Communications Firm

The purpose of this Request for Quote (RFQ) is to retain an experienced communications firm to partner with the Commission in developing and executing a comprehensive communication strategy. Under the direction of the Commission Chair and Executive Committee, with input from the Executive Director, the Contractor will play a crucial role in developing and executing a comprehensive communication strategy ensuring that the Commission’s messaging is clear, consistent, and effectively reaches the diverse communities it serves. This role includes crafting public statements and talking points, developing a community engagement plan, publicizing the Commission’s public meetings and hearings, managing social media communications, producing op-eds, coordinating press activities, assisting with speech writing, crisis communication, content creation, and reporting and analytics, all in collaboration with the Commission.

The State considers the following qualifications to be a pre-requisite in order to be considered a qualified Proposer for purposes of the Solicitation. This Solicitation is being let as a discretionary purchase of services having a value less than $500,000 under New York State Finance Law § 163(6). Proposers not meeting the qualifications below will be disqualified. Proposers may not use a subcontractor’s or any other entity’s qualifications to meet requirements.

A. Proposers must qualify as at least one of the following:
i. New York State certified Minority-Owned Business Enterprise; or
ii. New York State certified Woman-Owned Business Enterprise; or
iii. New York State certified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business; or
iv. New York State Small Business as defined under State Finance Law § 160(8), which means the business must be resident in the State of New York, independently owned and operated, not dominant in its field, and employ 100 or fewer persons.

B. A minimum of five years of communication strategies experience working with a board, commission, or similar entity, specifically with public affairs, community engagement, public relations, and crisis communication.

OR

If the Proposer does not have at least five years of relevant experience, the Proposer’s senior personnel who will provide services to the Commission must be able to demonstrate that they meet the minimum experience requirements stated above.

Quote Due Date: December 17, 2024 at 2:00pm EST

The solicitation can be found at: https://ogs.ny.gov/procurement/bid-opportunities