Addendum #1 881326 Creative Agency of Record.docx

Addendum #1 Re: RFP 881326 Creative Agency of Record April 25, 2025

This Addendum #1 is issued to modify the timetable and answer vendor questions which are on page 2.

The timetable has been amended as follows:

All other terms and conditions shall remain the same.

Sincerely, Dawn Lake

Question and Answers

1. What does the makeup of the evaluation team (3.1 EVALUATION PROCEDURE AND ORAL INTERVIEW / PRESENTATION) look like in terms of internal marketing and communications staff, procurement staff, and UW Medicine medical professionals?

The evaluation team includes our chief marketing and communicators officer, assistant vice president of digital strategy and marketing operations, senior director of marketing, content and brand services director, graphic design manager as well as other members of the marketing team.

2. Can you share your current brand positioning and any audience research you have?

https://depts.washington.edu/uwmmktg/brand-identity/brand-positioning/ We decline to share our audience research.

3. The objectives (2.3 OBJECTIVES) includes “Partner with media buyer to ensure optimal reach and impact.” Does UW Medicine have a media buyer we will be working with (if yes, can you tell us who they are?), or should we assume media buying is part of our scope of work? Additionally, are media costs included in the $250K budget or is there a separate budget for media planning and buying?

Media buying is not part of the scope of work. You will, however, work with our media buyer. There is a separate budget for media planning and buying.

4. How many campaigns do you expect to be developed within the $250K budget?

It will include an overall UW Medicine brand campaign as well as examples of how this campaign can be incorporated into our service line campaigns.

5. In regard to photography/photo shoots (2.4 SCOPE OF WORK), is it your intention that the selected agency would create an asset library of photography to be used in future campaigns, or are these deliverables specific to individual campaigns the agency would be engaged to develop?

No, you do not need to create a photography asset library. Photography and photo shoots would be deliverables specific to campaigns.

6. Can you confirm that the $250K budget (2.8 BUDGET) is for the full two years of the initial contract period?

The $250,000 budget applies to the full two-year initial contract period. Given the unprecedented uncertainty surrounding healthcare funding and its impact on budgeting processes, this amount has been determined to ensure fiscal responsibility while providing adequate resources to meet the contract's objectives.

7. The scoring rubric (3.2 EVALUATION CRITERIA & SCORING) mentions “quality of workplan and schedule” – is a project schedule/timeline desired as part of the RFP response, and if so, what key dates is UW working toward?

An example workback schedule would be helpful but not required.

8. The cover page of the RFP mentions minimum qualifications stated herein, but Section 2.6 Minimum Qualifications is blank. Are there minimum qualifications that need to be met, and if so, what are they? Please strike Section 2.6 Minimum Qualifications

9. Do you have a brand position statement beyond what is on your consumer website?

Please refer to: https://depts.washington.edu/uwmmktg/uw-medicine-overview/

10. Will search ad copy be a part of the creative deliverables?

No, this is handled by another vendor.

11. What challenges are UW currently facing to achieve the goals of differentiation, awareness, and acquisition?

There is increased competition in the healthcare landscape from regional providers, emerging telemedicine platforms and disruptors like Amazon. Overall, the healthcare choices in our region are excellent and many consumers have no strong preference and often choose based on convenience.

Acquisition is influenced by consumer demand for accessible, convenient and streamlined healthcare experiences — areas we can address by enhancing digital tools, simplifying access to services and building stronger community connections.

12. Who are your key audiences for growth?

Patients in the Puget Sound region.

13. Core audience demographic?

UW Medicine’s core demographic consists of individuals and families from diverse backgrounds within the WAMI (Washington, Alaska, Montana, Idaho) region, focusing on the greater Seattle area.

14. What are the targeted geographic areas for brand awareness and differentiation growth?

Greater Seattle area

15. Who do you see as your competitors?

· Providence Swedish

· Virginia Mason Franciscan Health

· Kaiser Permanente

· Overlake Medical Center

· MultiCare

16. Is the 250k budget per year or over the two year contract?

See Answer 6.

17. Does the $250,000 budget include all production of assets, as well?

It may include production of some assets, but we have an internal creative team that can assist.

