150618_H98210-15-R-0030-0001.doc

SECTION SF 30 BLOCK 14 CONTINUATION PAGE

SUMMARY OF CHANGES

SECTION SF 1449 - CONTINUATION SHEET

SOLICITATION/CONTRACT FORM

The required response date/time has changed from 01-Jul-2015 10:00 AM to 15-Jul-2015 10:00 AM.

The following have been added by full text:

ATTACHMENT D

SOLICITATION QUESTION AND ANSWER (Q&A)

1. Is there an incumbent contract associated with this requirement?

Response: Some support was provided by Sensis, Inc. under contract H98210-14-C-0023 and Mullen Communications via task orders under contract H98210-13-D-0001.

2. Is this opportunity recompetition or new requirement?

Response: This is a new requirement.

3. If there is an incumbent, is this firm eligible to bid on this opportunity? If so, please provide incumbent's name and past contract number.

Response: Yes. See #1.

4. Is there a budget allocated for this contract? If so, please provide.

Response: The only budgetary information that will be provided can be found under the Addendum to 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors, section (vi), Task Order I Pricing (page 20 of the solicitation) and Attachment A to the solicitation, Performance Work Statement (Task Order I), paragraphs 4.6.1, 4.6.1.1, 4.6.1.2, and 4.6.1.3 (pages 47-48 of the solicitation).

5. Is this a follow-on requirement? If so, could you please provide the incumbent contract number for this opportunity? If not, is this a new requirement?

Response: See #1.

6. Will FVAP require an on-site server, or will they want to outsource to a dedicated server?

Response: FVAP does not require an on-site server. See Basic Contract PWS 4.4.4. (page 10 of the solicitation).

7. Does FVAP have an existing content management system (CMS) or is FVAP looking to award recipient to design and supply CMS?

Response: FVAP has an existing CMS. It does not require a new design.

8. Will companies with previous prime experience, receive special consideration?

Response: The Offeror’s Past Performance will be evaluated in accordance with (IAW) the Evaluation Factors, Criteria, and Rating Methods set forth in Attachment B to the solicitation.

9. Is there an incumbent? If so, is that company eligible to bid?

Response: See #3.

10. Secondly, would teaming arrangements be considered or no?

Response: Yes.

11. Is there an incumbent contractor? If not, has a contractor been supporting the efforts of the government in performing this work? Would the government please share the name of the contractor?

Response: See #1.

12. Page 21 of 67 Para: B.II.v, Past Performance References. We understand that for the purposes of evaluation all references must be work performed as a Prime Contractor. Is the evaluation limited only to the Prime or will you also evaluate for score work performed as a Prime by our Subcontractor.

Response: The Offeror’s Past Performance is considered. See #8.

13. Page 20 of 67 Para: A.v

a. Will the government consider removing this requirement for a DIACAP considering the type of data that will be held by the contractor is unclassified?

Response: No, the DIACAP requirement will not be removed. Research tasks include PII when analyzing survey data. The Voter Assistance Officer online training modules currently accommodate Common Access Card authentication and require a DIACAP environment.

b. If required can a subcontractor to the prime (perming all IT (WEB and Training Systems) hold the cleared facility.

Response: Yes.

c. If required and must be held by the prime what is reasonable time from date of award to certification?

Response: See #13a and b.

d. If required and must be held by the prime – if the prime provides a complete plan within a reasonable timeframe for certification will it loose and points in evaluation versus another prime who is already has a cleared facility.

Response: See #13a and b.

14. As the requirements are different, how should the Performance Work Statement (Basic Contract) (beginning on page 7) influence our Technical Proposal which is to address Task Order 1 (page 45)?

Response: See Addendum to 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors, section B (i) and (iii) (page 21 of the solicitation).

15. Can you please clarify how SIGMA encoding relates to the deliverable that states, “Provide metrics-tracking link to Government”?

Response: It is an option for media tracking – tracking placements, plays, etc. in order to report on hits.

16. Can you elaborate on what you mean by a “metrics-tracking link”?

Response: Provide online access to where FVAP can view advertisement metrics such as hits, impressions, pickups, etc.

17. Will spec-work be reviewed if included with our proposal and will it count towards our grading in either the Technical Ratings or Performance Confidence Assessment scores?

