L250315_Exhibit_A,_SOW.pdf

RFP 250315

EXHIBIT A

SCOPE OF WORK

Pacific Surfliner Social Media Marketing and Digital Marketing Services

I. INTRODUCTION

The Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo (LOSSAN) Rail Corridor Agency (Agency) is entering into a contract with a full-service digital marketing firm (Firm) to provide services related to Pacific Surfliner social media marketing and digital marketing/communications for the purpose of:

• Position Pacific Surfliner not only as a mode of transportation, but as a cultural icon of California lifestyle travel, on par with global consumer and lifestyle brands

• Accelerate ridership growth and increase revenue

• Reinforce Pacific Surfliner as an essential, aspirational, and leisure travel experience

• Strengthen brand trust and customer service through authentic, two-way engagement

• Promote visibility of the Pacific Surfliner brand and build positive brand associations to create travel intent and awareness

• Deliver targeted marketing messages to diverse audience segments including high-value customer segments such as seniors, families, students, and leisure travelers.

• Enhance customer service by proactively delivering relevant information and encouraging two-way dialogue between customers and the Pacific Surfliner brand

• Social media and paid digital advertising under this Scope of Work are intended to function as an always-on, full-funnel marketing engine that both captures existing travel intent and proactively creates demand for travel on the Pacific Surfliner.

If necessary to complete the requirements of the scope of work, Firm shall serve as responsible party for direct costs associated with third-party software services on a pass-through basis. A LOSSAN Agency Marketing team member should have administrator or editing access to any third-party software used for its brand.

Through this contract, Firm will provide best-in-class creative, strategic, and production capabilities to drive measurable impact and shall provide expertise in specific service categories to supplement the LOSSAN Agency's in-house marketing and communications staff. Firms proposing as the prime contractor are encouraged to collaborate with subcontractors so that turnkey video and photo production can be delivered.

II. BACKGROUND

The 351-mile LOSSAN Rail Corridor travels through a six (6) county coastal region in southern California and is the second busiest intercity passenger rail corridor in the United States. The LOSSAN Agency manages the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner service, which has an annual ridership of over 2 million. The Pacific Surfliner schedule consists of twenty-six (26) daily trains between Los Angeles and San Diego, with ten (10) trains extending to Santa Barbara/Goleta and four to San Luis Obispo. The Pacific Surfliner serves twenty-nine (29) stations between San Diego and San Luis Obispo counties.

The Pacific Surfliner is uniquely positioned to become a cultural travel brand, offering a premium yet accessible alternative to driving. Social media and digital marketing play a critical role in this positioning by shaping perceptions, informing audiences, inspiring action, and inserting the brand into cultural conversations.

The LOSSAN Agency promotes the Pacific Surfliner as an attractive transportation option for travelers to destinations along the LOSSAN Rail Corridor and beyond. In addition to rail service, dedicated Amtrak Connection buses supplement trains by filling in gaps in the schedule and providing service to popular destinations near the Pacific Surfliner route.

Amtrak Connection Buses also provide connections between northern and southern California, and between Orange County and Palm Springs/Coachella Valley.

The official Pacific Surfliner social media channels, which currently include Facebook, lnstagram, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), YouTube, Linkedln, and a blog, are important assets to the Pacific Surfliner marketing program. The LOSSAN Agency uses these channels as the primary stage for creative and cultural relevance showcasing:

• Scenic and lifestyle storytelling

• Real-time service and passenger communications

• Content designed to travel beyond Pacific Surfliner-owned channels through sharing, virality, and press pickup

Additionally, the program seeks to drive website traffic and increase ticket bookings/revenue among current and potential customers, connecting with, and engaging those who have indicated an interest in train travel.

Ill. QUALIFICATIONS

Firm shall utilize its thorough knowledge of and experience providing the following services:

• Developing data-informed, strategic social media marketing plans

• Content planning, publication and production for broad and niche audiences

• Cultivate and establish relationships through branded social media account with creators, influencers, regional tourism board accounts, cultural institutions, and other relevant partners in order to foster trust and co-create future campaigns with shared equity and earned media opportunities.

