Your Whispers correspondent has heard some grousing, and frankly some conspiracy theories, about why the state has not progressed further in naming a marketing agency of record for the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery.
A request for proposals went out to prospective contractors on Jan. 20, and the due date for proposals passed on Feb. 17. According to a tentative timeline from the Office of State Procurement, final proposal evaluation was scheduled for March 1, and final discussions with potential vendors were set for March 24.
The tentative date for the state to post an anticipation of the awarding of the contract came and went on March 27, leaving ad professionals puzzled.
The incumbent agency, CJRW of Little Rock, is in the running again, against MHP/Team SI, Cranford Co., Agency GWL and 4Media Group. 4Media, which has an office in Bentonville, is the only contender from outside Little Rock.
No decision has been made, yet the RFP is no longer listed on the state’s ARBuy Procurement website.
“The solicitation is still in the discussions phase,” Statewide Procurement Specialist Jessica B. Lowder told Arkansas Business in an email. The tentative timeline, “with estimated dates, was released with the solicitation,” she said.
“The estimated dates provided in the RFP for the discussion phase of the solicitation are not deadlines, but tentative dates,” Lowder said in response to questions. “They are always uncertain and subject to change based on how long it actually takes the parties to finalize discussions.”
Lowder said that the Office of State Procurement “provides certain oversight and guidance to state agencies” in the process, but “ultimately the agency procuring the service or commodity controls the timeline based on its needs or other factors.”
You may recall that when CJRW was chosen as the winner of a $34.5 million lottery ad contract in 2016, the decision drew protests from two other contenders, Mangan Holcomb Partners and a joint venture, Ghidotti-Vines. Both appeals were eventually rejected, but lottery and procurement officials drew sharp criticism from members of a legislative subcommittee. The 2017 contract set CJRW’s main source of compensation as a 13% commission on ad placements, and ad buys were to constitute 77% of the budget, former Arkansas Scholarship Lottery Director Bishop Woosley said at the time. That would create about $4.5 million in commissions, he said.
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