Response: Spec work may be included in the technical volume (see Addendum to

52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors for page count information). Proposals will be evaluated IAW Attachment B to the solicitation (Evaluation Factors, Criteria, and Rating Methods).

18. Are resumes included in the 60-page limit?

Response: See Addendum to 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors at paragraph B Volume II – Technical (page 21 of the solicitation). Only item B.v is excluded from the page count. Resumes are not required.

19. Is there a page limit for each resume?

Response: See #18.

20. Questions for 4.4.3:

a. Does FVAP want these trainings migrated to FVAP.gov or is FVAPtraining.com to be redesigned to more closely resemble FVAP.gov?

Response: Yes, FVAP would like to integrate the training modules to FVAP.gov. FVAPtraining.com will not be redesigned.

b. How many new trainings does FVAP envision? How many of the trainings will need to be revised?

Response: The number of new trainings is unknown at this time. FVAP currently has 3 training modules that will need to be revised.

21. Questions for 4.4.5

a. Do these websites currently exist? If so, what are the URLS?

Response: No.

b. If these are new websites, are there technology requirements (hosting, CMS, etc.)?

Response: These would be new websites. The requirement is to provide development, maintenance and hosting for any new websites.

c. Will the contractor be responsible for maintaining FVAP.gov?

Response: No.

22. The RFP mentions specifically the 2016 and 2018 federal elections. Are these the only elections FVAP would like to market for?

Response: Other elections may apply.

23. Does FVAP want every subtask in the “requirements” section to be individually addressed in proposal responses?

Response: See solicitation Attachment B (Evaluation Factors, Criteria, and Rating Methods) paragraphs 2.1 (Technical) and 3.2 (Criteria for Technical Factor).

24. Can FVAP please explain in greater detail what is requested in section 4.8.2 (page 11): “develop a brand-positioning campaign to execute across multiple integrated marketing disciplines”?

Response: FVAP seeks to rebrand slogans, look/feel and communication. Re-branding would position FVAP across digital, print and social media.

25. Can past performance references (PPQs) come from the subcontractor, or must all five references be provided by the prime contractor?

Response: See #8 and #12.

26. Questions for 4.8.1:

a. What collateral and marketing materials has FVAP used in the past?

Response: See Basic Contract PWS paragraph 4.6.1 (page 11 of the solicitation).

b. What materials would FVAP like to produce in this contract?

Response: See Basic Contract PWS paragraph 4.6.1 (page 11 of the solicitation).

27. For the Task Order, is the contractor responsible for all printing and shipping costs?

Response: Yes.

28. Regarding the Task Order 1 PWS, Sections 4.4.1 and 4.4.2, in addition to labor hours and costs, should offerors plan to include costs for production work, such as location and studio filming, special equipment rental, talent acquisition, et al?

Response: Yes.

29. Mobile App: Does FVAP currently have (or is it currently planning/developing) a mobile app?

Response: No.

30. Strategy/Tactics: Has any one strategy or tactic worked particularly well for FVAP over the past two years? A strategy/tactic that FVAP is interested in continuing, expanding, or innovating upon?

Response: Previous digital advertisements and social media advertisements worked well.

31. Measurement of Objectives: How does FVAP currently measure the success and viability of its overall program and/or key strategies/tactics? Is success primarily demonstrated by an increase in those voting each election cycle? Some other measureable(s)?

Response: Impressions count to raise awareness. FVAP uses surveys of military service members, voting assistance officers and local elections to measure awareness and effectiveness. Previous surveys and their results can be found at FVAP.gov.

32. Crisis: Is there an example of a FVAP crisis that has occurred in past years that can be shared (even in broad, non-specific terms)?

Response: In September 2012, a Defense Department Deputy Inspector General for plans and operations testified before the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel that his office was unable to make contact with 50 percent of the military’s installation voter assistance offices. Also in 2012, FVAP responded to satirical article that alleged the loss of voted ballots by the military.

33. Research: When conducting any research with the absent military and overseas citizen voters, what is the likelihood that languages other than English will need to be offered when conducting surveys/interviews/focus groups, etc. (Thinking of spouses and family members, in particular.)