• Creative copywriting across diverse tones, audiences, and platforms

• Producing graphics, video, animation, and platform-optimized assets

• Filming and creating video content to produce high-performing social media content

• Community management and social media incident response/mitigation

• Leveraging user-generated content

• Paid social and digital advertising strategy, management, and optimization

• Available portfolio of photographers and videographers (either on staff or contract) in each county (6 counties) along the 351-mile LOSSAN Rail Corridor to support with advertising assets and collateral

Firm will utilize the following approaches:

• Results-driven creative that influences/shifts strategy

• Authentic representation of our service that prioritizes relatability

• Infotainment-First Strategy which blends education with entertainment to engage all age groups (i.e. Gen-Z) while still informing audiences of our service

• Platform-specific creativity and trend creation

Digital storytelling

Firm shall utilize its Non-Technical Skills in the following areas:

• Ability to turn abstract ideas into professional deliverables under tight deadlines and budget constraints

• Deep understanding of the Pacific Surfliner train service, brand, agency and government relationships/connections and audiences

• Knowledge of legal requirements around privacy, asset usage, contests, sweepstakes, intellectual property, etc.

• Strong collaboration with in-house staff while providing innovation and creative leadership

• Ability to adhere to brand guidelines and visual brand themes to ensure assets look cohesive across channels

IV. SERVICES REQUIRED

This section contains a brief description of the types of technical services required for this contract. Firm shall provide turnkey marketing programs and be able to act as a prime contractor in each of the following areas:

Data-Driven Strategic Planning

Update the strategy for the Pacific Surfliner social media program by analyzing existing data, researching trends and leveraging behavior principles to increase brand awareness, build community, drive website traffic, and ultimately increase ridership and revenue.

Activities include but are not limited to:

• Define the role of paid media across the full customer journey, including awareness, consideration, conversion, and retention

• Establish an always-on paid media framework supplemented by quarterly campaign themes aligned to audience priorities, season travel behavior, and business goals

• Conduct semi-annual audits of Pacific Surfliner’s current social media and digital advertising programs, analyzing audience data, competitive benchmarks, and behavioral trends

• Develop an outcome-focused strategy with measurable objectives tied to ridership, awareness, and engagement

• Develop a clear conversion hierarchy to inform bidding strategies, optimization, and reporting

• Maintain a distinction between always-on paid media programs (e.g., brand awareness, high-intent audiences, retargeting) and campaign-based initiatives designed to drive incremental consideration or ridership during key periods.

• Connect strategy and KPIs to Pacific Surfliner’s overall annual marketing goals

• Map platform-specific content ecosystems, including reels, stories, static posts, blogs, and ads

• Create audience personas for targeting and campaign personalization

• Monitor industry, travel, and cultural trends to guide ongoing content and paid media campaigns

• Develop a multichannel paid advertising strategy that will include Meta, Google, Reddit, YouTube, TikTok, and recommend other high-conversion digital advertising opportunities

Content Planning and Development; Digital Storytelling

Firm shall work with the in-house marketing and communications team to develop engaging and relevant content (posts, videos, reels, stories, and more) for social media that educate and inspire fans while growing the customer base and cultivating user loyalty.

Firm shall be responsible for writing compelling, typo or error-free copy, providing editorial direction, designing graphics, editing videos, and executing deliverables. Firm shall be expected to edit, enhance, and/or modify existing Pacific Surfliner assets (photos and videos), or film and photograph new assets to build compelling content and optimize for each channel.

Content marketing efforts typically involve promoting distinct features of the Pacific Surfliner, including the onboard experience, iconic scenery, and popular destinations. Passenger communications focus on consumer-centric messaging ranging from relevant travel tips to critical service advisories and train status information.

Firm shall support in the following areas:

• Collaborate with in-house staff to build comprehensive editorial calendars

• Social media content calendars should be available for review by the LOSSAN Agency team at least two weeks ahead of publication

• Develop, test, and iterate creative concepts based on performance data, audience insights, and platform trends, with a regular cadence for introducing refreshed messaging, formats, and visual approaches to prevent creative fatigue and improve results over time

• Research immediate opportunities to incorporate trends, local events, and seasonal messaging that directly tie back to the brand’s value proposition and support the voice/tone.

• Create targeted content focused on reaching and engaging selected target audiences and segments.

• Recommend content creation ideas and channels to reach target audiences.

• Plan and build social media posts for various placements (newsfeed, stories, ads) that are optimized for each owned account (may include Facebook, lnstagram, TikTok, X/Twitter, YouTube, and others). Firm would be responsible for all stages of development, including:

o Determine topics to cover/ content mix o Copywriting o Asset selection o Video production (reels) o Photo retouching / compositing / resizing o Link tracking o Scheduling

• Social media content planning should include minimum weekly deliverables of 3-5 posts per platform, 2-3 videos, and 3-5 stories, with two rounds of revisions included per asset.

• Craft four (4) monthly long-form, evergreen articles for the Pacific Surfliner blog that inspires travel and drives traffic to booking pages while boosting both SEO and GEO.

