Whether you are developing a new website or redesigning an existing one, there are many considerations that will determine the scope of the project, the cost, and the positive end result - or ultimate return on investment (ROI) - your organization will see. The following document is a guide to help you build a detailed request for proposal to help you select the right vendor for the job.

Overview

Explain your project in general - what functionality do you want your site to have? What content will you require? How much input do you expect from us?

Not sure what you need? No problem - indicate that you are interested in evaluation services, which can range from a simple assessment of the current situation to an extensive strategic process that includes market research and focus groups.

Goals

What are the overall goals for your web site?

It could be as simple as a wish to keep up with the competition or a more ambitious rebranding effort to appeal to an increasingly younger, internet-savvy customer base.

What are the measurable goals of the project?

You might need to retain and generate new customers, add features to enable you to improve your sales process efficiency. Improve the way you anwer frequently asked questions. Reduce the number of click users have to make to access the top content on the site. The important thing is to know what you want to accomplish - we will work with you to define what steps will be taken to measure the agreed-upon goals, or what will need to be developed or monitored to measure the results set by the goals of the project.

Infrastructure and Hosting

Explain the Institutions Information Technology Architecture;

• Email
• Security
• Internet Access
• Existing website hosting

If you are a financial institution that provides customers with secure access to accounts via your website, please discuss your contract with your existing Online Banking Provider and Data Service Provider.

Explain your existing hosting architecture (process for accessing the website for updates) and requirements, if any.

Branding and Market Research Data

Explain how the website integrates into your organization's overall marketing strategy - what is the demographic of your users, is there any CRM data available, and, if you have a current site, how do you monitor usage?

Sales Model and Business Model

Your sales model is the process by which your organization sells its goods or services, taking into account the operational timeline. For example, for a realtor the timeline runs from getting a listing to the actual closing date. For a manufacturer, it's from raw material to finished product, to successfully shipping/delivering to the customer.

Your business model is the concept behind how you make money, i.e., selling real estate or making and selling a product.

Special Features

Explain any special features or functionality that you want to incorporate into the new website, such as dynamic functionality incorporating databases, forms, multimedia (Flash, video, audio), email marketing, discussion forums, content management systems (CMS) or e-Commerce.

Are there any forms that will need to be developed (i.e., contact forms, secure loan applications, shopping carts)? If so, will the data need to be stored in a database?

Functional Requirements

Are there any special requirements that need to be built into the site? (i.e. alternate content when plug-in's aren't installed, minimum browser functionality requirements)

Maintenance
Who will maintain the website? What aspects of the site will need to be developed for website administration. (content, databases?)

Post Deployment Marketing Strategies

What strategies do you have to promote the site once it goes live? Do you need to create a strategy?

Security

Content

What content will be provided to EnSky for the design of the site, and in what file format (PDF, Word, jpeg, BMP, etc.)?

• Copywriting
• Programming
• Images (existing photos of staff/offices/etc. and any corporate artwork, such as logos, may need to be scanned or re-shot for digital use)
• Process maps for databases and forms development.
• Keywords
• Gif or Flash Banner ads
• Branding Document

Site Comparisons

• Name 3 of your local competitors
• List their websites
• List what you like/don't like about their sites
• Identify any 3 websites you like (not necessarily in your industry)
• Describe what you like/don't like about them

Budget

Having determined the scope of the project and the requirements for getting it done, we can better decide if your resources are adequate to achieve your goals. To help you, we've developed the following loose guidelines. Help for Banks.

Timeline

When do you want/need to go live? We'll work with you to get you online on time and on budget.