The Environmental Council of the States (ECOS) is seeking proposals from qualified vendors to redesign and support the website for a national initiative called E-Enterprise for the Environment (https://e-enterprisefortheenvironment.net). ECOS and its partners want to redesign the website to give it a fresh and modern look, improve the organization and usability of the content, more effectively communicate the value of E-Enterprise, and motivate more partners to engage in our work.
Proposals are due to ECOS by 5:00 PM ET on January 17, 2024.
Please see the RFP for complete details on how to submit a proposal.
Questions about the RFP may be submitted to rfp@ecos.org before January 10, 2024. ECOS will periodically post questions and answers to this page.
Questions and Answers
- The published RFP says questions are due on January 10th, but the page on the ECOS website said the 5th. Which is the correct date?
Answer: Apologies for the error! Questions will be due by 5:00 PM ET on January 10, 2024 as originally stated in the RFP. The text on the website has been corrected.
- What is the core stakeholder group and the wider stakeholder group for the project? The RFP mentions ECOS team members and the E-Enterprise Communications Team, but knowing more about the size and general makeup of the team reviewing deliverables helps us scope phases accordingly.
Answer: Two ECOS staff members will be managing the client side of the project team and providing official direction to the contractor. ECOS will coordinate engagements with a broader group of stakeholders on the E-Enterprise Communications Team which includes 8 representatives from U.S. EPA, states, and tribes. The Communications Team will provide feedback on deliverables to help ensure an inclusive and representative process.
- Would the team be open to a proposal covering just the Discovery and User Research phase of the project? For websites with needs defined like those in your RFP, we have found that a separate discovery project helps manage risks for the client.
Answer: For the sake of ensuring consistency and comparability across responses to the RFP, we are asking for comprehensive proposals that include best estimates for all work from discovery through design and development, and site operations. ECOS definitely appreciates and acknowledges that the scope could shift as we move through the discovery and research phase. Please make your best estimates on the anticipated level of effort and costs.
- Can you share a budget range for the project? This does not need to be an exact number, but sharing your expectations can let us know how to craft the proposal better to fit your needs.
Answer: ECOS has some flexibility on our available budget for this project. We are interested in hearing your best proposals for the work and expert opinion on the anticipated level of effort and cost.
- Would the primary point of contact be at ECOS or would it be shared with a member of the larger communications team?
Answer: ECOS will be the primary point of contact and will provide direction to the selected contractor. The larger E-Enterprise Communications Team will provide input and feedback on requirements and deliverables so that we have an inclusive and representative process that matches our commitment to partnership and shared governance.
- As this is government-related, are there any Section 508 compliance requirements that need to be followed?
Answer: This work will be funded by federal grant dollars. Per guidance from our funding agency, compliance with Section 508 is encouraged but not explicitly required. “Recipients are subject to the program accessibility provisions of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, codified in 40 CFR Part 7, which includes an obligation to provide individuals with disabilities reasonable accommodations and an equal and effective opportunity to benefit from or participate in a program, including those offered through electronic and information technology (“EIT”). In compliance with Section 504, EIT systems or products funded by this award must be designed to meet the diverse needs of users (e.g., U.S. public, recipient personnel) without barriers or diminished function or quality. Systems shall include usability features or functions that accommodate the needs of persons with disabilities, including those who use assistive technology. At this time, the EPA will consider a recipient’s websites, interactive tools, and other EIT as being in compliance with Section 504 if such technologies meet standards established under Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, codified at 36 CFR Part 1194. While Section 508 does not apply directly to grant recipients, we encourage recipients to follow either the 508 guidelines or other comparable guidelines that concern accessibility to EIT for individuals with disabilities. Recipients may wish to consult the latest Section 508 guidelines issued by the U.S. Access Board or W3C’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 (see https://www.accessboard.gov/about/policy/accessibility.html).”
- Are there any new features, not mentioned in the RFP document, that the new site will need?
Answer: None that we are aware of at this time, but we are open to recommendations from bidders as we move through the discovery and requirements gathering process.
- What third-party services will need to be integrated into the new site?