18. Do you have an asset library with recent additions (within the last 3 years) that can be utilized/leveraged? Photo and/or video?

Yes

19. In your RFP, establishing a unique brand identity is key to the objectives for this creative partnership. Can you further define what a unique brand identity is, in your opinion?

The objective is to help us establish our current brand identity with a larger audience. You do not need to create a brand identity. Our unique brand identity can be found here: uwmedicine.org/brand

20. Can you name a particular brand that you look up to, or view as successful in reaching larger audiences and building a unique identity?

There are many successful healthcare brands, including Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic and Northwell Health. However, most healthcare advertising and marketing look similar and lack true differentiation.

21. In your RFP, you list reaching a larger audience group as a key objective for this creative partnership. Can you further define what you mean by larger audiences? For example, are you wishing to reach previously untapped audiences, or enhance engagement with existing audience groups?

We hope to reach potentially untapped audiences and engagement with existing audiences.

22. What are your current priority audience groups? Which of these audience groups would you prioritize through this creative campaign?

Please see answers 12 and 13.

23. What service lines would you like to be covered in this creative campaign? Are there particular service lines that you would prioritize?

Primary Care, Urgent Care, Heart Institute, Neurosciences, Orthopedics, Sports Medicine, Spine Care, OB-GYN

24. In essence, is this creative campaign expected to lay the foundation for:

a. Advertising across all geographies and audiences

b. Applications across various service lines

c. Informed marketing communications across activations (e.g. events, content, storytelling, online presence, etc.)

Yes, though advertising will be focused on the Puget Sound area.

25. What do you believe is your current brand differentiator in your markets?

As the only comprehensive clinical, research and learning health system in the five-state WWAMI (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, Idaho) region, UW Medicine provides a higher degree of healthcare, ranging from primary and preventive care to the most highly specialized care for the most complex medical conditions.

26. What makes UW Medicine unique?

See above.

27. Are you anticipating a brand refresh at the mid-point of the contract?

No.

28. What markets across the WWAMI region are particularly successful for the UW brand? In which markets do you experience more competition?

The greater Seattle area

29. Can you clarify if the $250,000 budget is meant to span across the two-year engagement, or will additional budget resources be supplied in the next fiscal year?

See Answer 6.

30. Does your $250,000 budget cover third party expenses for production costs? (Ex: broadcast commercials, etc.) If not, can you please share the desired budget for production?

The budget allocated for strategy development, concept and creative direction and overall execution.

Budgeting for production costs will depend on the specific campaign requirements and the scope of materials, such as broadcast commercials or digital assets. As such, we are open to collaborating to establish a reasonable and efficient production budget once the creative direction and deliverables are defined. Ensuring cost-effectiveness while maintaining high-quality output will remain a priority.

31. What has motivated UW Medicine to release this RFP? Why are you looking to make a change at this time? Is your incumbent creative agency participating?

We do not have a current agency of record and believe establishing this relationship will lead to more comprehensive and consistent campaigns.

32. Is there a current incumbent agency for this contract?

No.

33. 2.1 Introduction talks about a consumer-focused, integrated advertising campaign - do you have a specifically defined consumer that you target?

Answered above

34. How many campaigns do you typically run each year, and what does a standard campaign usually include? Does a campaign typically run across all channels?

It varies. Typical comprehensive campaigns include print, radio, digital and social. We usually only do TV commercials for the brand, which run for multiple years.

35. Should we include a proposed strategy or campaign concept as part of our response?

That is up to you.

36. 2.8 The budget for this project is listed as $250,000. Is there a separate media budget we should be aware of? Can you share a typical range for your media spend on an individual campaign?

Answered above.

37. Estimated cost for budgetary purposes. How would you like us to approach pricing in our proposal? Are you looking for price by campaign or channel or deliverable, or are you looking for costs for our different resources?

Answered above.

38. 2.4 Scope of Work vs 2.5 Project Deliverables. Are we responsible for hands-on execution of the campaigns or handing off to the media buyer or someone else? Is there any campaign reporting we need to provide or is someone else handling the reporting aspect?

You will be handing off to our internal team or media buyer.

