REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL Great Parks of Hamilton County 10245 Winton Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45231 (513) 521-7275 GREATPARKS.ORG WEBSITE INTRODUCTION Great Parks of Hamilton County (GPHC) is requesting proposals for the following services related to the organization’s website: (1) Design and functionality; (2) Content management system; (3) Social media integration; (4) Online reservations integration; (5) Maintenance and support; (6) Project management.
GPHC’s goal is to improve upon the appearance, structure and versatility of the website and to create a simple and intuitive platform for guests to register for activities, programs and classes, schedule golf tee times, and reserve picnic shelters and campground sites. GPHC also requires an open source content management system that is user friendly and allows for flexibility and growth.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS Proposed website must meet the following minimum requirements:
1. Design and functionality a. Maintains the appearance of the current Greatparks.org website which reflects approved branding and image. b. A responsive design for the implementation of the website that is usable from all devices, browsers and resolutions. c. Mobile compatibility is required for all aspects of the website including the reservation system, checkout, account and cart pages. d. Allot areas for multimedia, forms, and interactive sources (video, image galleries, multimedia sliders, Flash elements, document requests, file uploading, comments, surveys, etc.) e. Utilize software that is considered standard in the industry and approved by GPHC.
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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL Great Parks of Hamilton County 10245 Winton Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45231 (513) 521-7275 GREATPARKS.ORG WEBSITE f. Mechanism for members of the public to convey comments, suggestions or questions concerning GPHC through a “Contact Us” page
2. Content management system a. An open source content management system (CMS). The CMS must include different levels of access for different types of users (park status updaters, department-specific content editors, content manager, full admin, etc.) with the ability to create additional users and levels of access. b. The CMS must have options available to add additional features for future extensibility. Examples of additional features include but not limited to: Plugins, modules, extensions, etc. c. A streamlined framework for data and file management for internal users with maximum end-user efficiency and satisfaction. Provides a uniform means of managing web documents, whether posted as web pages or downloadable files and directories. File structure needs to include proper directory paths and naming structures like the document/page title, description, event date, where possible. d. Flexibility for content contributors or designated staff to add, remove and update content using tools and templates that do not require extensive knowledge of web development languages or technical structure. e. Provide integration with existing Google Analytics.
3. Social media integration a. Create links directing website visitors to GPHC social media accounts in the header of each page. b. Ability for website visitors to easily share content across top social media websites. Content includes but is not limited to: photos, events, contests,
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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL Great Parks of Hamilton County 10245 Winton Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45231 (513) 521-7275 GREATPARKS.ORG WEBSITE media, etc.
4. Online reservations integration a. GPHC uses an online reservation system called Outbound Software. It is a web based system that contains one instance of a server database, containing reservation activity and participant information. The system is accessible both internally and externally via a web browser connected to a web server housing the online reservation website. i.
Types of reservations include but are not limited to: 1. Campsites and cabins 2. Picnic shelters and lodges 3. Birthday parties 4. Golf tee times, leagues and tournaments 5. Horseback riding classes and camps 6. Educational programs 7. Special events
b. Integration and functionality of the highest degree possible to the online reservation website, webserver and its associated SQL data utilizing an application programming interface (API) or plugin. i.
API calls can be made from an external content management system to the online reservation system via a SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol). All API calls can return an XML (Extensible Markup Language) or JSON (JavaScript Object Notation). Documentation from Outbound Software about API calls will be provided.
ii.
Framing for Outbound Software links such as the Basket (with quantity of items) in the header of the Greatparks.org website.
iii.
The Outbound Software links and content on the Greatparks.org website
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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL Great Parks of Hamilton County 10245 Winton Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45231 (513) 521-7275 GREATPARKS.ORG WEBSITE should update in real time based on data from the Outbound Software website. For example, when registration for a program is full in the online reservation system, the program should be visibly flagged as full on the Greatparks.org website. iv.
A timeout feature should be established for the reservation/scheduling process to limit the amount of time a guest can complete the transaction in order to maximize the availability of reservable items for all guests. An example of this feature would be the ticket purchasing on ticketmaster.com, where checkout is limited to XX minutes for purchasing tickets.
v.
