Request for Proposal (RFP): Paid Social & Digital Media Buying Services for English-speaking audiences in Canada

RFP Issue Date: 03 March 2026

Proposal Deadline: 20 March 2026

Amnesty International is a global movement of over 10 million people in more than 170 countries working together to protect and promote human rights. Amnesty is an authoritative voice on human rights. For over 60 years, we have provided reliable and accurate information about human rights violations and international human rights laws and standards.

This RFP pertains exclusively to English-language digital advertising targeting English-speaking audiences in Canada.

Purpose of this RFP

Amnesty International Canadian Section English Speaking is seeking a media-buying agency partner to support and scale our paid digital advertising efforts across key platforms.

We are seeking an agency partner with strong performance marketing expertise and a proven track record for ad management and audience building in advocacy, nonprofit, or political organizations. The ideal partner will demonstrate deep familiarity with platform compliance requirements and political advertising policies, and be able to navigate complex, multi-audience environments with strategic precision.

Above all, we are looking for an agency that upholds rigorous ethical standards and prioritizes brand safety in all aspects of media planning and execution.

The selected agency will act as a strategic and operational partner to our in-house digital fundraising and engagement team.

Current State

Platforms Currently Used

• Meta (Facebook & Instagram)
• WordPress Website
• Google Ads
• YouTube
• Testing: TikTok, LinkedIn

Ad Types

• Lead generation (hand-raisers, petitions, actions)
• Fundraising (campaign-specific, general appeals, micro-donation campaigns)
• Brand awareness and list growth to new and current audiences
• Website advertising
• Campaign mobilization (event, webinar, book club)

Approximate Media Investment

Please assume:

• A steady monthly spend range of 7000 CAD
• Increased spending during peak moments (e.g., Giving Tuesday, year-end campaigns, emergency appeals)
• Annual spend in the six-figure range (Exact figures will be shared with shortlisted vendors)

In-House vs Outsourced Responsibilities

In-House Team:

• Creative development
• Campaign strategy and messaging
• Landing pages and conversion flows
• Data analysis (CRM integration, fundraising reporting)

Agency Partner (Expected):

• Paid media strategy and channel planning
• Platform execution and optimization
• Budget pacing and bid management
• Audience development
• Performance reporting and insight generation

Key Challenges

We are seeking a partner to help address:

• Scaling into new platforms and formats (e.g., TikTok, Reddit, Roku, LinkedIn)
• Strengthening and diversifying online brand awareness among English-speaking audiences in Canada
• Managing multi-audience complexity (activists, donors, new supporters, diaspora communities, youth audiences)
• Navigating platform policy constraints on political/advocacy advertising
• Maintaining performance during algorithm changes or policy shifts

Scope of Work

Core Services

The selected agency will provide:

• Paid Media Strategy & Planning
• Channel recommendations
• Budget allocation strategy
• Funnel architecture (awareness → action → donation)
• Platform Buying & Optimization
• Campaign setup and management
• A/B testing
• Bid strategy management
• Ongoing optimization
• Budget Pacing & Forecasting
• Monthly pacing reports
• Spend forecasting aligned with fundraising goals
• Creative Testing Support
• Structured testing frameworks
• Creative performance feedback
• Collaboration with in-house creative team
• Audience Development & Targeting
• Interest, lookalike, contextual and privacy-safe targeting
• First-party data usage strategy
• Privacy-compliant audience modeling
• Platform Policy Monitoring
• Ongoing monitoring of policy updates
• Guidance on compliance risks
• Proactive alerts regarding changes affecting advocacy or political content
• Strategic alignment with organic social media

Platforms

Required Expertise:

• Meta
• Google
• WordPress
• YouTube
• LinkedIn
• TikTok
• Roku
• Reddit

Nice to Have:

• Pinterest
• Emerging or alternative platforms relevant to English-speaking Canadian audiences

Please describe how you:

• Manage sudden policy changes and message pivots
• Respond to rejected ads
• Navigate political ad restrictions
• Embed ARAO and ethics into your work

Out of Scope:

• Organic social media management

Advocacy, Human Rights & Political Advertising Experience

Given the nature of our work, we require demonstrated experience managing issue-based campaigns, advocacy advertising, and political or public affairs advertising. Agencies should also have a strong understanding of regulated content categories and the unique compliance, platform policy, and reputational considerations that accompany this type of work.