Response: Minimal to none.

34. Research: How many Voting Assistance Officers exist? Do they all read/speak English? If not, what are the most common other languages they may read/speak?

Response: Approximately 6,000. They all read/speak English.

35. Research: Is any research/feedback desired from the election officials? If so, how many of them exist? Do they all read/speak English? If not, what are the most common other languages they may read/speak?

Response: Yes. Approximately 7,500. They all read/speak English.

36. Overseas Citizens: Is there any additional breakdown on the overseas citizens audience? Do these individuals tend to hold government positions or jobs, for example?

Response: All of the overseas citizen data we have can be found in this report “A Model for Developing Estimates of U.S. Citizens Abroad: Final Technical Report” at http://www.fvap.gov/info/reports-surveys/search-reports-surveys/general-research-reports in the results section (starting page 38 of the report). Some may hold government positions, but FVAP provides voting assistance to any and every U.S. citizen living outside the United States.

37. Audience: Does FVAP have an audience breakdown by percentage? That is what percentage of the audience is military (or military families) versus overseas citizens?

Response: No.

38. Will the Government provide an updated link for training modules? The link given (www.fvaptraining.com/FVAPTraining) does not work.

Response: The backslash at end of the cited link is missing. Correct link is http://www.fvaptraining.com/FVAPTraining/

39. 4.2.4.1 (page 8): will we have access to their Google Analytics account or will we have to rely on exports they send us?

Response: The Government will provide accesses to the Google Analytics account upon award.

40. What does the deliverable “Provide metrics-tracking link to Government” mean in section 4.6.3.3 on page 48 and mentioned on page 47? Does this mean the contractor will provide a link to a metrics dashboard or that we will provide all trackable links that we create for the advertising campaign?

Response: See #16.

41. 4.6.2.2 on page 47 – Based on what is listed in that section, it looks like the contractor won’t be creating any new digital ads for this campaign – only print. How will this work as we learn more about messaging after conducting research into deliverables 4.2.1-4.2.1.1 and 4.2.2? In section 4.2.2 on page 8 however, the language contradicts the section on page 47 and mentions that we contractors create new ads across all media. Please clarify this requirement.

Response: Yes, for Task Order I at PWS paragraph 4.6.2, the contractor will not create new digital ads for this campaign – only print. The Basic Contract PWS paragraph 4.2.2 (page 8 of the solicitation) states the broad requirements that include the creation of new ads during the term of the contract. The specific requirements are stated in tasks orders issued against the basic contract.

42. Earned media question: What are the deliverables for Public Relations/ Earned Media? Page 10 indicates that Task 4.5 includes a number of media related activities including:

· 4.5.2 press release distribution, news monitoring and clips reporting,

· 4.5.3 speaking engagements, identification of spokespersons, speaker training

· 4.5.4 press guidance

· 4.5.5 crisis communications plans

These activities are not reflected in the PWS on page 46 which lists only posters, brochures and info graphics in the 4.5 deliverables

Response: The overarching Basic Contract PWS that begins on page 7 of the solicitation describes the types of recurring services that the Government requires at varying times throughout the contract’s performance period. Individual task orders will include a PWS that identifies which of those tasks are required under the order. Also see # 41 above.

43. Will you accept proposals for just part of your requirements? We are a very experienced audience research firm and are qualified for the scope of services 4.3 in your solicitation. Would you accept a proposal for only these services or do you want suppliers that can provide all of the services?

Response: No.

General

44. Is there an incumbent for this effort? If so, can FVAP please provide the incumbent company’s name, how long it has been performing the work, and the scope of services provided?

Response: See #1.

45. Can you provide an estimated budget and/or estimated labor hours for the Task Order?

Response: See #4.

46. What is the kickoff date for this engagement?

Response: The kick off date is dependent on the contract award date which is currently unknown.

47. Will the contractor be given access to FVAP Google Analytics?

Response: See #39.

Strategy and Media Buying

48. Does FVAP have database contacts for market research, or would these need to be procured?

Response: FVAP does not have database contacts. The contractor will need to obtain the contacts.

49. Will FVAP provide a list of market competitors for market research (4.2.1 & 4.2.1.1)?

Response: No.