39. Is it important that consumers across the entire WWAMI region see themselves in the creative concept, or is Seattle the primary focus?

Answered above

40. What past or current industry or out-of-industry ad campaigns does the UW Medicine team admire or believe matches their appetite for pushing creative boundaries?

We haven’t come across any healthcare campaigns that serve as good examples of what would work for our brand. We do look forward to seeing fresh, creative ideas that stand out from the rest of the market.

41. How many and which service lines would your creative agency need to support as part of concepting?

It depends on the campaign.

42. Have creative partners historically been based in the WWAMI region?

Yes.

43. Is there an incumbent creative agency? If there is, will they participate in this RFP process and are they based in the region?

No, we do not have an agency of record.

44. Have any campaigns been developed in the past under the current brand positioning?

Yes.

45. Will the campaigns developed with this new creative be executed in Seattle only, or across all five states in the WWAMI region?

It depends on the campaign needs and goals.

46. How long has the current brand strategy been in place?

5 years

47. Which organizations do you consider to be your key competitors, given that there are no other academic health systems within a five-state range?

See answer 15.

48. Do you have current consumer awareness/preference research?

Yes.

49. Does the $250,000 budget include production costs?

Answered above.

50. For the stated project budget of $250,000, does this total include budget meant to cover all elements of creative strategy as well as production, including video production?

Answered above.

51. For the stated project budget of $250,000, does this total include media/advertising spend in addition to agency fees and creative consultancy, or is it intended to cover agency services only?

Answered above.

52. Considering UW Medicine’s commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion, how prominently would you like these values reflected in the campaign's messaging and visuals? Are there specific themes or narratives you wish to emphasize, and are there sensitivities or considerations we should be aware of given the current political and funding landscape?

We want to focus on our brand position and tagline. In addition, we want our messaging to align with our mission of improving the health of all people to ensure it resonates with the diverse communities we serve.

53. What creative constraints or opportunities should we be aware of—are you open to evolving the brand voice or tagline, or should we work strictly within existing guidelines?

While we’re open to new ideas and suggestions, we prefer to stick with our current tagline and guidelines.

54. How do you currently believe UW Medicine is perceived by the public, and what brand perception shifts would you like to see?

UW Medicine is currently perceived as a high-quality healthcare system, known for its academic excellence, research and specialized care. However, the presence of a significant percentage of people in the market with “no preference” indicates an opportunity to strengthen our connection with the broader community and establish UW Medicine as the preferred choice for healthcare needs.

The goal is to increase trust and familiarity with UW Medicine among those who are undecided, making it their clear and confident choice for comprehensive healthcare.

55. What are the top service lines or priorities you want to spotlight in this campaign, and are there specific audiences or regions you want to reach more effectively?

Answered above

56. Could you please confirm whether this is an exclusive vendor contract or if multiple vendors will be selected?

We are only selecting one agency to be our agency of record.

57. Are there specific campaign timelines already established for this work?

No.

58. Does the stated budget include media buying costs? If there is a partner agency for media buys, how will this budget be divided? Can the name of this partner agency be provided?

Answered above.

59. Is the provided budget a total project budget or an annual amount?

Answered above.

60. Could you please clarify the expected scope of work, including the number and volume of deliverables? If multiple campaigns are anticipated, could you confirm how many? Alternatively, could you provide an expected breakdown of deliverables that may be required under the contract as a whole, or per campaign?

This will depend on campaign needs based on the media buy and division of work with our internal creative team.

61. Can you share any previously conducted research or strategy related documentation? What are any communication barriers you have identified?

We work with a market research vendor but decline to provide this data during the RFP process.

62. Has UW worked with any incumbent service providers?

Yes

63. Can you identify direct UW competitors?

Answered above.

64. Are there other agencies providing services to UW Medicine outside of creative and media planning?

Yes. We work with a vendor who provides email strategy and Google keyword search.

65. Is there an award scoring consideration for firms within the Pacific Northwest area vs. firms with a national footprint outside of the State of Washington?

Yes. We prefer a partner within the Pacific Northwest.

66. Who does UW Medicine consider its biggest competitors?

Answered above.