Event calendar system utilizing content from Outbound Software that can be filtered and sorted by different parameters. Examples of parameters would include park, type of activity, age group, and department.
c. The following example websites are integrated with Outbound Software and have API driven reservation calendars: i.
Dallas Arboretum 1. Website – http://www.dallasarboretum.org/calendar 2. Outbound Software website http://reservations.dallasarboretum.org
ii.
Philbrook Museum 1. Website – http://philbrook.org/visit/calendar/ 2. Outbound Software website http://reservations.philbrook.org
iii.
Outbound Software’s Wordpress plugin example 1. http://wordpress.outboundsoftware.com 2. Calendar, Listings, Optional Widget for Individual Pages all
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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL Great Parks of Hamilton County 10245 Winton Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45231 (513) 521-7275 GREATPARKS.ORG WEBSITE driven by API d. GPHC will provide a point of contact from Outbound Software.
5. Maintenance, support and training a. The Greatparks.org webserver will be hosted off-site. The Outbound Software webserver will be hosted at our Winton Centre location. b. Assist GPHC in its efforts to utilize its hardware and software capabilities to host and maintain the website and its associated files. The hosting of the website will be at the discretion of GPHC. GPHC will have full hosting administration and control, but will consider recommendations for hosting. c. Provide a site warranty for a period of 90 days after site launch and a support plan for transition phase. Provide an hourly rate for additional support after the site warranty period. d. Provide a quote for annual support and maintenance of the website. Services such as refreshing the design elements, updating of technology in the website design, engineering, search engine optimization, content management and other elements associated with the GPHC website. GPHC requires these elements to be included with this project beginning with the first day of “go live” for the GPHC website for 1 year and, as an optional ongoing item and cost, the continuation of this support in 1 year increments thereafter. e. Website should be compatible with future framework updates. Hourly rate support must be available for major platform updates. f. The site must be designed for continuous operation 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year with express maintenance windows clearly defined. Host must have adequate redundant equipment to guarantee 99.999% uptime. g. Technical Support must be inclusive in the contract and available on a 24/7/365 basis.
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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL Great Parks of Hamilton County 10245 Winton Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45231 (513) 521-7275 GREATPARKS.ORG WEBSITE h. Provide thorough documentation and on-site training to GPHC staff to navigate the website, upload files (of all types), make changes to their individual portion(s) of the website, training a minimum of 5 full administrative or “power” users of the website, etc.
6. Project management a. Communicate weekly with provided point of contact for updates on milestones. b. Provide full administrative control to GPHC at the completion of the project. c. Transfer ownership of all files that have been produced during the project. Including, but not limited to: Source, graphic, HTML, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, PHP, CSS and images.
ADDITIONAL FEATURES AND CAPABILITIES The following is a list of additional features and capabilities GPHC is seeking in website services. The list is not intended to be all inclusive, nor is it intended to represent a minimum of features and capabilities.
1. Respondent may suggest improvements to navigation and end-user experience 2. Provide a usable and functioning search feature capable of easily searching the website for key words or phrases. 3. Provide registration and optimization with various search engines to increase visibility. 4. Create a Park Finder where guests can find a park by specific parameters such as: location, amenities, activities, etc. An example park finder can be viewed here: http://naturallyfun.org/parks/finder 5. Create a form for park status editors to easily update current park notifications and closures.
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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL Great Parks of Hamilton County 10245 Winton Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45231 (513) 521-7275 GREATPARKS.ORG WEBSITE PROPOSAL CONTENT All proposals are to include the following and with the numerical reference for easier evaluation purposes:
1. Contact information for the respondent 2. Location of respondent corporate offices 3. Number of years of experience respondent has in installing and supporting similar systems. 4. List of all current customers using the proposed service/system that GPHC can contact. Must include one customer of less than 6 months and one of more than 5 years. 5. Description of the proposed process for website design including how you intend to gather all of the required information, format preferred, and assistance expected from GPHC in order to complete this project. 6. Description of how your company intends to meet the Minimum Requirements desired as well as the Additional Features and Capabilities outlined above. 7. Description of infrastructure, utilities and tools proposed for web page creation and maintenance. Must use software that is considered standard in the industry. 8. Proposed phases or steps in implementation of the website design, infrastructure and hosting. 9. Proposal for migration of current website content to the new website. All pages, links, media and documents must remain intact. GPHC will provide a site map of roughly 200 pages of the existing site. 10. Description of ongoing support provisions. 11. Specifications and configurations required to support the proposed system, including specifications for all software components required for the system, but not provided as part of the proposal.