• Create distribution plans to augment social engagement and blog readership, including a paid media schedule (with target audiences, budgets, etc.) and procedures for identifying and repurposing popular content

• Leverage third-party platforms to collaborate on the development of content, schedule posts, and analyze performance

In addition, Firm may assist in providing on-demand digital design and development services to support the social media marketing program, which may include photoshoots, graphics, video and animation with the following deliverables:

• Job delivery - May include animation, video editing, photo editing, infographic creation, and any other deliverables deemed necessary. Any design assets should be packaged for future design needs, including high resolution JPGs, fonts, and links

• Timeframe - Many projects will have appropriate timelines. However, in some cases, projects will require same-day delivery, so the availability of Firm shall be necessary. Social media content review should be expected to be available for approval by the LOSSAN Agency marketing team at least one week in advance prior to posting.

• Travel – We expect our partner to have resources in every county (6 counties) along the corridor (351-miles) to support photography and videography needs.

LOSSAN Agency prefers local talent to be utilized for photoshoots and content creation, and any potential travel fees must be discussed.

Development of Engaging Social Media Marketing Programs

Produce, enhance, and implement robust social media marketing programs that help establish long-term relationships with fans and attract potential customers. Social media channels supplement marketing programs by driving website traffic, increasing ticket bookings, communicating important information to travelers, and encouraging two-way dialogue between customers and the brand.

Firm may assist in the development of specialized programs that will leverage social channels and complement ongoing marketing activities:

• Social Media Incident Response: Recommend strategies to address potential issues on social media, which may include viral posts with misinformation or negative experiences, posts that violate community guidelines, and more. Develop a plan on how social activities can be modified in the event of a crisis, adjusting content to align with crisis communications activities, which would be led by the LOSSAN Agency. Support if needed in building posts with approved messaging in the event of a crisis.

• Influencer Engagement: Establish a framework to incorporate influencer campaigns into Pacific Surfliner social media marketing efforts. The program should leverage the reach and unique perspective of local influencers to showcase the Pacific Surfliner experience to relevant audiences. Identify relevant influencers along the LOSSAN Rail Corridor and take responsibility for building ongoing relationships with them. In addition to payments, Pacific Surfliner travel can be traded for coverage (including social posts, photos, and articles) by qualified influencers. Engagement/success goals and terms should be solidified during the contract process to avoid issues or terms changing after engagement.

• Partnerships: Create, manage, and execute social media co-op campaigns with relevant partners to extend Pacific Surfliner messages, generate interest in the service among target audiences, and build brand equity. Build media toolkits for partners with customized messaging, related photos, copy points, and pertinent links to increase participation.

Community Management

• Work with the LOSSAN Agency to engage with current and potential riders on social media, fostering two-way dialogue (via comments, direct messages, likes/reactions/shares) to strengthen the relationship between customers and the brand, answer questions, and address concerns.

Integrate with and use the LOSSAN Agency’s social media management software to schedule, post, analyze and manage any efforts related to the LOSSAN Agency’s social media strategy. If vendor has in-house technology software, the LOSSAN Agency would need administrator rights to access data and content. The LOSSAN Agency would not anticipate covering these technology costs.

Activities may include:

• Analyze common questions, escalations, FAQs, and complaints from Pacific Surfliner channels and recording responses via a working reference document

• Engage with individuals posting about the Pacific Surfliner on social media through hashtags or tagged locations (proactive messaging).

• Interact with users who shared photos or stories of the experience and get permission to share on Pacific Surfliner channels

• Collaborate with the in-house marketing team on hosting social media giveaways that align with the LOSSAN Agency’s internal playbook and guidelines.

User-Generated Content

Assist in sourcing additional content to share on social channels, such as photos, videos, and more. Activities may include:

• Source, curate, and secure rights for UGC

• Provide recommendations for incorporating user-generated content into the content mix, which may include photos, videos, and personal stories of travel experiences

• Determine the best methods to collect user-generated content, including how to track permissions, store content, and record usage

• Identify and use a third-party platform to collect and organize user-generated content

Social Media and Digital Advertising Management

Develop monthly advertising plans using paid media to expand brand awareness and drive increased sales. Activities may include:

• Developing quarterly themed paid media plans supported by monthly execution plans. Quarterly themes shall align with seasonal ridership drivers, priority audiences, and business objectives, and shall include defined creative approaches, audience strategies, and success metrics. Providing a quarterly plan with strategy and target audience specific advertising content on social media and digital channels

• Establish and maintain a creative testing roadmap, including A/B testing, conversion tracking, audience segmentation and provide reporting on a monthly and quarterly basis

• Providing recommendations for enhancing the setup of the advertising accounts (conversion tracking, audiences, reporting, etc.)