50. Will FVAP provide individuals for the user groups (4.21.2)?

Response: The contractor will propose, but not execute, the plan on Task Order I.

51. In addition to new research data, will FVAP provide additional insights and research to build personas (4.2.2)?

Response: Yes, this information will be provided to the awardee.

52. The total ODC campaign budget for PR, media buying, etc. is $700,000?

Response: Not to exceed $700,000.

53. Does the total ODC budget include labor hours and rate?

Response: No.

54. Will the contractor be given access to FVAP Facebook and other social media channel insights?

Response: Yes; however, the contractor will not be permitted to post anything public to the site. The contractor will receive administrative permissions only.

55. Does FVAP have preferred publications for traditional and digital media buys?

Response: FVAP seeks insight from the contractor to propose publications. See previous media buys in Technical Exhibit A to the Basic Contract PWS.

56. Does FVAP have research, planning, monitoring, measurement and/or testing tools or platforms beyond Google Analytics currently in use?

Response: See surveys results on FVAP.gov.

57. Approximately how many media campaigns should the vendor plan for over the course of the life of the contract?

Response: The Government anticipates two-to-four media campaigns that focus on federal election cycles over the life of the contract.

Design

58. Will all print publications need to be 508 compliant?

Response: Yes.

59. Do you have any required branding guidelines or a branding manual?

Response: We have a style guide with some language preferences, but mostly follow AP Style and the DoD Style Guide. See Style Guide attachment at: http://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0LEVv6th3BV6G4AcE0nnIlQ;_ylu=X3oDMTEzZWJidTA2BGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDRkZHRTAxXzEEc2VjA3Ny/RV=2/RE=1433466925/RO=10/RU=http%3a%2f%2fwww.dtic.mil%2fwhs%2fdirectives%2fcorres%2fwriting%2fWriting_Style_Guide.pdf/RK=0/RS=SOAoszHUn0ZwCvK6hTBQfwFi4gw-

60. Is there a current style guide that the contractor may refer to?

Response: See #59

61. Will a style guide need to be updated or created to include new materials produced?

Response: FVAP will make updates as necessary to the existing guide.

62. Is any logo design work required?

Response: No.

63. Is the vendor responsible for providing all printing services for the pamphlets, booklets, brochures, posters and other print collateral?

Response: Yes.

64. Is the vendor responsible for providing all printing services for trade show exhibits?

65. Will the new brand need to be reflected on FVAP’s website as well? If so is FVAP responsible for incorporating it? Or, is the contractor expected to work with FVAP on this?

Response: Yes, FVAP would implement them.

66. Sections 4.2.2.2 and 4.6.2.2 require reformatting and resizing ads and videos in multiple sizes and formats. Can FVAP provide examples of the sizes and formats required as well as the number of ads/videos?

Response: The sizes and formats required will depend on the placements that will be determined in the media plan.

67. Is the vendor required to provide captioning and/or transcripts for the videos? If captioning is required, will FVAP be providing the text for captions?

Response: Yes, the vendor is required to provide captioning and/or transcripts. FVAP will provide text for captions.

68. Are the videos described in the task order intended for FVAP’s website, YouTube, and/or other digital platforms? Or, are they intended as television commercials?

Response: FVAP’s website, YouTube, DVIDS and social media.

69. To produce the video noted on page 46 in section 4.4.2, will the Contractor be responsible for capturing all original footage, or does any exist for repurposing? Also, will FVAP be coordinating any aspect of any footage to be shot?

Response: If applicable, video from DVIDS can be used. FVAP can help with coordinating, especially in reaching out to Services.

70. In order to produce the two media advertisements noted on page 47, section 4.6.2.3 would contractor be responsible for all production logistics, equipment, resources (including photographer) and execution?

Response: Yes.

71. On page 47, section 4.6.2.3 would any talent sourced need to be only those that do not require payment? Or can a fixed fee be offered with the understanding that no further residual payment (during circulation) would be made?

Response: Fixed fee can be offered if within budget. No residual payments will be made.

72. Will any front-end development (e.g. HTML and CSS versions of designs) be required in the scope of this contract?

Response: Yes. To update the training modules, see Basic Contract PWS paragraph 4.4.4. If websites are developed, see Basic Contract PWS paragraph 4.4.5.

