COUNTY OFFICIALS BACK TDC DECISION TO RE-BID OUTDATED WEBSITE & ADVERTISING CONTRACTS 

This week, officials in the Florida Keys defied convention by dissolving a 30-year partnership in a highly publicized split, or at the very least, a trial separation. It wasn’t mutual and occurred during the county commission meeting on November 19.

By voting to end its decades-long agreements with Tinsley Advertising, which has planned, designed, produced, edited, placed, and scheduled the Keys print, broadcast, and digital ads and commercials for 40 years, and with website and digital services provider Two Oceans Digital, the board of county commissioners (BOCC) upheld the recommendations made by the Tourist Development Council (TDC) on October 29.

The county clerk’s and independent consultant’s examinations of the TDC’s contracts with the agencies earlier this year led to the recommendation to rebid those contracts. The out-of-date agreement with Two Oceans, which gives the business 100% of advertising revenue from the Florida Keys travel website fla-keys.com, worried the auditors. Thirty years ago, when digital advertising was just being started, the arrangement made sense. However, it has now resulted in a situation that is profitable for Two Oceans but unfair to the TDC.

Kara Franker, the president and CEO of TDC, told the TDC board that she is worried about the costs Tinsley is billing the county, even though the clerk’s audits of the Tinsley contract did not raise any of the same issues.

In response to the two new RFPs that will be posted, both companies first expressed a desire to meet with TDC and county authorities, maybe re-negotiate their contracts, and submit bids for their former positions.

However, Franker informed the Keys Weekly on Nov. 20, the night following the county commission meeting, that talks to renegotiate had begun with Tinsley and then stalled.

According to Franker, they began down that route but then declined to engage in any more negotiations, even if Two Oceans did wish to renegotiate.

During their meeting on November 19, Dorn Martell, a co-owner of Tinsley, requested that the county commissioners release the new RFP rather than terminate Tinsley’s contract. According to Martell, Tinsley would be unable to schedule and purchase advertising spots a year in advance if the deal were to be terminated.

Franker refuted Martell’s claims by informing the county commissioners that ad placement does not have to be planned a year in advance and may be purchased in smaller batches and on a quarterly basis. In order to provide the TDC staff, board, and Franker ample time to issue two new RFPs for digital marketing and website services as well as advertising services, the commission finally decided to end both contracts with effect from March 31. Before the TDC board, an evaluation committee will analyze and rank the bids. The county commission will then confirm the new contracts.

Tinsley and Two Oceans have been urged by Franker, TDC board members, and county commissioners to submit proposals in response to the new RFPs.

Why have things changed so much?

Given the payment arrangement whereby Two Oceans retains 100% of all advertising money earned by fla-keys.com, the TDC was grossly overpaying Two Oceans, according to a series of audits conducted by the county clerk of the TDC and its contracts with Two Oceans Digital and Tinsley Advertising. According to the audit, Two Oceans makes between $600,000 and $1.2 million year from that advertising, but they are also giving the TDC services that probably cost less than $200,000.

According to the audit report, when the contract was first signed in 1995, when internet advertising was essentially nonexistent, the payment arrangement where Two Oceans retains all ad revenue made more sense for the TDC.

Since 1995, there have been significant changes in both technology and times. Furthermore, the terms of compensation have remained same even if the contract for the TDC’s website and digital services has been extended every three to five years. The previous RFPs that Two Oceans Digital successfully responded to, according to the auditors, were written in a way that was significantly more favorable to the incumbent business.

The audit notes that because of the seriousness of the flaws in the procurement procedure and the resulting contract, we advised the TDC to critically assess their agreement with Two Oceans in order to decide whether it would be advantageous to either immediately cancel and rebid this contract or take into account other options for website and digital services.

Franker has asked bidders to describe and provide examples of how the proposer would manage a website advertising program in the community and how the proposer would structure a revenue sharing model for website advertising in the new RFP that will be issued for website and digital services.

It’s frightening to change.

Due to the harsh audits that chastised the county and TDC leadership for inadequate oversight, the TDC, with the consent of the county commission, has implemented more reforms in the last four months than have been authorized in over four years.

Because of the first audit last year, Franker’s predecessor, Stacey Mitchell, was sacked in March. For the past few months, county commissioners have made it clear that it is their responsibility to restore public confidence and address the issues with Monroe County administration.

Following a nationwide search, officials recruited Franker, who is also an attorney, and have so far given her complete authority and a blank check to address the issues that auditors found.

Franker was blunt in her criticism of the TDC when she first came in September, but she also highlighted how incompetent Stacey Mitchell was. In September, Franker stated that there are 55 employees at the Palm Beaches TDC. The TDC in Monroe County employs thirteen people, and Mitchell was not allowed to bring on further staff.

Three new executive-level roles have been added by Franker: vice presidents of finance and accounting, communications and marketing, and administration and legal, who will all be attorneys. These will supplement the appointment of a new chief financial officer (CFO), which was approved by the county commission right away following the audits.

However, some people find all the changes unsettling, particularly in light of the unknowns surrounding a possible new advertising firm with an unproven track record.

On condition of anonymity to prevent resentment, a TDC board member and business owner told the Key Weekly, “We’ve known John Underwood and the guys at Tinsley for ages, but now we might be working with strangers; it just scares me.” I am aware that things must change. Because they were so ancient, those contracts were awful. I’m anxious because there’s so much going on.

At the BOCC meeting on November 19, county commissioner Michelle Lincoln acknowledged the opposition whisper campaign that has started to target Franker.

Lincoln added, “I just wanted to let you know that you have my full support.” You got down here and plunged right in, and now you’re discovering that the water contains sharks. Thank you for what you’re doing.