67. What are the most critical audiences UW Medicine is trying to reach? Are there specific groups and locations that should be prioritized in the messaging and media strategy?

Answered above.

68. Are previous campaign data, audience personas, brand perception studies, or brand guidelines available for review?

Yes, brand guidelines are available at uwmedicine.org/brand

69. How detailed do you want the breakdown of costs and fees? For example, does the total agency fees need to be broken up into creative development vs media planning, or by staff member, etc.?

Media planning is not part of the scope of work. We would like to see your creative development fees.

70. Should we include a suggested media spend budget in our Estimated Cost proposal, or are you looking only for our firm’s fees?

We are only looking for your firm’s fees.

71. Does the budget for the project of $250,000 cover both the agency fees and advertising spend?

Answered above.

72. Are there any other preferred timelines for major milestones within the contract term?

No.

73. Is there a desired date UW Medicine would like to have the campaign launched in market?

No.

74. Will UW Medicine want a completely new brand developed for the campaigns, or follow the current brand guidelines of UW Medicine?

No, we want you to follow the brand guidelines.

75. Will the selected agency need to support on any website or campaign landing page development? If so, please include details.

No.

76. Are the photo and video shoots required to take place at UW Medicine?

It would depend on the concept and campaign needs.

77. How many photo and video shoots does UW Medicine expect to need throughout the length of the contract?

The need for photo and video shoots depends on the campaign concepts and needs. There is not an expectation for a certain amount.

78. Do you have a preferred production vendor or are you looking for us to source those?

We have preferred vendors within the UW Procurement system but are also open to sourcing.

79. What is the typical cadence for in-person meetings vs. ZOOM/Teams?

Most meetings will be held via Zoom. The cadence is based on the campaign needs. We do meet with our media buyer once per week.

80. How many agencies received the RFP?

We invited four agencies but the RFP is available for anyone to apply.

81. Who is on UW Medicine's review team?

Answered above.

82. Will this be a multicultural campaign with a transcreation element? If so, for how many languages / communities?

We may translate some assets into Spanish, but it will depend on the need.

83. What are UW Medicine’s strategic marketing goals for July 2025 - June 2027?

We will share our strategic marketing goals with the selected agency.

84. What is the $250k budget expected to cover?

- Is this a 24-month retainer and the projects will have their own budgets? Or is the $250k expected to cover planning, production, and implementation?)

- Will there be individual project budgets throughout the two years?

- Do you have estimated budget ranges of what the project budgets may be?

- Will there be separate production budgets for each project?

- Do you have estimated budget ranges of what the production budgets may be?

Answered above.

85. What are the primary objectives of your current patient engagement initiatives?

The primary objectives of UW Medicine’s current patient engagement initiatives align closely with our mission to improve the health of all people. We want to foster stronger connections with patients, improve access to care and promote long-term wellness.

86. What are your 2025 new patient goals?

Improving market share across our service lines.

87. What is your annual media budget to achieve those goals?

1.5 million

88. What key performance indicators (KPIs) do you use to assess the success of your campaigns?

It depends on the goals of the particular campaign.

89. How do you currently measure digital media success?

UW Medicine currently measures digital media success through a combination of performance metrics, data analytics, and qualitative insights to ensure campaigns achieve their goals, engage audiences, and drive meaningful outcomes.

90. When you think of direct and digital marketing services, what are your top priorities right now? What are your top challenges?

UW Medicine’s top priorities center on increasing patient acquisition and retention, promoting wellness and disease prevention, and building awareness of our brand promise. Challenges include standing out in a crowded market and adapting to evolving patient expectations for digital-first convenience.

91. What obstacles have you encountered in engaging patients effectively?

Overcoming the general hesitation in seeking healthcare services, especially for preventive care. Many patients delay medical appointments due to time constraints, concerns about cost, lack of awareness of available services or distrust of institutions, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the sheer diversity of patient needs requires messaging that resonates across different demographics, making it challenging to deliver uniformly impactful campaigns. The rise of competing healthcare platforms, particularly telemedicine services, has also introduced more choices.

92. How do you tailor your messaging to cater to diverse patient demographics?

We use data-driven insights with an empathetic approach.