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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL Great Parks of Hamilton County 10245 Winton Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45231 (513) 521-7275 GREATPARKS.ORG WEBSITE 12. Information on hosting recommendations including specifications on security, disaster recovery, historical data preservation, and procedures for handling outages. 13. Separation of one time and recurring costs for: Website design; infrastructure; training; technical support; framework updates, etc. Please note that GPHC expects this to be a “not to exceed” cost. GPHC is tax exempt. 14. Completed Hold Harmless section of the Request for Proposal (page 11). 15. Initialed original of the Request for Proposal including all pages.
CONDITIONS OF WORK 1. Final agreement(s) must be reviewed by GPHC Directors and managers and approved as to form by GPHC Board of Park Commissioners. 2. Respondent will be responsible for all licenses, permits, fees and taxes associated with the system installation. 3. All hardware, network, and software installation and configuration must be performed in cooperation with GPHC.
CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS The successful respondent will be required to enter into a written agreement with GPHC in which the respondent will undertake certain obligations. These obligations include, but are not limited to, the following:
1. Inclusion of Proposal - The proposal submitted in response to this RFP will be incorporated as part of the final contract with the selected respondent. 2. Costs - All costs are to be stated in exact amounts. All costs must be detailed specifically in the respondent cost summary section of the proposal; no additional charges (e.g. for sales tax, transportation, container packing, installation, training, outof-pocket expenses, etc.) will be allowed unless so specified in the proposal.
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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL Great Parks of Hamilton County 10245 Winton Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45231 (513) 521-7275 GREATPARKS.ORG WEBSITE EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS Cost will be a significant, but not the only, criteria in evaluating the proposals. In determining the awarding proposal, the following elements will be considered:
1. The record, experience and ability of the respondent to execute work of like character, scope, and size to that described in the Request for Proposal. 2. Compliance of the respondent and proposal with the Minimum Requirements outlined above. 3. Appropriate technical experience in projects of similar scope and conditions. 4. Suitable financial status to meet the obligations incident to the work. 5. References
The award will be made to the qualified respondent whose proposal is most advantageous to GPHC with costs and other factors considered.
GPHC reserves the right to reject any and all proposals received, and to reject specific items included in the proposal.
GPHC reserves the right, when reviewing Proposals for award, to waive informalities or irregularities in the Request for Proposal procedure.
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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL Great Parks of Hamilton County 10245 Winton Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45231 (513) 521-7275 GREATPARKS.ORG WEBSITE PROJECT CONTACT Questions about the project may be directed to:
James Combs, Information Technology Manager Great Parks of Hamilton County 10245 Winton Road Cincinnati, Ohio 45231 513-728-3551 x299
[email protected]
DELIVERY OF PROPOSAL Each proposal must be received by the date and time set for closing receipt of offers. REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL: GREATPARKS.ORG WEBSITE is due no later than 4:30 PM EST on August 4th, 2014. The envelope shall be sealed and identified with the RFP name, the name of the respondent, and the date and time of closing. The envelope must include two copies of the proposal.
Note: Any deviation from this requirement may result in your proposal being considered non-responsive, thus eliminating your company from further consideration.
Proposals must be delivered to the Project Contact listed above.
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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL Great Parks of Hamilton County 10245 Winton Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45231 (513) 521-7275 GREATPARKS.ORG WEBSITE HOLD HARMLESS:
To the fullest extent permitted by law, I agree to defend, pay in behalf of, and hold harmless, Great Parks of Hamilton County (GPHC) and its Board of Commissioners, against any and all claims, demands, suits, losses, including all costs connected therewith, for any damage which may be asserted, claimed or recovered against or from GPHC and its Board of Commissioners and employees, by reason of personal injury and death; and property damage, including loss of use thereof, which arises out of the alleged negligence of the GPHC and, or in any way connected or associated with this agreement.
Company:
Address:
City, State, Zip:
Office Phone:
Mobile Phone:
Email:
Fax:
Authorized By:
Title:
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