Answer: We currently use MailChimp to distribute our quarterly newsletter and to send periodic emails to our contacts. We are interested in suggestions from bidders for how we might be able to better integrate content distributed through MailChimp to provide a more seamless user experience and workflow. Other than that, we do not anticipate any requirements to integrate third-party services into the website.
- What is the approximate/allocated budget for:
- Design & development?
- Ongoing operational support & maintenance per year?
Answer: ECOS has some flexibility on our available budget for this project. We are interested in hearing your best proposals for the work and expert opinion on the anticipated level of effort and cost.
- Is there an anticipated kickoff date and launch date for the new site?
Answer: As stated in the RFP, our goal is to award a contract and kick off the project by the end of February 2024. We hope to launch the redesigned website by August 2024.
- How much support do you need regarding content creation or modification?
Answer: The RFP describes some of the challenges we have with our current content and ways we hope to improve and streamline it. We are not expecting a contractor to rewrite all of our written content for us. We do hope to find a partner with demonstrated experience helping clients strategically improve or streamline site content. This could include performing an audit of the content during the discovery phase and making recommendations for how to make it more engaging. We would expect the contractor to take the lead on developing any new design elements, graphical content, or modified information architecture. ECOS and our partners can take the lead on creating or modifying most text. We will rely on the contractor’s expertise to help us strategically modify it and migrate it to the new site.
- Will this new site need to have the ability to accept donations or accept other payments?
Answer: No.
- Our support services are best aligned with clients making relatively active efforts to enhance and optimize their site and digital communication. How many hours (i.e., 5, 10, 50) per month of support do you expect?
Answer: Following launch of the new site, we would anticipate our average monthly support needs to be approximately 5 hours based on prior experience. We expect this would vary some from month to month, as we cycle between routine maintenance and more substantial enhancements.
- What is driving the proposed timeline? It sounds very reasonable but we like to understand if there are any big events, outages or other factors we should account for in planning?
Answer: We have tentative plans for an in-person meeting of the E-Enterprise community in September of 2024, so we would like the new site to have launched prior to that event.
- Can you please describe, if there are any differences, between how audience members from EPA, State, Tribal and other groups use your website?
Answer: Audience members tend to look to the site for specific resources or information on teams or projects. While the content they are seeking may vary, audience members are typically using the site in similar ways.
- Are you interested in undertaking audience research such as surveys or interviews? And if so, have you thought about what audiences or how to recruit them for participation?
Answer: As stated in the RFP, ECOS would ask the contractor to “design and conduct a Discovery process to gather input from the project team and up to 10 user representatives. The process may include electronic surveys and/or virtual interviews requiring no more than 1-2 hours of time for users.” ECOS and the project team would identify this small sample of users and help facilitate communication with them.
- Are there efforts planned to help drive traffic and increase the prominence of the website?
Answer: We do not have specific plans in place at this time.
- Are you interested in integrating a 3rd party chart and graphics application on the new site to support data visualizations?
Answer: We are interested in bidders’ ideas to make the content more engaging. To the extent that this could require support from a 3rd-party chart and graphics application, we are interested in hearing your proposals.
- What kind of direct engagement/conversions are you expecting to be facilitated by the website? Are you hoping to take inbound messages or have direct communication? Or just support newsletter signups etc.?
Answer: We do not anticipate a need for direct user engagement through the website beyond our current approach of a contact form and support for newsletter sign-ups.
- How many pages and content types do you expect the vendor to need to migrate?
Answer: We expect to migrate most, if not all, of the content on the existing site. This would include approximately 24 projects and resources and any associated files and links; the About, Vision, and Contact sections; and the archived newsletter and webinar content from the News and Updates section. Videos from past webinars would continue to be hosted in our Vimeo account.
- How many email templates do you need the vendor to create? Have you set any standards around the browser/device/mail application combinations that templates should be tested in or must work on?
Answer: We have 2 templates currently in use with the MailChimp platform. One that supports a quarterly newsletter and another that supports occasional ad hoc email blasts for news and announcements. We do not currently have any standards set for browser/device compatibility.
- Do you need measurement planning, analytics dashboards or larger measurement and evaluation support for your website as part of this contract?
Answer: Integration with the Google Analytics platform will suffice.
- Is there any CRM we would need to integrate with? We are aware of MailChimp already as the existing email platform.