Please address:

• Platform Knowledge & Compliance: Your familiarity with platform political advertising policies, verification and authentication processes, identity confirmation requirements, and regional ad disclaimer rules.
• Crisis & Enforcement Experience: Your experience handling sudden ad takedowns, account suspensions or freezes, and instances of content suppression or shadow banning.
• Risk Mitigation & Escalation: How you proactively prevent account risks, monitor compliance exposure, and manage escalation procedures with platform representatives.
• Relevant Case Examples: Redacted examples of advocacy or sensitive-issue campaigns, including situations involving platform pushback or ad disapproval, and the outcomes and learnings from those experiences.
• Brand Safety, Ethics & Risk Management: Please describe your brand safety frameworks, internal risk review processes for controversial or sensitive content, how you ensure alignment between performance optimization and organizational values, your data privacy practices, and compliance with Canadian regulations (including privacy law considerations).

Measurement, Reporting & Learning

Please outline recommended KPIs for:

• Advocacy impact (actions, engagement quality, downstream conversion)
• Fundraising performance (ROAS, CPA, LTV modeling, donor retention signals)
• List growth and supporter acquisition

Include:

• Reporting cadence (weekly, monthly, campaign-based)
• Sample reporting format
• How insights drive optimization and strategic recommendations
• How performance insights inform creative and audience evolution

We are particularly interested in how you translate reporting into strategic action, not just dashboards.

Account Team & Governance

Please include:

• Proposed account team structure
• Day-to-day point of contact
• Senior oversight structure
• Escalation and crisis response protocol
• Experience of team members with nonprofit or advocacy accounts
• Turnover rates on similar accounts

Tools, Technology & Transparency

Please clarify:

• Whether ad spend is managed via:

- Amnesty-owned accounts (preferred)

- Agency-owned accounts

• Transparency of spend, markups, and fees
• Any minimum spend thresholds

Additionally:

• Your use of automation and AI tools
• Governance safeguards for responsible AI usage
• Data security protocols
• Access levels and ownership of ad accounts and data

Ad accounts will remain Amnesty-owned.

Pricing & Commercial Structure

Please provide:

• Fee structure (percentage of spend, flat fee, hybrid)
• Minimums or volume thresholds
• One-time onboarding costs
• Ongoing fees
• Contract term options
• Exit clauses and termination terms

Optional but preferred:

A sample budget allocation for a hypothetical campaign including:

• Lead generation (action campaign)
• Fundraising appeal
• Brand awareness component

ARAO, Accessibility & Values Alignment

Amnesty International Canada prioritizes anti-racism, anti-oppression (ARAO), equity, and inclusion in all aspects of our work. As such, we ask that you outline your organization’s ARAO commitments and internal policies, including representation within your team and leadership.

Please also describe how accessibility considerations are integrated into your media planning and buying processes, how you approach campaigns involving marginalized, diaspora, or global communities, and the language and cultural sensitivity practices you apply to ensure respectful, inclusive, and contextually informed advertising.

Proposal Submission Requirements

Please include:

• Agency overview
• Relevant client experience
• Proposed approach and strategy
• Team structure
• Pricing
• Case studies
• References
• Sample reporting

Please ensure that proposals are no more than 10 pages in length.

Evaluation Criteria

Proposals will be evaluated based on:

• Demonstrated experience with advocacy/political advertising
• Strategic thinking and scalability
• Risk mitigation expertise
• Transparency and compliance practices
• Measurement rigour
• Cultural and values alignment
• Cost-effectiveness

TIMELINES

• RFP Issued: 02 March 2026
• Vendor Q&A Period Opens: 02 March 2026
• Deadline for Vendor Questions: 13 March 2026 (5:00 PM ET) - Consolidated FAQ sheet will be made available upon request post this deadline
• Proposal Submission Deadline: 20 March 2026 (5:00 PM ET) - Please ensure the proposals are no more than 10 pages.
• Shortlist Notification: Week of 30 March 2026
• Agency Presentations (if shortlisted): April 6 - 10
• Reference Checks: Week of 13 April 2026
• Final Selection & Notification: Week of 20 April 2026
• Contract Finalization: By 30 April 2026
• Anticipated Onboarding Start: Early May

Submission Instructions

Proposals must be submitted in a single PDF file to: hello@amnesty.ca

Deadline: 20 March 2026