Healthy Hospitality, Healthy Skin
Request for Proposal (RFP)
Communications Strategist Contractor
OUR EXPERIENCE
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OUR EXPERIENCE ✱
Who We Are
RED SQUARED is a creative studio based in Jackson, Mississippi, known for leading with story, visuals, and culture. We specialize in campaigns and media that reflect community and place, building trust with audiences often overlooked by traditional marketing. Our team has developed communications and outreach strategies for organizations across health, food systems, and community development throughout the South.
For 504HealthNet’s Healthy Hospitality, Healthy Skin program, we’ll deliver a clear, measurable communications strategy that connects hospitality workers to care. Our approach translates complex health topics like Medicaid wage checks, ACA updates, and skin-health education into actionable messages. We combine cultural fluency, design clarity, and ready-to-use templates to help your staff and member clinics reach workers quickly and effectively.
In addition to communications strategy, RED SQUARED brings in-house video production and digital design capabilities that ensure continuity from concept to execution. We regularly translate campaigns into short-form video, motion graphics, and social content templates. These give clients tools that extend the life and reach of their messaging. While this contract centers on strategy and planning, our creative infrastructure positions 504HealthNet to move seamlessly into content production or digital rollout when ready.
We bring a regional perspective grounded in Southern workforce and community realities, proven skill in simplifying public health messaging, and integrated creative, video, and web expertise your team can use without outside vendors. I personally look forward to collaborating with you and bringing my background in Public Relations, communications and the full machine of my company RED SQUARED to help bring this project to life. Thank you for the opportunity!
Work Plan + Timeline
Our approach centers around clarity, efficiency, and usable deliverables. We start with strategy, then convert that strategy into tools your team can run with. Each phase ends with tangible outputs like plans, templates, and messaging systems so the program launches with unified communication and minimal lift for staff.
Phase 1: Strategy & Planning
October 22nd – November 15th
✱ DELIVERABLES:
Communications plan with KPIs
Awareness campaign concept + creative direction
Messaging kit covering Medicaid wage checks, ACA changes, work requirements, and skin-health education
Phase 2: Content & Digital Presence Guidance
November 16th – December 5th
✱ DELIVERABLES:
Social media strategy + Canva templates
Website copy framework (program, enrollment, FAQ)
“Healthy Hospitality Toolkit” with flyer, post, and email templates
Phase 3: Engagement & PR Strategy
December 6th – December 20th
✱ DELIVERABLES:
PR boilerplate and media release draft
Member engagement toolkit
Community engagement messaging plan
Phase 4: Training & Wrap Up
January 2026
✱ DELIVERABLES:
One recorded handoff session
Implementation checklist
Optional post-holiday check-in
Workflow & Feedback Process
● Weekly 30-minute client check-ins for alignment and approvals
● Two rounds of revisions per deliverable
● Client feedback due within three business days to maintain schedule
● All materials delivered in editable Canva, Google Docs, or PowerPoint formats for in-house use
Optional creative add-ons: Short-form video adaptations or motion-graphic posts based on approved campaign visuals. These can extend reach across social channels when 504HealthNet is ready to move into content production.
LEAD CONTRACTOR PROFILE
Jessica Simien Lofton
CHIEF COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER
Jessica is a communications strategist with over a decade of experience leading content, branding, and outreach campaigns for public-sector and nonprofit organizations across the South. Jessica specializes in crafting strategies that balance creativity with clarity, helping mission-driven organizations communicate complex issues in accessible and actionable ways.
At RED SQUARED, she leads communications planning and message development for clients in health, food systems, education, and community development. Her work spans strategic narrative development, brand architecture, public relations, and integrated content strategy.
Education: M.S. in Public Relations, University of Southern Mississippi, 2014, B.A. in Mass Communications, Jackson State University, 2010
Each of these projects shows how institutions try to meet the people they serve. Our work with the Jackson Heart Study, the ACLU of Mississippi, and the Delta Regional Food Business Center shows what can happen when design, story, and purpose align. We build language and visuals that help communities recognize themselves and help the institutions that serve them speak in a real, human way. Click the link in each option to see examples→
Also see specifically a Communications Plan and an example of Sample Messaging Framework we completed for the Delta Regional Food Business Center.
Work Samples
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We partnered with the Jackson Heart Study Community Engagement Center to design and lead a COVID-19 vaccine awareness campaign tailored to Black communities in Mississippi. The goal was simple: increase trust and access to accurate information. Our team built the full communications framework, from naming and messaging to creative assets and rollout, anchored by the campaign slogan “I Got It.” We developed a unified brand system that included videos, photography, web copy, digital and print collateral, social media toolkits, and community signage, all crafted to reach people where they live, work, and gather.
See our work with the Jackson Heart Study Here →
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The ACLU of Mississippi came to RED SQUARED with a big vision: launch a statewide campaign to build deeper connection and recognition among Black communities across the state. While this phase of work served as early groundwork, our partnership focused on laying a strong foundation through community insights, a messaging strategy, and a suite of creative assets designed to guide and anchor future outreach.
See our work with ACLU of Mississippi Here→
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We were selected as the communications and branding partner for this $400 million dollar federally funded national initiative dedicated to enhancing the resilience, diversity, and competitiveness of our local food system across the mid-South (Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas, and East Texas). Our team created the visual identity and public website. While the project has been cancelled by the current administration, our deliverables remain foundational for a future full public rollout. This includes site design, internal newsletters, stakeholder narrative framing, and USDA-compliant brand development.
See our work with the Delta Regional Food Business Center Here →
Project Budget
We propose the following phased structure for this project. This model reflects the scope of work outlined in the RFP and allows for clear checkpoints, approvals, and invoicing across each major phase.
Total: 12,750.00
This total reflects the services requested in the RFP over a multi-month project timeline. We are able to adjust pacing or consolidate deliverables based on final project priorities as agreed upon during contract negotiation.
Terms
To support clarity and alignment throughout the project, we recommend the following milestone-based payment schedule tied to each major phase of work:
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$12,750
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102 hours × $125/hour
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● 40% at kickoff (Oct 22, 2025) — $5,100
● 40% on delivery of strategy (Nov 15, 2025) — $5,100
● 20% on final handoff (Dec 20, 2025) — $2,550
All deliverables will be completed within the period of performance (October 2025 – January 2026) outlined in 504HealthNet’s RFP. Invoices are payable within 15 days of receipt. Additional work or add-ons will be proposed in writing and approved before billing.
References
Victor D. Sutton, PhD, MPPA
Executive Director, Community Engagement Center, Jackson Heart Study / G.A. Carmichael Family Health Center, Inc.
Email: vsutton@gacfhc.org
Phone: (601) 672-2914
Noel Didla
Co-Steward, The Center for MS Food Systems
Email: noelestherdidla@gmail.com
Phone: (601) 212-1558
Rockiell Woods
Program Director, The Delta Regional Food Business Center
Email: rock@deltarfbc.org
Phone: (662) 347-9175
Intent & Acceptance
RED SQUARED confirms acceptance of the RFP’s full scope, timeline, and maximum budget parameters. All work described in this proposal will be completed under the direction of 504HealthNet’s Executive Director or designated representative. Work begins upon written acceptance of this proposal and initial payment.
Thank you for reading and considering our proposal.
Roderick Red
CEO, RED SQUARED
roderick@redsquared.co | 601-953-6124 | www.redsquared.co