73. Does FVAP have a sense of how many TV and radio advertisements will be created, and how long each will be?

Response: Historically, FVAP created two TV ads and three radio ads during a two-year period. Length ranged from 2-3 minutes for TV and 30-60 seconds for radio.

74. Will you be requiring any non-static, in-stream or other forms of rich media online advertisements?

Response: FVAP may consider non-static, in-stream or other forms of rich media online advertisements.

75. Can you provide examples of other forms of Interactive/Direct and emerging media that may be targeted for use in this campaign?

Response: No; however, emerging media proposed in the media plan may be considered.

76. Are there any key calls-to-action that you want the uniformed and overseas voter audience to see on offline materials, the website and other digital media?

Response: FVAP works to ensure Service members, their eligible family members and overseas citizens are aware of their right to vote and have the tools and resources to successfully do so – from anywhere in the world.

77. How do you prioritize key audiences (uniformed voters, overseas voters, and others)?

Response: All voters covered by UOCAVA are important.

78. How visible should the connection to the Department of Defense be? Should it be leveraged more/less?

Response: Leverage will depend on the audience to be reached. FVAP currently uses the DoD logo to reach the military audience.

79. Does FVAP have a library of photos from previous campaigns?

Response: Yes and FVAP will make them available for use to the awardee.

Development

80. RFP section 4.4.5 states the vendor is to provide “develop and maintain up to three websites to include information technology resources and web hosting capabilities.” Can FVAP provide more detail on the development and maintenance services required?

Response: As per the ID/IQ base, if FVAP requires up to 3 websites the contractor would build them and provide hosting.

81. What are sample maintenance tasks that would need to be performed?

Response: Maintain hosting and site content, update as necessary upon government request.

82. If the vendor is responsible for development and maintenance of the website(s), can FVAP provide information as to the current content management system (CMS) being used? And if there is a preference to continue using that CMS?

Response: The website development would not be using the current CMS. FVAP has a portal that maintains FVAP.gov that is separate from this requirement.

83. Approximately how many hours of maintenance per month are you seeking from the vendor?

Response: This would be specified in a task order.

84. RFP section 4.4.3, page 10 states that the vendor is to “develop, update, and interactively host educational communication tool modules. Current training modules educate Voting Assistance officers and Election Officials on their duties and responsibilities with assisting UOCAVA voters.” Is there any more information FVAP can provide regarding their current modules?

Response: the training modules can be found here: http://www.fvaptraining.com/FVAPTraining/. The development requirements are included in the next paragraph of the Basic Contract PWS at 4.4.4.

85. Will the hosting of the web portal for class materials (currently http://www.fvaptraining.com/) need to be FEDRAMP compliant?

Response: If cloud hosting, yes.

86. In regards to hosting the portal there is mention of technical support for users. What would that include? Is this referencing desktop support for actual website users that are utilizing the course materials?

Response: Technical support includes actively troubleshooting issues users might have accessing (e.g. bad request) and navigating (e.g. not able to receive certificate) the module.

87. To ensure we include adequate budget for resizing print publications outlined in section 4.6.2.1, can you provide a number of existing print advertisements we should expect?

Response: We have approximately 10 print advertisements to resize.

88. For section 4.6.2.1, you reference shipping print publication materials and trafficking digital assets. Given today's color and file-transfer technology, many publications do not require proofs or materials be shipped and will do all proofing digitally. For additional color accuracy, a color printed proof can always be sent -- is that a cost FVAP would like us to include even if it is not required by the publication? If so, how many should we budget for?

Response: Budget for 2 print proofs per printed collateral. Digital assets will not need print proofs. Print ads will not need to be sent hard-copy.

89. To ensure we include adequate budget for resizing needs outlined in section 4.6.2.2, can you provide a number of existing existing online advertising digital banner ads and videos we should expect to revise?

Response: We have approximately 10 digital advertisements to revise.

90. Overall - Is the government open to reallocating any of the budgets in the media mix (e.g. - reducing print placement to bolster digital advertising)?

Response: Yes.

91. What are the Government’s expectations in terms of key personnel?

Response: There are no Key personnel addressed in the requirement.

