This Request for Proposals (RFP) is for General Advertising Services for the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART). The contract term is three years with two one-year options. The selected vendor will provide marketing, advertising, branding, media planning and management, digital media strategy, videography, photography, and related marketing services on an as-needed basis. The goal is to increase awareness of SMART services, promote ridership, and strengthen the SMART brand. Proposals are due by 3:00 PM Eastern Time on Monday, June 22, 2026, and must be submitted electronically. Key evaluation criteria include relevant experience, project approach understanding, organizational capabilities, staff qualifications, references, and price. Mandatory submissions for selected vendors after notice of intent to award include insurance certificates.
The proposal due date is Monday, June 22, 2026, at 3:00 PM Eastern Time. The bid notice states 3:00 pm eastern time proposal due date and time section 1. 01: monday, june 22, 2026.
The bid notice states smart shall pay and the contractor shall accept the amounts set forth in the price schedule as full compensation for all costs and expenses of completing the work in accordance with the contract, including but not limited to all labor and material required, overhead, expenses, storage and shipping, risks and obligations, taxes as applicable, fees and profit, and any unforeseen costs.
The offeror warrants and represents that all materials, goods, services, and equipment furnished under the contract will be new, of good quality, free from defects of material or workmanship, and in conformance with the contract documents for a period of one 1 year from the date they are furnished and accepted by smart hereunder. This warranty is in addition to any other warranties provided under the contract, and any and all warranties and remedies, express or implied, as provided by law or otherwise.
Proposals will be evaluated based on price and the following criteria: relevant experience (20 points), project approach understanding (25 points), organizational capabilities (15 points), staff qualifications (10 points), references (10 points), and price (20 points), for a total of 100 points. The bid notice states evaluation will include, but not be limited to: max pointsrelevant experience demonstrated experience performing integrated marketing, advertising, branding, and communications 20 services for organizations of similar size and complexity. project approach understanding demonstrated understanding of smart, regional transit needs, and the proposers strategy for increasing awareness, improving public perception, and 25 supporting ridership goals. organizational capabilities ability to provide the full range of services identified in the scope of work including creative development, media planning and buying, digital marketing, 15 videography, photography, and emerging media capabilities e. g. , augmented reality, as applicable. staff qualifications qualifications, experience, and roles of the key 10 personnel assigned to the smart account. references quality and relevance of references demonstrating successful performance on similar projects within the 10 past five 5 years. price evaluation of the proposers cost proposal and price related factors including reasonableness and 20 competitiveness. total 100.
Responsibility requirements include sufficient financial strength and resources, evidence that human and physical resources are sufficient to perform the contract, evidence of satisfactory performance and integrity on past and current contracts, and compliance with all equal employment opportunity laws and regulations. The bid notice states bids are first evaluated as a threshold requirement to conduct business with smart, to determine the responsibility of offerors. if it is found that an offeror does not meet these requirements, that offeror is deemed nonresponsible and their bid will be excluded from consideration for bid award. this determination is made in the sole discretion of smart. responsibility requirements are as follows: a. sufficient financial strength and resources and capability to finance the work to be performed and complete the contract in a satisfactory manner as measured by one of the following: . . . b. evidence that the human and physical resources of the offeror are sufficient to perform the contract as specified and assure delivery of all equipment and or services within the time specified in the contract. . . . c. evidence of satisfactory performance and integrity on past and current contracts. . . . d. compliance with all equal employment opportunity laws and regulations.
A pre-proposal conference including a site visit, if applicable, will be held via Zoom. Attendance is encouraged but not mandatory. The bid notice states a preproposal conference including a site visit if applicable will be held on the above date and time via zoom linked below. . . . attendance is encouraged but is not mandatory.
The bid notice does not explicitly mention sample submission requirements for the proposal itself, but it does request creative samples as part of the relevant experience section. The bid notice states each summary should include measurable outcomes, client contact information, and no more than two2 creative samples for each campaign element.
Protests addressing the adequacy of the solicitation process and all solicitation documents must be received no later than five 5 business days before the proposal due date. The bid notice states protests addressing the adequacy of the solicitation process, and all solicitation documents, must be received by the general manager no later than five 5 business days before the proposal due date see section 1. 01.
Risks of disqualification include failure to conform to all content and packaging requirements, failure to acknowledge all addenda, providing erroneous certifications regarding debarment and suspension, and any alleged breach of communication restrictions during the solicitation process. The bid notice states failure to conform to all content and packaging requirements may result, at smarts sole discretion, in rejection of an offerors proposal. and failure to acknowledge all addenda may result in rejection of any such proposal, at smarts sole discretion. and any alleged breach of this section may, at smarts sole discretion, result in the rejection of the breaching offerors proposal and reporting of such conduct to any applicable governing authorities. and if it is later determined that the bidder or proposer provided an erroneous certification, in addition to remedies available to smart to terminate or suspend the contract arising from this solicitation, the federal government may pursue available remedies, including but not limited to suspension andor debarment.
