The vendor is required to provide bookstore retail solutions for joint purchasing consortium (JPC) seeks innovative solutions to deliver textbooks and course materials using state-of-the-art technologies and creative strategies that reduce costs and enhance student retention.
- Core requirements
• Virtual marketplace and website: the supplier must provide a secure, mobile-friendly, 24/7 accessible online store with user-friendly shopping cart functionality.
• The marketplace must enable students to comparison shop for course materials, including new, used, rental, and digital formats.
• Secure transactions: all customer transactions must be conducted in a PCI-compliant environment. each college reserves the right to approve security measures.
• Integration with college systems: the supplier must ensure seamless integration with each college’s ERP, registration, student accounts, financial aid systems, and learning management systems (LMS), such as canvas and blackboard.
• Course material search and tracking: students must be able to search for required books and materials by course, create accounts, and track purchases.
• Colleges must be able to monitor purchases by student and course.
• Inclusive and equitable access: the solution must support multi-publisher offerings and subscription services (e.g., Cengage unlimited) at reduced rates for students.
• The supplier must also support colleges wishing to purchase course materials on behalf of students, allowing for appropriate chargeback mechanisms.
• Adoption workflow & faculty support: the supplier must offer a clearly defined, user-friendly course material adoption workflow, establish adoption timelines in collaboration with colleges, and provide ongoing training and support.
• Online book buyback program: the supplier must host an online book buyback program to facilitate the resale of textbooks for students.
• Marketing and communication: the supplier must implement a comprehensive marketing strategy to promote the online bookstore through multiple channels.
• All promotional communications require college approval.
- Course materials adoption & faculty support
• Adoption solicitation and collection the contracted supplier shall collaborate with faculty and designated college personnel to facilitate early adoption commitments for textbooks and course materials, ensuring availability and cost efficiency.
• Suppliers must provide timely reports to faculty members concerning the status of their adoptions and work collaboratively with college staff to ensure faculty receive the necessary support.
• Course materials adoption tool requirements the supplier must provide a comprehensive course materials adoption tool, including:
o Online submission and review of course materials.
o Multi-level approval workflows.
o A built-in comparison tool for pricing and availability.
o Easy access to request sample materials.
o Robust search capabilities for locating books and digital resources across multiple publishers.
o Reporting features for historical adoption data, compliance tracking, and adoption rates per course and semester.
o Automated communication and real-time updates on order statuses.
• Database search and adoption reporting
• Capabilities the adoption tool must include:
o Historical adoption data and reports.
o Overall adoption numbers and percentages for a semester and session.
o Adoption numbers and percentages per course.
o Reports on adoptions without required course materials, including OER materials.
o Compliance reports sortable by date, course, department, etc.
• College rights regarding adoption data course materials adoption data are the property of the college.
• The supplier must provide access to this data within 48 hours upon request.
• Course materials list at the end of each semester, the supplier must provide a complete course materials list in electronic format, including details such as course number, instructor, textbook title, ISBN, and pricing.
- Technical and compliance requirements
• Website and technology
o The supplier must maintain a mobile-friendly, 24/7 accessible website integrated with college systems
o The online store must comply with section 508 of the rehabilitation act and WCAG 2.1 level aa standards.
o The federal government requires all academic resources be ADA compliant.
o Secure e-commerce processing must be PCI compliant.
o The supplier must maintain act compliance.
o Security and accessibility issues must be resolved promptly at the supplier’s expense.
- Service levels and management
• Performance metrics
o 99.9% website uptime.
o 98% of orders delivered within SLA-defined resolution times.
o Order confirmation and shipping notifications within one business day.
o Immediate online order status updates.
o Website error corrections within one business day.
o Textbook buyback coordination within five business days.
• Incident and request prioritization the college will set severity levels for incidents:
o Critical: affects essential services or large groups - resolution within 4 hours.
o Urgent: disruptive issues affecting a small group - resolution within 1 business day.
o Normal: workarounds available, minor impact - resolution within 2 business days.
• Reporting and compliance
o Quarterly reports on adoption rates, textbook pricing, order fulfillment, and compliance.
o Free shipping for in-store pickups.
- Customer service requirements
• Customer service expectations the supplier shall provide excellent customer service, including:
o 24/7 customer service support via the online store website.
o Rapid response times for issue resolution.
o Customer feedback mechanisms, such as surveys and comment opportunities.
o A flexible refund policy sensitive to student needs.
• Online course materials store advisory board the supplier shall collaborate with an advisory board (if established) to improve operations.
o Flexible delivery options: solutions must offer multiple delivery methods, including ship-to-campus and ship-to-home, with each college determining available options.
o Support for open educational resources (OER): the supplier must enable faculty to search extensive content libraries for OER materials and provide an option for students to purchase printed versions of virtual materials when feasible.
o Compliance and data security: the supplier must ensure compliance with act, maintain confidentiality of Customer data, and promptly report security breaches or unauthorized data disclosures
- Staffing and personnel requirements
• Staffing the supplier shall employ all personnel necessary for efficient store operations at their expense.
• Faculty liaison
o The supplier must provide a faculty liaison to coordinate course materials adoption and provide training for college staff.
• Employee conduct & compliance
o All supplier employees must comply with college policies while on campus and adhere to state and federal employment laws.
• Emblematic merchandise sales: offering branded college merchandise online and/or on-campus as determined by each institution.
• On-campus support: providing space and staff for the receiving and distribution of textbooks and other course materials.
• On-campus book buyback: establishing a structured program for physical book buyback services at college campuses.
• Hybrid retail solutions: operating both an online and physical campus bookstore to enhance service accessibility.
- On-campus bookstore operations
• Comprehensive course materials support: ensure full availability of required, recommended, and optional course materials, in new, used, rental, and digital formats.
• Retail merchandise management: offer emblematic and general merchandise including apparel, supplies, technology accessories, and gifts as desired by each participating college.
• Technology and accessibility: operate an on-campus point-of-sale (pos) system integrated with college systems and ensure that all digital and printed academic resources offered are ADA compliant.
• The federal government requires all academic resources be ADA compliant.
• Bookstore materials should be compliant as follows: WCAG 2.1 aa standard or greater.
• Inclusive access and OER support: administer inclusive access programs and support faculty and students in adopting open educational resources (OER).
• Customer service: provide in-person customer support during posted business hours, aligned with college class schedules and special events.
• Facility management: maintain clean, accessible, and organized bookstore facilities per college policies and state safety standards.
• Flexible delivery options: support in-store pickup for online orders, on-campus delivery, and special ordering for unavailable items.
• Sustainability initiatives: include eco-friendly practices in bookstore operations where possible, such as textbook recycling and sustainable merchandise.
- Contract Period/Term: 5 years
- Questions/Inquires Deadline: May 09, 2025