Marketing Services

The vendor is required to provide strategic planning, consultation in creative, and media strategies to support board marketing, advertising, and communication efforts.
- Strategic planning
1. Research and insights:
• Provide industry trends, external driving factors, and customer behavioral insights to inform strategic direction and increase the knowledge base of embark marketing and communications professionals.
• Act as an aggregator of research and advisor on the integration of critical insights.
2. Brand positioning:
• Enhance the perception of board role as a mobility service provider in the communities embark serves to increase ridership, customer satisfaction, and parking.
3. Choice rider marketing:
• Development of marketing and communications platforms to increase ridership choice riders, served by embark - and focus areas including race, gender, age, and lifestyle and occasions.
4. Rider tools platform:
• Development of marketing and communications platforms to build awareness and increase usage of embark travel and ticket purchasing apps; such as embark connect, token transit, transit app, web trip planner, etc.
5. Expansion and new services, products or innovation marketing:
• Development of marketing and communications platforms that promote awareness and build system value of innovative products and services such as board as a preferred employer, rapid NW service, maps4 improvements, and maps4 transportation services.
6. Core services:
• Development of marketing and communications platforms to promote awareness and increase ridership for board transportation and mobility network or commercial opportunities to promote riding during selected periods; on selected routes, with specific communities or special events on bus, streetcar, ferry, rapid
• Other strategies and authority initiatives that drive rider penetration and frequency.
- Creative advertising and media plan development
1. Advertising concept development:
• When directed by purchase orders, the proposer shall be responsible for the development and execution of advertising concepts and precise creative executions against various initiatives.
2. Media consultation:
• When directed by purchase orders, the proposer shall develop a coordinated media plan based on budget and timing provided by embark and submit such plans for review.
• The proposer shall recommend a mix of traditional and non-traditional advertising mediums and platforms based on the objectives as well as specific media outlets and placements based on the strategic plan.
3. Digital marketing and social media:
• When directed by purchase orders, the proposer shall develop strategic digital marketing approaches utilizing social media, video advertising, influencer marketing, email, and SMS marketing.
• Plans need to deliver a return on ad spending based on objectives and programs directed by embark.
4. Promotions and experiential marketing:
• When directed by purchase orders, the proposer shall be responsible for the development and execution of concepted promotions to existing embark initiatives requiring creative efforts for tactical on the ground, event and activity-based efforts.
• Support may also include the development of promotional materials and premiums concepts, creation and staffing of promotional experiential events, interactive promotions, joint promotions, or sponsorships.
5. Video consultation and production:
• When directed by purchase orders, the proposer shall develop video concepts and executions under the direction of board public affairs department.
• These creative works will support the strategy and implementation of campaigns and communications platforms.
• In some instances, the proposer will collaborate with board audiovisual team to develop and create video products for digital and social platforms as well as traditional mediums.
- Managed execution and implementation
1. Cooperative promotions and sponsorships:
• When directed by the purchase orders, the proposer may be engaged in the development, planning, and execution of cooperative promotional programs and or sponsorships that involve embark and any of the following parties:
o Outside merchants, businesses, non-profit organizations
o Media
o Corporate sponsors and or patrons
2. Promotional events and activities:
• When directed by purchase orders, the proposer may be engaged in the development, planning, and execution of promotional events to increase awareness, brand value, rider penetration, and or rider and parking frequency of use.
3. Print, collateral and broadcast production:
• When directed by purchase orders, the proposer shall arrange and supervise the conversion of artwork (illustration, design, photography, audio visual graphics) and copy used to produce the finished advertisements directly/indirectly or through the use of multimedia and audio visual, product and design houses.
• Quality control of these processes is provided by the proposer.
• In some instances, embark will arrange for printing of point-of-purchase or collateral materials.
• In these cases, the proposer may be required to provide quality control and press checks to ensure a correct final product.
4. Benchmarking and best practice sharing:
• The proposer will incorporate routine updates and relaying of best practices and benchmarks in transit and related industries, but importantly within marketing and consumer markets with transferable ideas.
• The proposer will keep embark aware and informed of new marketing tools and techniques and operate as an external arm of embark public affairs.
• In some instances, the proposer shall present marketing and consumer insights and promotions to third parties, during conferences or other industry events at board direction.
- Measurements and reporting
1. Accounting:
• The proposer shall develop and maintain a method to accurately account for billings, to check the appearances of advertisements to ensure that ads appear as ordered and to maintain complete and accurate records of payments made to the various media, and to ensure that all invoices paid to suppliers are fairly and accurately priced.
• The proposer shall not pass through any travel-related costs to embark for business travel and associated expenses.
• Furthermore, the proposer shall not bill embark for accounting and billing meetings and reviews.
• Embark retains the right to conduct an audit of selected or all invoices and backup affidavits, subcontractor invoices, and proof of performance for all media purchases, design, production, and other services performed by the proposer
a. Non-media
• Monthly electronic submission of non-media backup.
• A backup will include the following: copies of all subcontractor’s invoices of the proposer, corresponding approved purchase order, if applicable subcontractor’s pdf (backup) validating work performed, copies of vendor payments, MWBE vendor payment form, (if applicable), and internal timesheet reporting with supervisor’s signature.
b. Media
• Monthly electronic submission of media spreadsheet for reconciled buys, if they contain a variance to the original amount billed.
• The spreadsheet will include the original order billed to embark, all corresponding affidavits, and explanation of debit and credit variance.
- Contract Period/Term: 2 years
- Non-Mandatory Pre-Proposal Conference Date: April 15, 2025
- Questions/Inquires Deadline: April 24, 2025