93. How do you identify and segment your patient populations for targeted campaigns?

We analyze available data, including demographic information, health behaviors, utilization history, geographic location and population health needs.

94. Are there specific patient groups you find challenging to engage?

Yes, patients with no preference on their healthcare provider are a challenge.

95. What types of content have proven most effective in engaging your patients?

Our content marketing program, Right as Rain by UW Medicine, has successfully engaged patients, potential patients and the greater UW community.

96. What do you look for in an ideal agency partner?

UW Medicine seeks a collaborative, innovative, and results-driven team that understands the complexities of the healthcare industry and can develop fresh campaign ideas for promoting our unique brand position to consumers.

97. As it's mentioned UW Medicine already has a media partner, will the AOR collaborate with them on future media plans, with insight from the UW Medicine Marketing Team?

Yes.

98. In regard to the current Media Plan, is there a total number of ads, tactics, etc. required to fulfill the current media plan?

No.

99. How many video assets are required for broadcast?

This will depend on the campaign.

100. As an overall campaign is requested, how often does this get updated?

Campaigns are updated as needed.

101. Does the total budget listed also covered production costs, or just creative and project management?

Answered above.

102. Did an expiring incumbent contract prompt the RFP and, if not, what prompted the RFP?

Answered above.

103. What challenges have you faced in working with other creative agencies? The RFP states, “Overall methodology for managing relationships with clients,” and we want to take into consideration how to mitigate any issues up front.

UW Medicine is a complex organization with multiple stakeholders across various departments, each of whom could play a role in the review and feedback process. Some vendors have expressed frustration with the complexity and time required to navigate this process. These challenges often stem from the need to coordinate input from diverse perspectives while ensuring alignment with UW Medicine’s brand goals and standards.

104. What’s the internal team structure, and how many team members will serve as day-to-day contacts for this work?

You will most likely communicate with the content and brand services director or the marketing project manager regularly.

105. How will the marketing team and/or media partner report back to the creative team, and at what cadence? (monthly/quarterly reports or real-time custom dashboards via Looker or Power BI or a proprietary online portal)

c) What amount of original or stock photography and videography do you anticipate needing as part of this budget?

This will depend on the campaign. We have our own stock photography and brand photography sites.

106. To help us accurately scope the level of production support needed, could you clarify the division of responsibilities between the agency and the internal UW Medicine team? For example, would the agency be expected to produce all ad units across every size and format, or would we provide a set of master concepts with native files, imagery, and copy, and the internal team would handle resizing and versioning? Understanding this will help us tailor our proposal to best fit your workflow and team capacity.

In most cases, the agency would be expected to provide concepts and provide native files for resizing and versioning by the in-house design team.

107. Are we correct in assuming that web development for landing pages is managed in-house or by another vendor?

Yes, landing pages are managed in-house.

108. What is the media spend for this same period? And how many service line campaigns will this support?

Answered above

109. Given the set budget of $250k, how do you envision the proportional scoring will work for the cost section? Comment by Dawn Lake: I forgot to catch this when posting.

Most respondents will likely receive a similar score with the limited budget.

110. How does UW Medicine define success for this campaign—what key outcomes are you looking to achieve in terms of awareness, differentiation, and patient acquisition?

It depends on the campaign's set KPIs.

111. Section 2.8 Budget - Is the $250,000 inclusive of production hard costs, or is it just an agency fee? Is the $250,000 an annual budget, or is it for the entire two-year contract?

Answered above.

112. 2. Section 3.2 Evaluation Criteria & Scoring shows 10 points for "Quality of work plan and schedule". There is no other mention of a schedule in the RFP. Are you expecting a schedule?

113. 3. Section 3.2 Evaluation Criteria & Scoring shows 5 points for references, but I cannot find any other information about reference requirements. Can you please share what you would like to see for references?

We recommend sharing satisfied current or past clients.

114. We wish to confirm whether that budget is meant to cover agency fees, as well as any production costs that might be needed (e.g. stock photography, original photography, radio production and talent fees, production of digital banners, production for out of home advertising, etc.). Given the budget, is it reasonable to assume costs for TV and video, if needed, would be incremental to the $250,000?

115. Does $250,00