Answer: We do not have any CRM integration needs beyond Mailchimp.
- Will the agency be assisting in the creation of a new logo and brand guidelines? Are there existing brand guidelines in place you’d be looking to follow?
Answer: We are looking for support in brightening the color scheme on our existing logo and updating our logo accordingly. We are not looking for a whole-scale redesign of the logo and we do not anticipate a need for brand guidelines at this time.
- One of the answers mentioned that you’d be open to looking into an audit on content from the current site. How much content are you anticipating to be brought over to the new site? Additionally, is your team open to learning how to migrate content in an effort to reduce hours?
Answer: We expect to migrate most, if not all, of the content on the existing site. This would include approximately 24 projects and resources and any associated files and links; the About, Vision, and Contact sections; and the archived newsletter and webinar content from the News and Updates section. Videos from past webinars would continue to be hosted in our Vimeo account. We are potentially open to learning how to migrate content, but would appreciate pricing for both options since our bandwidth may be limited.
- The RFP mentioned long-term website maintenance and site monitoring. Are there any staff currently performing this role?
Answer: We will rely on the contractor to conduct maintenance and site monitoring that goes beyond basic content updates. Staff will be able to handle most updates to the content that can be handled through the CMS and do not require modification to the design templates or backend functionality.
- Would the agency be responsible for content updates?
Answer: ECOS staff will handle routine updates to the site content.
- For content writing, how hands-on would you want our writers to be?
Answer: The RFP describes some of the challenges we have with our current content and ways we hope to improve and streamline it. We are not expecting a contractor to rewrite all of our written content for us. We do hope to find a partner with demonstrated experience helping clients strategically improve or streamline site content. This could include performing an audit of the content during the discovery phase and making recommendations for how to make it more engaging. We would expect the contractor to take the lead on developing any new design elements, graphical content, or modified information architecture. ECOS and our partners can take the lead on creating or modifying most text. We will rely on the contractor’s expertise to help us strategically modify it and migrate it to the new site.
- Are you looking for a fixed budget or would you prefer a time and material estimate of hours?
Answer: As stated in the RFP, ECOS is requesting a “proposed project budget that includes an itemized breakdown of the estimated costs for time and materials to conduct the activities in the scope of work. Bidders should submit hourly rates of all key staff proposed for the project. For the 2 years of maintenance and operations support, bidders may propose an all-inclusive flat rate for regular monitoring and maintenance, an hourly rate to be billed as needed, or some combination of the two. If proposing a flat rate, the contractor should specify exactly what will and will not be included for the fee. If proposing an hourly rate, the contractor should provide a realistic estimate of the anticipated monthly hours that will be required to provide the support.”
- Is there any advanced search functionality you are looking for?
Answer: We would like to continue to offer a site search function as is available on the current site. We would need more information about what would constitute advanced functionality. Recommendations may be included in the proposal.
- For your webinars are you looking for any registration functionality?
Answer: No, webinars/registration are typically not hosted through the website. Recorded webinars are posted as resources.
- Do you have a CRM that you use for managing contacts? If so, would you want us to integrate that CRM with the website?
Answer: We use Mailchimp to manage contacts and send quarterly newsletters and occasional emails. It is not necessary to integrate it to the website, but we are open to ideas for how doing so could improve our content.
- Do you have any in-person requirements for this engagement?
Answer: We expect this work can be successfully done in a virtual setting and do not have any requirements for any in-person engagements as part of this work.
- Can you provide information on your team that will support the website after launch?
- Number of site administers
- Number of site editors?
- Number of users that need training?
Answer: We typically have 1 main site content administrator, but will want the ability to identify multiple editors–perhaps up to 5. We would expect a similar number of users that would require training.
- Can you send 3-5 reference sites that you find visually appealing? This is so we can have a visual feel of what you believe is great design and functionality. The sites do not need to be nonprofit organizations.
Answer: Our priorities are to have engaging visuals, a brighter color scheme, and more streamlined text content on the site. Some examples include:
- You mentioned that your team is comfortable using WordPress, are there any additional website platforms that your team has experience with?
Answer: WordPress is the only platform with which we have direct experience.
- Can you share 3-5 characteristics of your ideal website design & development vendor partner? It will be helpful to have a clear understanding of the type of partner you are looking for.
