University at Albany Issues Media Buying RFP

The Office of Communications and Marketing of the University at Albany, State University of New York, is seeking to engage an experienced, well-qualified partner for a limited, focused engagement to provide media buying services to support the launch of the university brand. Vendors must have experience in higher education and demonstrate this in their submissions. Key components of this media buy include utilizing available data to define target audience, understanding factors that influence decision making and identifying the most cost effective channels to reach the target audience and achieve the desired outcome.

Among others, Ronn Torossian the founder of 5WPR is a graduate of the University At Albany.

Background:

The State University of New York (“SUNY”) is the largest comprehensive university system in the United States, educating more than 467,000 students in more than 7,500 degree and certificate programs on 64 campuses with nearly 3 million alumni around the globe. SUNY is committed to reduce administrative costs, maximize efficiencies and move resources toward academics and student services. The University at Albany is a leading public research university, one of the four University Centers within the State University of New York. UAlbany is known for a number of highly-regarded academic programs. Its student body of 17,300 is the most diverse among the SUNY University Centers.

Scope of Work:

An organization with media buying capabilities is sought to plan, buy and track all advertising purchases for the launch of the university brand. It is likely to include broadcast, cable, print and internet advertising and other electronic media (including but not limited to mobile media). This contract is expected to begin in August 2018. The amount allocated for the actual media buys is $150,000 (not including buyer fee).

Responsibilities must include the following:

1. Strategy and planning, including demographic research; targeting media to reach specified audiences.
2. Obtaining size and format information for print and internet ads
3. Media planning, buying and trafficking – to include negotiating, reserving and purchasing the best advertising placement and rates for media buys, as approved by (OCM) The Office of Communications and Marketing
4. Coordinate and submit timely delivery of all creative materials in the proper formats to each media outlet
5. Have distribution capabilities for sending broadcast quality videos and audio to approved broadcast stations, as needed
6. Arranging for production of internet and mobile applications
7. Providing weekly internet statistics and adjusting internet buys if needed
8. Obtaining tearsheets of print ads
9. Obtaining completion/screenshots of internet ads
10. Keeping track of accounts and keeping buys within budget limitations
11. Submitting/paying invoices in a timely manner
12. Presenting post-buy analyses for the campaign. This should include a summary of the metrics for each campaign. Elements should address the effectiveness and reach of each campaign aspect.
13. The selected media buyer must have the ability to present proposed schedules for media buys by 15 days ahead of launch. This schedule should include an analysis showing why the specified media was chosen, projected reach frequency, and cost. The proposed media schedule must be approved by the Office of Communications and Marketing before they can be implemented. The buyer will also traffic assigned media buys to ensure timely placement of data, adherence to budget, and provide documentation from each media buy that each ad ran.

Due Date:

June 20th

Address:

University at Albany

Office of Purchasing & Contracts Management Services Center 302

1400 Washington Ave.

Albany, NY 12222