Contract to Provide a Digital Platform for Business Assistance in Exporting to Japan

Background British businesses are attracted by the opportunities in Japan, but exporting to Japan can be a daunting experience. We want an online hub where businesses can learn about opportunities, find tips on how to do business in Japan, view event schedules, and contact a team to have their queries answered.

Summary DIT Japan is looking for a partner to provide an online platform which will host digital content and provide an enquiry service with the aim of aiding British businesses find opportunities in Japan.

Requirement • Create a digital platform to host information related to exporting to Japan.

• Provide market information, reports and digital content via the digital platform. o Produce one podcast per month. o Plan and implement a payable export business support service, and respond to requests via that service within 3 business days. o Host, join and support 20 digital events (e.g. webinars) with DIT teams in the UK and Japan per year. o Create export business support guides on the digital platform and update them within 1 week of any substantial change. o Create list of, and engage with, key UK-Japan export stakeholders (a Partner Programme), and maintain the Partner Programme within 1 working day of any change. o Create and maintain blog-style sector-specific industry advice pages on the digital platform, including publishing event invites and newsletters when required.

• Provide a general enquiry validation and handling service. o Respond to all enquiries, between 500-900 per year, received via the digital platform's Contact Us page within 3 business days. o Implement and respond to enquiries received through a Chat Now function on the digital platform. o Work with DIT Japan to develop a workflow to handle enquiries depending on an agreed sector priority list, which is subject to change throughout the year. o Provide DIT director with a twice-yearly report of the enquiries and their outcomes with a sample of 10 responses for governance purposes.

• Create and maintain an online sign-up system for trade missions, and host information packs for mission members as required working with DIT Japan.

• Create a sign-up system with analytics tracking, ideally through Google Analytics, that's compliant with Government privacy regulations and periodically sharing this data with DIT. Specific metrics and sharing schedule to be agreed with the successful supplier upon award. Privacy regulations are detailed in point 9 of the Service Standard: https://www.gov.uk/service-manual/service-standard/point-9-create-a-secure-service

• Working with DIT Japan, issue newsletters and event invitations to signed-up users.

• Create content accessible only to signed-up users.

• Optimise search engine results for the digital platform.

• General maintenance of the digital platform, working with DIT, including logos and branding.

• Maintain the database of registered users securely in accordance with data protection laws.