Addendum 1109.pdf

STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK * COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE AND TECHNOLOGY

P.O. BOX 901 * MORRISVILLE, NEW YORK * 13408-0901

ADDENDUM NO. 1

FOR

SUNY MORRISVILLE

PROPOSAL #24-07

SUNY MORRISVILLE DIGITAL ADVERTISING 2025

MADISON COUNTY, NEW YORK

THIS ADDENDUM, ISSUED TO BID DOCUMENT HOLDERS OF RECORD, INDICATES CHANGES

TO THE BID DOCUMENTS DATED APRIL 9, 2025. ALL CHANGES AS DESCRIBED HEREIN

SHALL BE INCORPORATED INTO THE CONTRACTOR'S BID PROPOSAL. THIS ADDENDUM IS A

PART OF THE CONTRACT DOCUMENTS. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF RECEIPT OF THIS

ADDENDUM IS REQUIRED ON THE RESPECTIVE BID FORM.

April 23, 2025

SUNY Morrisville

Business Office

P.O. Box 901

80 Eaton Street

Morrisville, NY 13408

The following additional information shall be incorporated into the bid documents.

QUESTIONS

Is this an institution level or specific program RFP? If program, could you confirm which programs?

It is an institutional-level RFP to generate leads/enrollment in undergraduate programs. If we need to limit the programs included in this effort, which is likely, it is our expectation that the digital marketing partner also be responsible for leading/informing strategy in collaboration with leadership.

Which office on campus is executing this RFP?

The Office of Communications and Marketing

Is there a pre-proposal conference?

No.

Will questions from other agencies be shared widely?

All responses to questions will be distributed publicly through an addendum.

Is there an incumbent agency you're already working with?

SUNY Morrisville is currently working with a digital marketing partner, with which it has worked for the last two years.

What has led you to pursue this RFP at this time?

We are seeking a strategic partner that will optimize the value of each dollar invested in digital media spend and agency fees (fees must be completely transparent) toward undergraduate tuition revenue generation.

Do you have KPIs or goals you're looking to achieve via this partnership? For instance, when you state

"enrollment objectives", do you have a specific increase in enrollments you're hoping to achieve?

Yes.

Do you have any key states you're looking for the campaign to target?

New York is, of course, the primary market for SUNY Morrisville undergraduate programs. However, leadership is open to evidence based suggestions made by the strategic marketing partner awarded the contract.

Are transfer students included in the undergraduate umbrella?

Do you have a CRM, and if so, will the agency be able to review date from this platform? Is CRM assistance of interest?

The strategic marketing partner awarded this contract will have access to all enrollment and marketing related data, including data and reporting from Slate, which is the CRM the institution uses. CRM assistance is not needed.

Should the annual budget be inclusive of agency fees or can they be on top of the $124,500 budget?

Is creative asset development a requirement of the RFP, and if so, is that also within the $124K budget?

The Office of Communications and Marketing has graphic design and video production resources, and is capable of producing creative assets. However, if a firm submitting a proposal believes that outcomes would be improved if it were to manage creative asset development, that should be included in the proposal budget.

Will there be a presentation round during the evaluation process?

There will be some form of meeting between finalists and the SUNY Morrisville team, but it will not take the form of an on campus presentation. Details of the next round of the process will be made available to those firms invited to participate.

What are three key pillars of agency partnership Morrisville is working with?

We are not responding to this question.

What historical experience does Morrisville have with digital advertising? What has worked and what hasn't worked?

Morrisville has only recently—within the last five years—started investing resources in digital marketing and, over that time, has worked with two strategic marketing partners. I do not think it is appropriate to share what has worked , or not worked, as it may bias responses to the request for proposal.

Does SUNY Morrisville have a lead generation and lead capturing system in place?

Is there any information further defining the scope and digital platforms for placements?

We are soliciting a strategic marketing partner that will lead the strategic development process. As such, it is not known what tactics will be deployed as part of the broader strategy that will be developed and implemented as part of the collaboration between the selected strategic marketing partner and leadership at SUNY Morrisville at this time. This request for proposals is intended for firms specializing in both strategic development and tactical implementation.

Whether companies from Outside USA can apply for this? (like,from India or Canada)

Whether we need to come over there for meetings?

Meetings with the selected strategic partners can be done via a video conferencing platform, such as

Zoom, Teams, etc.

Can we perform the tasks (related to RFP) outside USA? (like, from India or Canada)

Can we submit the proposals via email?

To start, while I do understand that New York State does indeed have specific set-aside goals that it aims to adhere to, I'm curious if for this RFP they are required? Furthermore and if not too much to ask, could you provide a list of companies that meet the set-aside requirements and any incumbent information (if there is one)?

