25-8419_Solicitation.pdf

Procurement Services Division

COLLIER COUNTY

BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP)

FOR

TOURISM INTERNATIONAL REPRESENTATION

UK AND IRELAND MARKET

SOLICITATION NO.: 25-8419

STEPHANIE BOWDEN, PROCUREMENT STRATEGIST

PROCUREMENT SERVICES DIVISION

3295 TAMIAMI TRAIL EAST, BLDG C-2

NAPLES, FLORIDA 34112

TELEPHONE: (239) 252-8929

Stephanie.Bowden@collier.gov (Email)

Any alterations to this document made by the Vendor may be grounds for rejection of proposal, cancellation of any subsequent award, or any other legal remedies available to the Collier County

Government.

SOLICITATION PUBLIC NOTICE

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP)

NUMBER:

25-8419

PROJECT TITLE: TOURISM INTERNATIONAL REPRESENTATION – UK AND IRELAND

MARKETS

LOCATION: PROCUREMENT SERVICES DIVISION, CONFERENCE ROOM A, 3295

TAMIAMI TRAIL EAST, BLDG C-2, NAPLES, FLORIDA 34112

DUE DATE: November 28th, 2025, AT 3:00PM (EST)

PLACE OF RFP OPENING: PROCUREMENT SERVICES DIVISION

3295 TAMIAMI TRAIL EAST, BLDG C-2

NAPLES, FL 34112

All proposals shall be submitted online via the Collier County Procurement Services Division Online Bidding System:

https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/collier-county-fl.

INTRODUCTION

As requested by the Tourism Division (hereinafter, the “Division or Department”), the Collier County Board of County Commissioners Procurement Services Division (hereinafter, “County”) has issued this Request for Proposal (hereinafter, “RFP”) with the intent of obtaining proposals from interested and qualified Proposers/Firms/Vendors in accordance with the terms, conditions and specifications stated or attached. The Proposer, at a minimum, must achieve the requirements of the Scope of Services stated herein. All references to “Proposer” are also referred to as “Consultant,” “Firm,” “Offeror,” “Contractor,” and “Vendor.”

Historically, County departments have spent approximately two hundred thousand (200,000) dollars; however, this may not be indicative of future buying patterns.

BACKGROUND

The Naples, Marco Island, Everglades Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB), a division of Collier County Florida Government, is interested in competitively procuring full-time representation services with an experienced International Representation firm for the UK/Ireland market.

TERM OF CONTRACT

The contract term, if an award(s) is/are made is intended to be for three (3) years with two (2) one (1) year renewal option. Prices shall remain firm for the initial term of the contract.

Surcharges will not be accepted in conjunction with the awarded contract, and such charges should be incorporated into the pricing structures.

The County Manager, or the County Manager’s designee, may extend the contract under all of the terms and conditions contained in the awarded contract for up to one hundred and eighty (180) days. The County Manager or designee shall give the Contractor written notice of the County's intention to extend the contract term prior to the end of the contract term then in effect.

DETAILED SCOPE OF SERVICES

Collier County Tourism Division is seeking full time representation services with an experienced international tourism representation firm for the United Kingdom and Ireland market.

Section A. Core Annual and Monthly Responsibilities The awarded Proposer shall provide the following services:

https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/collier-county-fl

1. Develop an annual marketing plan.

2. Monthly Coordination of Public Relations efforts with in-country media.

3. Manage social media communications targeting both trade and consumers on a monthly basis.

4. Maintain a dedicated phone, fax, and email point of contact for the CVB.

5. Provide translation support as needed.

6. Manage storage and distribution of promotional materials.

7. Submit detailed monthly Tourist Development Council (TDC) report by the due date, outlining activities per country with future activity projections and market overviews.

8. Travel Trade Activities: The following are travel and trade marketing activities which the successful firm will perform as part of the core responsibilities monthly.

a) Participate in trade and consumer shows and events in the UK/Ireland, nearby markets, and the U.S., as needed.

b) Consistent communication and destination updates to tour operators, travel advisors and media.

c) Organize, conduct, or participate in travel trade and media familiarization trips in Florida as required and agreed.

d) Conduct travel trade training and sales calls to tour operators, airlines and other related organizations in-country and surrounding areas as agreed.

e) Assist the CVB and its U.S. based marketing partners and agencies with trade and consumer promotions as agreed.

f) Assist with the International marketing promotions and advertising related activities in order to maximize the

CVB budget.

g) Fulfillment of inquiries for CVB publications/literature to trade & consumers via both Florida based and in-country fulfillment facilities.

h) Pre-screen and forward travel trade and media leads to the CVB which results from above-mentioned activities.

i) Develop and fulfill requests from the media and organize and work with CVB in-house PR team on familiarization trips for journalists and influencers.

j) Maintain close working relationships with Visit Florida, Brand USA and other tourism industry associations, including Visit USA organizations as agreed.

k) Create and maintain an up-to-date country by country trade, media and consumer database.