92. Section 4.3.2.1 of the Basic Contract reads “Conduct focus groups and individual interviews and surveys either telephone, in-person, and electronic/Internet.”

a. Can the government provide an estimate on the level of effort anticipated for the focus groups, interviews, and surveys, including:

i. The number of focus groups sessions and number of participants in each focus group

ii. The number of interviews

iii. The number of surveys and number of survey participants

Response: This information will be provided in the task order that includes this effort.

93. The links provided in Section 4.3.2.5 of the Basic Contract and Section 4.2.3 Attachment A (Task Order 1) appear to be broken. Can the Government provide new links to the sample documents?

Response: The links provided work. Recommend saving, then opening.

94. 4.4.5 - What scope does the government envision for the required websites (e.g. - one page campaign site, full operational multiple sites, etc)?

Response: Plan for multiple, fully operational sites, similar to FVAP.gov

95. 4.6.2 - Should shipping costs of ad hoc print materials be considered ODCs or should they be factored into the overall print budget?

Response: Shipping costs of ad hoc print materials will be included under an ODC CLIN for shipping.

96. 4.6.2.1 - Approximately how many updates and modifications to print and digital advertisement does the government envision over the course of the base and option years

Response: Previously, FVAP received approximately 20 modified and new print and digital ads per year to meet the needs of media outlets specified in that year’s media plan.

97. Section 8.3 reads “Perform offsite work with Personally Identifiable Information (PII) only on systems and platform information technology systems (PIT) that meet Risk Management Framework (RMF) for DoD Information Technology (IT) requirements.” What PII information does FVAP collect or plan on collecting on the website(s)?

Response: See 13a.

98. Will costs to print, package, and ship collateral materials be covered under a Cost Reimbursable CLIN?

Response: Yes.

Performance Work Statement (Basic Contract), 4.4.4, page 9

99. Where is the current site being hosted?

Response: Current site is being hosted in the incumbent’s hosting environment.

100. Does the government own the software and licensing for the current system? If so, will software and licensing be provided throughout the period of performance for this effort?

Response: No. No.

101. Section c. states the application and web services were built using ASP.Net 4.0. What additional programming languages were used under the .Net Framework, such as C## or Visual Basic?

Response: Please refer to Basic Contract PWS paragraph 4.4.4.

Performance Work Statement (Basic Contract), 4.4.5, page 9, states, “Currently, FVAP has one website, www.FVAP.gov, maintained by the government”. Reference section A.v. Instructions to Offerors. Request offerors provide a document certifying the Offeror’s compliance with DIACAP/RMF.

102. Since the DIACAP/RMF requirements apply to .mil infrastructure and FVAP’s current site is hosted in a .gov site, is it the government’s intent to move the hosted website to a .mil domain; or does the government intend for the offeror to provide DIACAP/RMF capable security; or is the intention to follow FEDRAMP standards and host in a certified cloud hosting environment for the .gov site?

Response: The DIACAP/RMF requirement is not referenced for FVAP’s current site, it is speaking to the research and training modules. See #13a.

Performance Work Statement (Task Order 1), 4.3, page 46

103. What software specifications or applications were used for the current education communications tools?

Response: Please refer to Basic Contract PWS paragraph 4.4.4.

104. Does the government own the software and licensing for the current system? If so, will software and licensing be provided throughout the period of performance for this effort?

Response: See #100.

105. To assist in pricing will the government provide user’s manuals and software documentation for the current website, portal and existing communication tools?

Response: The current website and portal are not part of the scope of this contract. Information will be provided for the existing communication tools upon award. The tools can be viewed at http://www.fvaptraining.com/FVAPTraining/.

106. What analytics are available for the usage of the training site and the course selections?

Response: Currently we have Excel download deliverables that are provided by the incumbent each month with metrics of the three modules, completion counts and few demographics about the users.

Performance Work Statement (Task Order 1), 4.5.2, page 46

107. For pricing purposes, should the printing and shipping costs be included, for all locations in Appendix A, in the response?

Response: Yes.

108. Is the VAO Portal referenced in part 4.3 of the included in the three sites mentioned in 4.4.5 of the general terms? or is that in addition to those three?