• Researching and recommending new advertising avenues on digital platforms that are not currently in use by the LOSSAN Agency

• Creating a robust data analysis and reporting process for continuously improving on ad content and effectiveness

• Ensuring all advertising campaigns stay within budget parameters set by in-house marketing team

Reporting and Optimization

Regularly evaluate performance of social media channels and identify opportunities to improve engagement (reach, organic interactions, etc.). Activities may include:

• Delivering monthly reports that summarize relevant performance metrics, which may include:

o Return on investment (ROI) for social media advertising, influencer campaigns, and others o Key performance metrics, including organic reach, impressions, interactions (likes, comments, shares, link clicks), as well as paid activity/expenditures o Samples of fan engagement o Highlights of best-performing content, audience insights, and competitor benchmarks

• Maintain a rolling document with raw data from social media channels (number of fans/followers, number of posts, organic and paid reach and impressions, interactions, etc.) at a channel-level

• Summarize the most effective types of posts, times of day, frequency, post length, etc.

• Highlight most successful posts with recommendations for repurposing, re- sharing, or boosting with paid advertising

• Provide clear, insight-driven narrative to summarize what is working, what is underperforming, and why

• Include recommendations for budget reallocation, creative optimization, audience refinement, or channel expansion

• Provide forecast of recommendations, trend alerts, and creative testing

If necessary to complete the requirements of the scope of work, Firm shall license directly with vendors to access and obtain necessary tools and utilities. All invoicing pertaining to any license agreement shall be managed by Firm. A LOSSAN Agency Marketing team member shall be listed as an "additional user" with administrator access on any license agreements. At the end of the term (or earlier), Firm shall assign/transfer all its rights to the license agreement to the LOSSAN Agency at no additional charge.

Firm shall be responsible for monitoring performance and managing the quality of marketing campaigns as determined by the performance metrics mentioned above. In addition to creating campaign deliverables, Firm shall provide suggestions for enhancements to optimize ongoing campaigns.

V. PROGRAM MANAGEMENT

The LOSSAN Marketing and Communications Manager will be the key contact for the Consultant and will direct Firm's work efforts. Firm shall be responsible for implementing the tasks described in the Scope of Work under the direction of the LOSSAN Marketing and Communications Manager. The LOSSAN Marketing and Communications Manager will form, and be a part of, an internal project team to assist in providing project direction. All jobs performed by Firm will require a cost estimate within two (2) days of project requests and prior approval from the LOSSAN Marketing and Communications Manager before commencing work.

Firm shall designate a project manager within Firm to be the primary liaison with the LOSSAN Agency for day-to-day marketing activities. The project manager will manage written communications via email and/or through teleconference. The project manager shall have the authority to make commitments and decisions that are binding on Firm. Any changes to Firm's personnel under this project shall be subject to the LOSSAN Agency's written approval.

Firm shall invoice the LOSSAN Agency for services rendered on a monthly basis.

Deliverables shall include, but are not limited to:

a. Job-by-job estimates of time and materials needed to complete each project, approved by the LOSSAN Marketing & Communications Manager

b. Documentation of strategies, tactics, media recommendations, evaluation criteria, timeline and budget proposal including executive briefs and reporting

c. Implementation of effective digital marketing and communication campaigns from concept and development through execution and production tailored to strategic objectives

d. Campaign management, monitoring and reporting

e. Pro-active feedback for enhancements to optimize ongoing campaigns, refine messaging, boost online engagement, and reach, and meet other performance metrics

f. Quarterly strategic performance reviews with recommendations

g. Ongoing social creative production for organic and paid

h. Travel to meet LOSSAN Agency for one (1) annual off-site strategy session and trip on the Pacific Surfliner train to understand the LOSSAN Rail Corridor and train service

VI. CONTRACT PERIOD

The term of the Agreement shall be for a one (1)-year initial term with two (2), two (2)-year option terms.

VII. LIMITATION ON GOVERNMENTAL DECISIONS

Nothing contained in this scope of work permits the LOSSAN Agency's personnel to authorize or direct any actions, votes, appoint any person, obligate, or commit OCTA to any course of action or enter into any contractual agreement on behalf of OCTA. In addition, the LOSSAN Agency's personnel shall not provide information, an opinion, or a recommendation for the purpose of affecting a decision without significant intervening substantive review by OCTA personnel, counsel, and management.