Alternate ROOTS Seeks Communications Consultant: Proposals Due April 9, 2021

March 12, 2021

 

Alternate ROOTS is seeking a Communications Consultant, to support the development of a multi-year communications plan that takes our 45th anniversary in 2021 as an opportunity to begin working on a “refresh” with the 50th anniversary in 2026 as an end date by which we fully “rebirth” our public profile. This consultant will offer an assessment of our current communications and identify gaps in staffing, strategy, and technology, to help us to streamline messaging and external resources including media relationships, outline evaluation tools to measure our communications impact, and help to design a unified marketing strategy and approach with a full-scale website redesign.

We are seeking a mission and culture aligned practice of branding and institutional marketing; we seek a communications consultant who understands and values the roles art and culture have to play in movements for social change, as well as the intersections of arts, activism, and community. We seek a consultant who is based in or connected to the South in a meaningful way, and has a demonstrable track record of producing clear and cohesive communications strategy for organizations in the arts and culture and/or social justice fields.

Ideal applicants already have a knowledge of either Alternate ROOTS or a basic understanding of anti-oppression cultural organizing/arts and activism with an awareness of alternative, community-based and values-based communications strategies. They are strong collaborators. We highly encourage BIPOC communications professionals to apply for this position!

This project’s timeline will be built around ROOTS’ Communications Director’s sabbatical, which runs from June-December 2021. We anticipate the consultant will be hired in April 2021 with some initial groundwork done in May 2021, with the majority of work to really begin in earnest when the Communications Director returns in January 2022. 

Communications Vision, from our 2020-24 Strategic Plan

We must shine. We have a wealth of intergenerational knowledge held within our membership. We are doing amazing work that the world needs to know about. We envision our website, newsletters, and social media as celebrated platforms that amplify the extraordinary work of our members and draw more people towards ROOTS. We envision communications, marketing, and content development that continually position ROOTS as a thought and practice leader in the field of art and social change. 

Responses to Request for Proposals are due by Friday, April 9, 2021

 

Proposals should include the following, please submit as PDFs:

  • Your approach to communications strategy
  • Proposed planning process (high-level)
  • Proposed planning timeline, keeping in mind the sabbatical dates listed above
  • Proposed quote for work including any waived fees/ non-profit discounts
  • Samples of similar initiatives that the consultant has completed
  • References from past clients or ROOTS members you have worked with
  • Additional information that reflects how your consulting approach is a good fit for ROOTS

Scope & Budget 

As a non-profit whose budgets are determined on advanced budgeting cycles and agreements with funders, we have a predetermined amount of money to allocate towards the communications consultant for $20,000-25,000. (This amount is for the development of the multi-year communications plan and strategy, not for the website redesign or any rebranding work.)

We understand that market rates vary and ROOTS may not be able to meet an individual or firm’s rate. We want to be up front about the funds available, and ask that only candidates willing to work within this budget apply. If you or a firm are able to waive fees to support ROOTS mission, we are able to record your in-kind service donation and report on them.

If you have further questions or to submit your proposal, please contact, Nicole Gurgel-Seefeldt, Communications Orchestrator & Strategist (Communications Director), no later than Friday, April 9 via email at communciations@alternateroots.org.

Proposal emails should be labeled: NAME, Communications Consultant Proposal.

About Alternate ROOTS

Alternate ROOTS is a regional organization, serving fourteen Southern states and the District of Columbia. We are committed to focusing our work on this region because, although the South has a rich history of art and culture, it is one of the most under-resourced regions of the country when it comes to arts funding. As an organization working at the intersection of arts, community, and activism, we draw from the legacy of Southern social movements and work to lift up the arts as a tool for community organizing. ROOTS’ depth of history and mission draws artists and activists from throughout our region, across the US, and around the world. Our staff, Board of Directors, and Executive Committee are also comprised of members. Creating space for artists to lead and make decisions by which they are directly impacted is built into the foundational practices of our organization. The work of Alternate ROOTS is, in fact, the work of our members – arts activism in grassroots communities throughout the South. It is through our membership that we build and sustain the vital connective tissue that is ROOTS – a network of support for arts and cultural organizers on the frontlines of social movements that makes us unique among our peers.

Our Mission 

Alternate ROOTS is an organization based in the Southern USA* whose mission is to support the creation and presentation of original art, in all its forms, which is rooted in a particular community of place, tradition or spirit. As a coalition of cultural workers, we strive to be allies in the elimination of all forms of oppression. ROOTS is committed to social and economic justice and the protection of the natural world and addresses these concerns through its programs and services.

Alternate ROOTS supports the creation and presentation of original art that is rooted in communities of place, tradition or spirit. We are a group of artists and cultural organizers based in the South creating a better world together. As Alternate ROOTS, we call for social and economic justice and are working to dismantle all forms of oppression—everywhere.