Response: The VAO training is not a site, but a training module. It is additional, per 4.4.3. See 4.4.5 – currently FVAP has one website.

109. The portal discussion in 4.4.3 also includes mention of passing Google Analytics metrics to an internal dashboard. Is that dashboard to be integrated with an internal system already deployed, part of a newly deployed system, or simply an administrative interface that could be part of the backend of the web platform?

Response: Integrated with an existing internal dashboard.

110. The list of deliverables in 5.0 of the scope does not include any mention of the websites. Are there delivery timeframes for the web components that must be respected?

Response: It is not clear to the Government what is being asked. Task Order I deliverables reflect those items and delivery dates required under the task order and should not be confused with the overarching Basic Contract PWS, which covers all requirements that may occur throughout the life of the contract.

111. As mentioned, the general terms mention three websites, yet the RFP only specifically outlines fvaptraining.com <http://fvaptraining.com/> and fvap.gov <http://fvap.gov/> . Are those two of the three?

Response: No, the current sites are not part of that requirement, those would be new sites not yet defined.

a. Is there a known domain for the third site?

b. Is that site already operational in any way?

112. Related to those three sites, is there any prohibition on building them on a single multisite architecture like WordPress where they can all be managed from a single backend interface?

a. Is there any prohibition on creating a subdomain architecture off the main fvap.gov <http://fvap.gov/> domain to allow, for instance, http://training.fvap.gov <http://training.fvap.gov/> and htt://fvaptraining.com <http://fvaptraining.com/> to both reach the same end point for the content?

113. Related to the three sites, does FVAP wish to migrate all of the prior year content to the new platform? If so, is that content accessible in a database/sql/bundled (Zip) format? How will that material be provided?

Response: For the new sites, no.

114. Are there any requirements for the web platform that must be respected? The RFP mentions server software requirements, but does not seem to indicate whether there is any prohibition or preference for other software.

Response: Basic Contract PWS paragraph 4.4.4 outlines all the current hosting and development, those should be the minimum standard.

115. Regarding the server software requirements in the hosting environment, the versions specified are somewhat dated, and will be approaching the end of their lifecycle by the time of the 2016 elections. Is FVAP willing to consider a similar platform built on the current versions of the same applications?

Response: FVAP is not interested in redesigning every module from scratch, minor modifications and content/voice over updates are planned but adjustments to stay relevant with software/hosting may be considered.

116. Must the hosting environment be physically housed at a government facility or is use of commercial capability (Rackspace, Amazon's AWS, etc) permissible/preferred?

Response: See #13a/b and #85.

117. Under what line item should the cost of hosting be included?

Response: See CLIN 0001AC in the CLIN Structure for Task Order I (page 20 of the solicitation).

118. Is outreach to National Guard units included in the plan, if not how should they be addressed?

Response: We can discuss in the media plan, but National Guard if applicable based on UOCAVA outreach requirements is usually reached through the main service branch.

119. If there are additional proposed or suggested concepts for engagement events, how should those be budgeted?

Response: Under a new task order.

120. Our understanding of the FVAP is that it also supports US civilians overseas, (including Expats and USG employees, we note that there is limited mention of these target audiences)– do we plan to provide the same communications to civilians as and the US Military and their family members, or should they be addressed separately?

Response: Messaging and media outlet should be specific to the audience.

121. If they are addressed separately, how should they be budgeted?

Response: Out of the overall budget.

122. Will a total number of US citizen expatriates in each country be provided?

Response: FVAP will provide the approximate number of US citizen expatriates in specific countries upon award. Also see #36 and #37.

123. Will access to the list of US expatriates registered with the US Embassies be provided, or will a POC at US Embassies be provided who can facilitate engagement with expatriates?

Response: Access to a list US expatriates registered with the US Embassies will not be provided. FVAP facilitates communication through points of contacts at US Embassies.

124. Are there requirements for recycled paper or environmentally friendly ink?

Response: No.

125. Will FVAP provide an existing style guide that defines all fonts, colors and thematics of all ads so that they are consistent across mediums, or is the development of this a requirement in the proposal

Response: Work produced should be in line with the materials and look/feel of www.fvap.gov/info/outreach until further branding is completed.