The MWBE and SDVOB goals for this NY state procurement are 16% MBE, 14% WBE and 6%

SDVOB. Companies submitting proposals are expected to make a good faith effort to reach these goals.

A waiver with the MBWE office in Albany is available to apply for if a company is unable to meet these goals however waiver approval is not guaranteed.

Web links to the NY State certified MWBE and SDVOB companies:

MWBE: https://ny.newnycontracts.com/

SDVOB: https://online.ogs.ny.gov/SDVOB/search

I was wondering if you needed a audio visual integrator to install or furnish your digital signage displays and players?

The request for proposal (RFP) is soliciting a strategic digital marketing partner to research and develop, implement, and provide ongoing management of a comprehensive digital marketing program to promote the institution to prospective undergraduate students to support the achievement of enrollment objectives. As such, we do not yet know what tactics will be deployed in the plan developed, and are unable to answer this question.

What marketing tactics have you utilized in the past which you found to be successful?

We will share all relevant information/data, including historical marketing campaigns performance data, with the firm selected.

What creative do you currently have in house? Will both statics and video be available? If so, what is the length of the video?

The Office of Communications and Marketing has creative capabilities in writing, graphic design, web development, and videography.

Do you currently advertise in English and Spanish?

We will share all relevant information/data, including past marketing efforts, with the firm selected.

Is there a semester you tend to struggle with the most regarding enrollments?

We will share all relevant information/data, including historical new and continuing enrollment data, with the firm selected.

https://online.ogs.ny.gov/SDVOB/search

Do you have CRM lists readily available so that we can create lookalike audiences?

We use the Slate CRM, and there is prospective student and parent contact information.

Is Morrisville focused on first year students only or also transfer?

The enrollment management team is focused on strengthening all undergraduate enrollment, including freshman and transfer.

Have you identified key programs you’d like to promote or are you looking for a partner to collaborate with you on selecting programs to highlight?

The enrollment management team expects the firm selected to facilitate the development of a comprehensive digital marketing strategy, which will include prioritization of programs to feature/highlight vis-a-vis enrollment optimization.

Are you looking to focus the campaigns on inquiry generation, application generation, yield, or all of the above?

Inquiry/lead generation is the top priority, but the enrollment management team welcomes the advice and suggestions of the selected firm regarding other opportunities to strengthen new undergraduate enrollment at the institution within resource constraints.

Will you need help creating/hosting landing pages for this project?

The enrollment management team includes two professionals with expertise in web development and user experience (UX) optimization. The firm selected will be expected to advise and render suggestions to the web development team in creating campaign assets, but the actual implementation will be executed by the web development team.

Are there specific enrollment goals or growth metrics you’re looking to achieve? Are there any specific key performance indicators or milestones that the university would like to track to determine if the marketing efforts are on track to achieve your goals?

We will share all relevant information/data, including institutional enrollment objectives and all associated assessment metrics, with the firm selected.

Is SUNY Morrisville’s $124,000 budget solely for media spend? Or, is Morrisville allocating additional budget for services costs on top the media spend budget? If so, has a specified budget been allocated?

The $124,000 budget is inclusive of both the agency fees and media spend.

Is the $124,500 budget the full budget for all deliverables (media implementation and spend, creative, reporting), or just media spend?

The $124,500 budget is for all financial expenses related to campaign development, implementation, and ongoing campaign management, including agency fees and media spend.

Will new creative assets be needed, or will SUNY Morrisville provide them?

The Office of Communications and Marketing has creative development capabilities in writing, graphic design, and videography and can, in collaboration with the selected agency, develop an array of creative assets.

Are there any preferred or restricted platforms (Google, Meta, TikTok, etc.)?

Is there a current agency partner, and will they be submitting a proposal?

There is a current agency partner and whether or not the current agency will submit a proposal is unknown.

Will creative services be required as part of the RFP? If so, can we get a detailed breakdown: video, banner/social ads, landing pages.

No. The Office of Communications and Marketing at SUNY Morrisville possesses comprehensive creative asset development capabilities, including graphic design, videography, web development, writing, etc.

Do you currently have tracking codes on any pages on your website?

Is the contractor expected to develop and/or host campaign landing pages?

Thanks for sending the documents. Is it acceptable to return the completed documents to run Paid

Search marketing across Google and Bing search engines?

The leadership team within the Enrollment Management function seeks a digital marketing strategic partner to develop and implement an evidence based digital marketing program to support achievement of strategic enrollment objectives. Whereas search engine marketing will very likely be part of the digital marketing program developed and implemented in partnership with the firm selected, or perhaps all budget for media spend will be allocated to this tactic, the scope of the services sought is much wider to include research, strategic development, implementation, and ongoing campaign management/optimization.