CLUSTER BRANDING AND MARKETING

The Rene Moawad Foundation is requesting proposals for Cluster Branding and Marketing.

About Rene Moawad Foundation (RMF) 

The Rene Moawad Foundation (RMF) was established in 1991 with the Mission of Promoting social, economic and rural development in Lebanon and the MENA region and contributing in building a responsible civil society that promotes democratic values, justice, pluralism and moderation. RMF works in 5 core areas including Livelihood and Economic Growth, Decentralization and Governance, Health and Social Safety Net, Education and Protection and Agriculture. 

About “SADDER” 

SADDER - Sustainable Agricultural Development to Diversify and Export Regionally (2023-2027) is a project funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands and implemented by the Rene Moawad Foundation (RMF). 

"SADDER" will incorporate enhanced methodologies and best practices. It will aim to support Lebanon's economy through the agriculture sector by assisting stakeholders within the selected value chains, Table Grapes, Avocados, Cherries, and Apples, in meeting both local and export market requirements, ultimately leading to increased income, self-sustainability of various agricultural sectors, as well as job creation and retention. 

Activity Objective 

Under Output 2.1 & 2.2 SADDER will develop and empower value chain Cluster agro-enterprises & Associations.  

RMF has established the Avocado Lebanon Association (ALA). ALA’s role is to: 

• Facilitate the process of export to the European Union and new international markets. 
• Meet international quality standards. 
• Increase production and reach economies of scale needed for large market export. 
• Negotiate towards reducing costs of production and export across the value chain. 
• Access new markets through forums and exhibitions. 
• Cooperate with academia and concerned entities to find solutions to value chain challenges and problems.
• Empower stakeholders on best practices and standards. 

• Improve the socio-economic conditions of stakeholders working in the value chain.

ALA members have piloted a cluster approach for collectively exporting their avocado produce. SADDER will sustain ALA, by image creation, branding, social media exposure for the cluster and association and development of the marketing plan. 

Terms of Reference 

RMF is seeking Technical and Financial proposals for Branding and Marketing services for ALA.  

Technical proposal content 

The Branding and marketing plan shall include a variety of marketing activities and promotional tools that will help achieve the project results. In specific, tenderer will need to propose a working structure that includes: 

• Create a business and marketing plan for “Avocado Lebanon Association – ALA” 
• Develop the creative “Avocado Lebanon Association – ALA” branding and positioning plan  

• Design of a creative basis for the Association (including slogans/tagline/graphic design elements); 
• Branding of ALA (including graphic design elements and visibility products); 
• Develop guidelines on branding (positioning) The visual identity concept will include a new logo and font direction, with different mock-ups where the logo will be applied (corporate, advertising, … etc.), and guidelines on how the logo shall be placed next to other logos. 
• Conceptualize and design infographics, factographs and quote graphics, to communicate key messages around specific topics. 
• Conceptualize and produce short animations and videos to share through digital platforms. 
• A 3-year marketing campaign strategy for ALA should be developed and presented under a final comprehensive document that describes the strategy implementation including a timeframe/workplan (The timing, sequence and duration of the proposed tasks), materials, dissemination plan, needed staff and media impact indicators 
• Develop example visual content for the above proposed strategy  
• Suggested Medium of Outreach: 
• Design of Website (Mandatory and urgent element of marketing strategy) 
• Social Media 
• Development of additional creative ideas to reach a wider public, such as a PR stunt, teaser-revealer campaign, word-of-mouth buzz campaign, mobile application, Avocado cookbook, etc. 
• The campaign strategy should be able to address the target market defined in the desk review: local market, external markets, local and international fairs, donors… 
• Messages developed should include themes around the vital role of Avocado in health, agriculture, economy…; 
• The strategy should be able to inform the public about ALA, its initiatives and activities. 
• Create a clear digital profile of the targeted segments and best reaching methods to be implemented 
• Create relevant digital content and promotion set that supports brand positioning and targeted digital marketing, including brief messages, photos sets, video content, and short flyers. 

Timeline and Milestones:

The technical proposal should include a timeline of the proposed tasks with specific deliverables. 

Budget and Payment Terms: 

• The offer should include a detailed breakdown of all prices, and any other tools that may be recommended by the applicant. Anything that is optional or can be offered on top of what was requested above, shall be marked separately, and proposed as add-ons with a separate price. Kindly note the following: 

• Activities that would be outsourced to 3rd parties should be clearly marked so. 
• For fee-based services, include the number of expert days and the daily fees, as well as the breakdown of the incidental costs if applicable. 
• Experience in the marketing field and understanding the dynamics is crucial for content development and thus should be done by specialized professionals. 
• Proposals should be given per language where applicable, especially where language price varies. 
• All quotes should include an additional description of the services offered
• The total price for the offered services is <XX.XXX,XX> <USD >. This price includes VAT. The offered price includes the execution/delivery of the items described in the technical offer, as well as all the related incidental costs, such as transport, logistics, etc., when required. 

Submission Guidelines:

The offer should include the tenderer’s information (legal entity name, address, registration number, contact person, name and qualifications of team and experts), the technical and financial offer as per guidelines above.

Evaluation Criteria: 

The proposal will be evaluated based on the following criteria listed below:

Technical proposal: 50%

Financial Proposal: 50%

Questions and Clarifications: 

The applicants shall submit any questions in writing within 4 days of the launch of the RFQ and shall receive answers 2 working days after. 

All questions and answers will be shared with all applicants.