Virginia Issues Social Media RFP

Commonwealth of Virginia has issued a social media RFP. Proposed campaigns should take the goals of the Virginia Integrated HIV Services Plan into consideration. Flexible agencies that are able to meet strict deadlines, are highly creative, are able to provide detailed reporting information, have experience in program evaluation, and those that have experience working with hard to reach audiences are strongly encouraged to apply.

Background:

1. VDH’s mission is to achieve and maintain optimum personal and community health by emphasizing health promotion, disease prevention, and environmental protection. VDH’s Division of Disease Prevention (VDH/DDP) recognizes the need for a qualified and experienced media services contractor to support VDH/DDP funded services to promote the prevention of HIV transmission.
2. VDH/DDP contracted with a media agency to create a consumer and clinician marketing campaign to be implemented in the Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News Metropolitan Statistical Area (VBNNN MSA) in September of 2016. VDH/DDP is looking to expand the reach of the consumer campaign to the remainder of Virginia to increase knowledge of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). (Attachment A1)
3. PrEP is a pill approved for daily use to help prevent an HIV-negative person from getting HIV from a person who is HIV-positive through sexual contact or injection drug use. Studies have shown that PrEP is highly effective in preventing HIV if it is used as prescribed. For those at risk for HIV, PrEP can reduce the risk of infection by up to 90% from sexual intercourse and 70% from injection drug use. Additional strategies such as condom use and treatment as prevention can be used to reduce the risk of HIV infection even further. Visit the VDH PrEP page for additional PrEP resources.
4. A maximum of $400,000 is available for the 3-month budget period. These funds are available through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) PS12-1201 Grant: Comprehensive Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Prevention Programs for Health Departments.
5. The content for this campaign has already been developed and approved by the Office of Risk Communication and Education (ORCE) at VDH, as well as the CDC Materials Review Panel. No additional creative development is required or planned.

Scope of Work:

The contractor shall provide media services consisting of advertising placements of a pre-prepared PrEP campaign for consumers and distribution of public health detailing kits to clinicians in all areas of Virginia, excluding the VBNNN MSA. The consumer campaign has been previously prepared by Greater Than AIDS (GTA). The intended audience of the consumer campaign is men who have sex with men (MSM), transgender individuals, and women. Other audiences of interest that may be reached include any persons at increased risk for HIV. This includes sex and needle sharing partners of people living with HIV.

Offerors may wish to take into consideration where PrEP services are currently offered in addition to HIV burden when placing consumer messaging. Media channels that could be used for placements include digital media, mobile apps, transit, print, billboards, radio, and television. Other channels can be used—creativity in media placements is encouraged. The clinician component of the campaign shall at least be composed of distribution of a public health/PrEP detailing kit.

1. Media Services
   • Creative Strategic Planning & Management.
   • Contractor shall provide clearly defined process and outcome objectives in addition to action steps for maximum exposures of the consumer campaign to the separate target audiences.
   • Marketing research and logic should be incorporated into media planning to leverage advertising dollars for maximum delivery and exposure to the target audiences.
   • VDH/DDP staff should be included in the development of creative strategies.
   • Contractor must work closely with an assigned contract monitor in the selection/approval of campaign materials for use in Virginia.
2. Production
   • No new creative materials are required or planned for this contract. However, should new files be required for an ad property, the contractor shall be required to handle all necessary steps for acquiring this new file.
3. Media Planning/Buying
   • Schedules of media buys shall be provided to VDH/DDP for advance approval, in writing, prior to any media buys being purchased.
   • Media buys shall be placed in a manner that accurately addresses VDH/DDP’s media strategies and goals, utilizing proven capabilities for high quality and cost efficiency.
   • Advertising and marketing goals for the project must be reflective of the RFP purpose and statement of needs, culminating in the form and marketing promotions of the PrEP campaign materials.
4. Monitoring & Evaluation
   • Contractor shall regularly monitor all media activities.

Due Date:

July 19, 2017 to:

Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Health
Office of Purchasing and General Services
109 Governor Street, 12th floor
Richmond, VA 23219-0331

French West Vaughan is a leading agency based in Virginia.