Section B. Invoicing and Reimbursement Expenses related to the various services will be invoiced on a monthly basis as follows:

1. The monthly fee must cover all account management time, administrative overhead, and creative development costs associated with promotions.

2. Advertising, if necessary, will be billed at net cost (no markup) to the CVB’s advertising agency of record.

3. Travel expenses such as air, auto rental, hotels, entertainment, and meals will be billed to the CVB at net cost. Air, train travel to be at lowest available coach fare.

4. Out-of-pocket expenses such as storage, printing, courier expenses, parking, phone, and fax will be billed monthly at cost.

5. Service fee will be invoiced monthly to cover all employee time and other costs and all basic office operating expenses except as indicated above as out-of-pocket expenses.

Section C. Key Performance Objectives

The CVB seeking for the awarded Proposer to:

1. Increase average length of stay and visitor repeat rate.

2. Increase the number of hotel room nights from the assigned markets.

3. Expand the number of CVB partners featured in operator programs (print and digital).

4. Increase visitation from target markets.

5. Strengthen destination social media presence and engagement

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP) PROCESS

1.1 The Proposers will submit a qualifications proposal which will be scored based on the criteria in Evaluation Criteria for

Development of Shortlist, which will be the basis for short-listing the Proposers.

The Proposers will need to meet the minimum requirements outlined herein in order for their proposal to be evaluated and scored by the County. The County will use a Selection Committee in the Request for Proposal selection process.

1.2 The County will use a Selection Committee in the RFP selection process and follow the process herein and in the RFP Instructions.

1.3 The County will then score and rank at least the top three short-listed Proposers and enter into negotiations with the top ranked Proposer or multiple Proposers. The County reserves the right to issue an invitation for oral presentations to obtain additional information after grading and before the final ranking.

1.4 The intent of the oral presentations, if deemed necessary, is to provide the vendors with a venue where they can conduct discussions with the Selection Committee to clarify questions and concerns before providing a final rank.

1.5 Based upon a review of these proposals, the County will rank the Proposers based on the discussion and clarifying questions on their approach and related criteria and then negotiate in good faith an Agreement with the top-ranked Proposer(s).

1.6 With successful negotiations, a contract will be developed with the selected Proposer(s), based on the negotiated price and/or scope of services and submitted for approval by the Board of County Commissioners.

1.7 If, in the sole judgment of the County, a contract cannot be successfully negotiated with the top-ranked Proposer, negotiations with that Proposer will be formally terminated and negotiations shall begin with the Proposer ranked second. If a contract cannot be successfully negotiated with the Proposer ranked second, negotiations with that Proposer will be formally terminated and negotiations shall begin with the third-ranked Proposer, and so on.

1.8 The County reserves the right to negotiate any element of the proposals in the best interest of the County.

RESPONSE FORMAT AND EVALUATION CRITERIA FOR DEVELOPMENT OF SHORTLIST:

1.9 For the development of a shortlist, this evaluation criterion will be utilized by the County’s Selection Committee to score each proposal. Proposers are encouraged to keep their submittals concise and to include a minimum of marketing materials. Proposals must address the following criteria:

Evaluation Criteria Maximum Points

1. Cover Letter / Management Summary 5 Points

2. Certified Woman and/or Minority Business Enterprise 5 Points

3. Business Plan 20 Points

4. Cost of Services to the County 20 Points

5. Experience and Capacity of the Firm 20 Points

6. Specialized Expertise of Team Members 20 Points

7. Local Vendor Preference 10 Points

TOTAL POSSIBLE POINTS 100 Points

Tie Breaker: In the event of a tie at final ranking, the award shall be made to the Proposer with the lower volume of work previously awarded. Volume of work shall be calculated based upon total dollars paid to the proposer in the twenty-four

(24) months prior to the RFP submittal deadline. Payment information will be retrieved from the County’s financial system of record. The tie-breaking procedure is only applied in the final ranking step of the selection process and is invoked by the Procurement Services Division Director or designee. In the event a tie still exists, selection will be determined based on random selection by the Procurement Services Director or designee, before at least three (3) witnesses.

Each criterion and methodology for scoring is further described below.

***Proposals must be assembled, at minimum, in the order of the Evaluation Criteria listed or your proposal may be deemed non-responsive***

EVALUATION CRITERIA NO. 1: COVER LETTER/MANAGEMENT SUMMARY (5 Total Points Available)

Provide a cover letter, indicating the underlying philosophy of the firm in providing the services stated herein. Include the name(s), telephone number(s), and email(s) of the authorized contact person(s) concerning the proposal. Submission of a signed Proposal is the Vendor's certification that the Vendor will accept any awards as a result from this RFP.

