expansion of the database shall include opportunities for Website interaction to generate more subscribed tourism leads;

iv. Contractor shall maintain an expert-level knowledge of new technology and lead generation techniques and make recommendations that may benefit the State’s database and lead generation activities;

v. Provide monthly reports, or as requested, of database and e-mail lead generation activities to the State to measure effectiveness of the activities and assist the State in better understanding the potential visitor and how to best formulate effective marketing strategies; and, 

vi. If requested by State, Contractor shall provide all software and database files to for operation and administration of the State’s database.

2) Any and all rights in and to the programming, source codes, data, information for and regarding the email subscribers, data and related deliverables as a result of the database, lead generations, and e-mails developed and/or provided by Contractor pursuant to the terms of this Contract shall be the sole and exclusive property of the State except as otherwise may be mutually agreed upon in writing and signed by the parties to this Contract in accordance with State contracting requirements.

e. Public Relations. As requested, and in collaboration with State communications team, contractor shall render public relations services either in-house or through the use of a full-service subcontractor subject to State’s prior approval in accordance with D.7. Subcontractors utilized shall demonstrate a high level of expertise in hospitality and tourism and have well-established relationships with top-tier national media. Services may include, but not be limited to, the development and implementation of earned media campaigns that amplify marketing goals and generate broad-reaching media interest for Tennessee’s year-round tourism assets.

Due Date:

2:00 p.m. June 4, 2021

Address:

Kelly Johns, Solicitation Coordinator Division of General Services Central Procurement Office WRS Tennessee Tower, 3rd Floor 312 Rosa L. Parks Avenue Nashville, TN 37243-1102 (615) 741-8852 Kelly.X.Johns@tn.gov

Strong tourism pr agencies include Magrino PR and Quinn PR.