001 - Small Business and Commercial Corridor Marketing and Communication Services

 
STATEMENT OF WORK
 
PART II
 
 

1. WORK OBJECTIVE

1. Attract new small businesses and real estate investment: EDC will utilize a variety of approaches to encourage new businesses to locate in commercial corridors throughout the city. These approaches could include small business competitions, support for temporary businesses, target marketing to potential prospects, assistance navigating city processes and the local business support community, as well as other approaches. These efforts will be targeted to neighborhood-serving businesses and other businesses that can drive the economy of the city while ensuring that jobs are available for Detroiters. 
2. Retain and expand existing small businesses: EDC will work with community partners and other technical assistance providers to deliver assistance to small businesses along commercial corridors. This assistance may include outreach activities, one-on-one counseling and assistance, seminars, financial assistance, assistance navigating city processes and the local business support community and others. Direct assistance may come in the form of classroom-style educational opportunities, one-on-one assistance, or professional services may be provided, in a reimbursable format, to eligible small businesses to procure necessary technical assistance (i.e. accounting, marketing, etc.).   
3. Improve the physical environment along commercial corridors: EDC will work with City departments and community partners to improve the physical conditions of commercial corridors. This may include providing assistance to businesses, property owners, and the City with code compliance activities, façade improvements, and other activities that promote a clean and safe environment. Specific activities will be tailored to the areas that the EDC ultimately works in.
4. Develop new tools to support business attraction, retention and expansion, and physical investments. EDC will develop new tools that can help small businesses, property owners, developers and others make investments in small businesses and real estate along commercial corridors, typically in rehabilitation and/or minor expansion of existing buildings (<20% of existing building footprint). These tools will leverage private investment while addressing market gaps in available financing. The specifics of these and any other potential tool will be developed in concert with the City of Detroit. These CDBG-funded tools may include forgivable equity investments into projects, a loan loss reserve, interest rate buy-downs for private loans, forgivable loans, or other financial instruments.

1. SCOPE OF WORK

1. Communications plan and implementation
   1. Develop wraparound communications services to support Motor City Match, Motor City Re-Store neighborhood retail development programs.
      1. Plan to include Earned-Owned-Paid: media, event management, digital, advertising, collateral, video, photography, research, grassroots, branding, storytelling, thought leadership, executive presence, community engagement
   2. Event specific implementation and awareness
      1. Vendor to provide specific plan for executing quarterly grant celebration for each program or combines program which includes Mayor and program recipients.
      2. Repeatable, turn-key program operations: event management
      3. All deliverables needed for grant celebration program: venue selection, photography, presentations, catering, key messages, speeches, venue preparation
      4. Repeatable, turn-key program operations: awareness
      5. Media invite, media materials, photography, graphics, video, ambassador communication toolkit, cross-channel resources, et al.
   3. Ongoing awareness, engagement, participation, communication.
      1. Develop collateral templates and populate with content provided by the client. Assist with content development as necessary. Collateral templates may include:
      2. Flyers
      3. Door hangers
      4. Brochures
      5. Mailers
      6. Newsletter and email templates
      7. Letterhead
      8. Develop plan for keeping MCM, MCR-S in news cycle between quarterly events
      9. Story mining
      10. Pitching
      11. Executive leadership
      12. Partnerships, co-branding
      13. Existing opportunities, tradeshows, conferences, academic/trade journals
      14. Increasing participation in program/applications
      15. Increasing participation in program/funding

1. Bring new ideas to client
   1. Develop fresh way to develop stories, tell stories, elevate program awareness, generate more interest in participating, generate more funding. Be Brilliant.
   2. Using a specific metric, increase share of voice for DEGC using MCM/MCRS.
2. Superior capabilities in all Marketing/Communications/Media Relations
   1. Develop media materials where needed and place stories with local, trade, national print, radio, TV, digital, bloggers.
   2. Develop repository of assets for repurposing across all channels, Photography, graphics, advertising, logos, video
3. Populate website content developed by client and assist with search engine optimization. Allow for revisions to ensure feedback and buy-in from key users.

1. Define and track metrics to determine effectiveness of communication.
    
2. Communications advisory services
   1. Assist with communications opportunities and problem solving on an as needed basis.
3. Additional Services. In addition to those services set forth herein, the Consultant shall provide the following additional services:

1. With reasonable notice, attend all meetings (in-person or via conference call) which EDC staff deem necessary, and attend all EDC meetings for which the Consultant has prepared materials or a deliverable for consideration.
2. Other services as reasonably requested by the EDC.

1. Non-Exclusive Services. Although the EDC’s Consultant will be given the majority of the EDC’s business outlined in this Scope of Services, this agreement does not preclude the EDC from retaining other Consultants from time to time as the EDC, in its sole discretion, decides.  This appointment is non-exclusive and further, the successful Consultant agrees to work with and coordinate efforts with (if requested by the EDC) any other Consultant advisor retained by the EDC.

• Our goal is to connect with qualified applicants to drive participation in the programs, and promote the program’s success as a fundraising tool. Marketing and communications should be targeted in a way that resonates with Detroit’s entrepreneurs and small business owners.
   
• The EDC hopes to garner significant regional press and aspires to generate national and international interest for this initiative. Earned media is a focal point of our desired promotion, recruiting and “story telling” strategy, with the aim to capitalize on a growing awareness of Detroit’s entrepreneurial opportunities within the context of a larger city comeback.
• The EDC hopes that earned and owned media will reduce the need and/or further leverage paid advertising.