EVALUATION CRITERIA NO. 2: CERTIFIED WOMAN AND/OR MINORITY BUSINESS ENTERPRISE (5 Total Points Available)

Submit certification with the Florida Department of Management Service, Office of Supplier Diversity as a Certified Woman and/or Minority Business Enterprise.

EVALUATION CRITERIA NO. 3: BUSINESS PLAN (20 Total Points Available)

How does your firm intend to increase the Collier County Brand in the specified Country/region? Include the following:

• Describe your philosophy on targeting various tour operators, travel agents and journalists to promote such activities as cuisine, golf, weddings, eco-tourism, fishing, beach and water activities and other major target market segments of leisure travel, group meetings and sports events.

• How does your company intend to meet each of the County’s requirements identified in the RFP’s Detailed Scope of Work?

• Provide at least two samples of work product completed for a similar client for tourism representation services.

• Provide at least one sample of a “break-through” and innovative approach to tourism representation.

• Describe your backup systems and/or locations in case of an emergency that will enable you to carry on business

• Describe how you use social media networks to support destination marketing campaigns.

EVALUATION CRITERIA NO. 4: COST OF SERVICES TO THE COUNTY (20 Total Points Available)

The County intends to pay a flat annual fee for the services described in the detailed scope of services plus out-of-pocket reimbursable expenses.

Proposers must complete all line items in the chart below or Proposer may be deemed non-responsive. Provide proposed fees for the following fees:

Description Annual Fee (Paid Monthly)

1 Flat Annual Fixed Fee $

Reimbursable Expenses - Not-To-Exceed (Paid Monthly)

2 Reimbursable Expenses – Travel $

3 Reimbursable Expenses – Registration $

4 Reimbursable Expenses - Miscellaneous $

5 Reimbursable Expenses – Contractor’s Event(s) $

Fees are to be provided in United States Currency and used for evaluation purposes only. Fees are subject to change during negotiations.

EVALUATION CRITERIA NO. 5: EXPERIENCE AND CAPACITY OF THE FIRM (20 Total Points Available)

Provide information that documents your firm’s and subcontractors’ qualifications to produce the required outcomes, including its ability, capacity, skill, financial strength, and number of years of experience in providing the required services.

Also describe the various team members’ successful experience in working with one another on previous projects.

Demonstrate key parts of your firm’s experience that make you uniquely qualified to perform these services for the County, including:

• Describe the specific knowledge of Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) data gathering.

• Indicate your thoughts and philosophies in which the Naples, Marco Island and Everglades vacation promises an elevated coastal, cultural, culinary, and ecological paradise to those with an expectation for excellence. The region has recognized a significant increase in lodging rates throughout the entire year making it one of the highest rates in the State of Florida. Please describe how your firm will be successful in driving awareness, intent to visit and trackable bookings given these elevated rates and site examples of how you positioned other destination marketing organization clients, the challenges you faced and specific ways you overcame those challenges in delivering those strategies.

• Provide information that documents your firm’s and any subcontractors’ qualifications which you propose to use to produce the required deliverables, including abilities, capacity, skill, financial strength, and number of years of experience in providing the required services.

• Describe how you handle crisis management and fast breaking negative media coverage. With respect to this, why is your firm better at handling these situations than other competing representation firms?

• Describe the specific knowledge of Florida tourism and representing Florida travel destinations

• Describe any current relationships with other destination marketing organizations in Florida or other U.S. states.

The County requests that the vendor submit no fewer than three (3) and no more than ten (10) completed reference forms from clients during a period of the last 5 years whose projects are of a similar nature to this solicitation as a part of their proposal. Provide information on the projects completed by the Proposer that best represent projects of similar size, scope and complexity to this project using the form provided. Proposers may include two (2) additional pages for each project to illustrate aspects of the completed project that provide the information to assess the experience of the Proposer on relevant project work.

EVALUATION CRITERIA NO. 6: SPECIALIZED EXPERTISE OF TEAM MEMBERS (20 Total Points Available)

In this criteria, include but not limited to:

• Identify the proposed account management team, if your firm is awarded the Collier County Account. Include resume and detailed list of career accomplishments for each team member.

• Indicate the number of years and nature of experience on related projects for each team member.

EVALUATION CRITERIA NO. 7: LOCAL VENDOR PREFERENCE (10 Total Points Available)

Local business is defined as the vendor having a current Business Tax Receipt issued by the Collier or Lee County Tax Collector prior to proposal submission to do business within Collier County, and that identifies the business with a permanent physical business address located within the limits of Collier or Lee County from which the vendor’s staff operates and performs business in an area zoned for the conduct of such business.

VENDOR CHECKLIST

***Vendor should check off each of the following items as the necessary action is completed (please see, Vendor Check List)***