126. Who is the incumbent and what is the value of the incumbent contract?

Response: See #1.

127. Do you have a budget in mind for this work moving forward?

Response: See #4.

128. If a company does not have certification in Risk Management Framework at time of submitting proposal, can this be obtained prior to when the work begins?

Response: See Instructions to Offerors paragraph 3(A)(v) on page 20 of the solicitation.

129. If a prime contractor is RMF/DIACAP certified and has multiple subs that are not certified, is this permissible?

Response: Only if those subcontractors are not working on the research and training modules that require that certification.

130. Do you anticipate making a single or multiple award?

Response: Award will be a single firm fixed price requirements-type contract under which task orders will be issued.

131. Is there an incumbent, if so are they eligible to respond?

Response: See #1 and #3.

132. What is the estimated LOE per year over the three-year period of performance?

Response: LOE will be consistent throughout the term of the contract.

133. Would you consider alternate solutions for the 2016 campaign cycle or is it expected that contractors strictly follow the prescriptive performance work statement as outlined in Sample Task 1? Additionally, would there be room for alternate solutions in the 2018 cycle?

Response: Yes, alternative solutions that meet the Government’s requirement may be considered.

134. Is there room for innovation in the advertising strategy to change the mix (print, online, search) but stay within the $700,000 max spend ceiling?

135. Regarding task 4.4.1 in the sample task, if it is found through research that a shorter video (less than 60 sec.) would be most effective with our target audience, is there flexibility with this deliverable? For budgeting purposes, should we assume a 60 sec video?

Response: Yes, FVAP may consider a shorter video. Yes, a 60 second video can be assumed for budgeting purposes.

136. Regarding task 4.5.2 in the sample task, is there flexibility to propose a different type of communications piece other than the trifold brochure and options on distribution methods?

137. Is the goal of the paid social media spend to drive awareness, or to drive a call to action? Can you give greater visibility into where the paid media drives users online?

Response: Drive awareness and traffic to FVAP.gov.

138. Regarding task 4.2 is paid social media spend intended to drive users to fvap.gov <http://fvap.gov/> , or another destination?

Response: FVAP.gov, and possible a microsite we are currently developing.

139. Are there pre-existing expectations for the paid media split (between print / digital / social) or is that at the recommendation of the vendor?

Response: It’s a recommendation. We are open to discussion for the new media plan.

140. Regarding task 8.4 in PWS (Basic Contract):

a) Is it an option to maintain your existing hosting environment and has it been through RMF with existing documentation?

Response: No, the requirement will not be performed in FVAPs current hosting environment and cannot be leveraged for this contract.

141. Regarding Instructions to Offerors, Section VI. The Offerors Price Proposal, to include: Labor Categories for Base PWS, (page 20, subsection C): when referring to “fully burdened labor rates for each identified labor category” are approved GSA labor rates acceptable?

Response: The Government seeks fully burdened rates for each identified labor category.

142. RE: 4.4.4 - Can an off-the-shelf CMS (content management system) or LMS (learning management system) be used that is compliant with the host environment requirements?

Response: Refer back to Basic Contract PWS paragraph 4.4.4 and the current modules. If the CMS and LMS are compatible, they may be considered.

143. RE: 4.4.4 -How much simultaneous traffic would the site be expected to sustain?

Response: Maximum amount of traffic for all three training modules at once would be less than 15K users.

144. RE: 8.4 - What level of FISMA compliance does the site need to adhere to? Does the site need to be FISMA certified?

Response: Any network or system the contractor is using to develop or maintain the requirements for training modules, research projects or websites will need to be FISMA compliant. Compliance level: Security category: Moderate Impact

Public information: Confidentiality (moderate), Integrity (moderate), Availability (moderate)

145. Section 8.3 states " Perform offsite work with Personally Identifiable Information (PII) only on systems and platform information technology systems (PIT) that meet Risk Management Framework (RMF) (formerly Defense Information Assurance Certification and Accreditation Process (DIACAP)) for DoD Information Technology (IT) requirements." Much of the information necessary for polling and survey research involves publicly available voter data. Do the requirements of section 8.3 apply to any personally identifiable information, or only information that is not publicly available?

Response: See #13a.

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