Answer: We are looking for a company with solid expertise in web design and development, experience working with small nonprofits with limited in-house capacity, and the project management expertise to keep the work moving forward on schedule.
- During the Discovery/User Research phase and the Design phase, will the full team – which includes the 8 representatives mentioned, be available for meetings to discuss audiences and goals, review designs and design revisions, and gather additional insights? We are always respectful of people’s time, but these types of team members are essential to a successful discovery and design process.
Answer: Yes.
- On page 5, there is a request for source files related to page design. We, and many modern design firms, use a program called Figma that creates files that can only be edited and revised by others with a Figma license. Does the team have access to that program so that the source files can be utilized?
Answer: We are only interested in source files for any graphics that the contractor may create for use on the site. For example, we would want access to an Adobe Illustrator file used to create an updated logo with refreshed colors or an infographic. We don’t necessarily see a need for the source files of the conceptual or final page designs.
- Related to the request for source files, there are always adjustments to designs during front-end development (font size adjustments and spacing being the most common two, as these vary across browsers and mobile devices.) To save budget and time, these changes are not made in design files. Does this align with the team’s expectations?
Answer: Yes. We are only interested in source files for any graphics that the contractor may create for use on the site. For example, we would want access to an Adobe Illustrator file used to create an updated logo with refreshed colors or an infographic. We don’t necessarily see a need for the source files of the conceptual or final page designs.
- On page 5 the RFP says “Conduct User Acceptance Testing with a small number of pilot users to be identified by ECOS (6-8).” The definition of User Acceptance Testing can have different meanings for different teams. For example, we prefer phrasing this as Quality Assurance Testing, because it sets an expectation that we’re making sure the site works as planned and designed by the whole team. Can you share the team’s goal of a round of User Acceptance Testing and what they are looking to get out of this during implementation?
Answer: Our goal with User Acceptance Testing is to ensure that the site works as planned and designed. Your definition of Quality Assurance Testing is consistent with our goals. We may have used the wrong term of art here.
- Is there a need to consider language support? If yes, are there specific languages ECOS prioritizes or wishes to target first?
Answer: At this time we do not have a requirement for support for languages beyond English.
- Do you have an existing search engine optimization team or site performance targets? If yes, is there a specific growth target for organic traffic that ECOS aims to achieve post website overhaul?
Answer: There is not an existing SEO team. The site tends to be accessed by E-Enterprise partners rather than the general public. The aim would be for them to find the site easily but a wider reach is not necessary.
- Does the 12-page proposal limit include a cover page?
Answer: Yes.
- Do you have staff that can assist in any manual content migration (if needed) or will the contractor be responsible for all content migration?
Answer: We are open to assisting with content migration, but would appreciate pricing for both options since our bandwidth may be limited.
- Are we migrating content or building from scratch? Is this programmatic migration or manual migration? Who is responsible for manual migration?
Answer: Existing site content will be migrated. We are open to proposals for automated or manual migration. Please make a recommendation so we understand the pros and cons of each approach.
- Are we going to need to integrate to external services like 2FA ones?
Answer: We do not anticipate a need to support two-factor authentication since we do not have a need to offer user accounts beyond those for site admins.
- How do you want to integrate with Mailchimp? Do you want to autogenerate a newsletter with the last content on the site?
Answer: Honestly, we are looking for ideas from bidders. We do not have a specific requirement for MailChimp integration, but we are interested in working with the selected contractor to identify possible ways to make our workflows more efficient and our content as accessible as possible. We would love to hear any ideas based on your experience.
- Are there any restrictions to users adding certain content? Is there any kind of admin approval needed to be published?
Answer: We have a very small number (~5) of users that have access to the CMS to make edits. We do not anticipate a need for more than two types of roles–site administrators and content editors.
- Are you going to sell anything from the site? Subscriptions, documents, courses maybe?
Answer: No. We will not have a need for any e-commerce support.
- Does the organization have any existing voice guidelines or branding guidelines?
Answer: We do not have any existing branding guidelines.
- What photo and video resources/assets does the organization currently have available?
Answer: We have access to photos and videos that are currently available on the website. If needed, we have budget to support the acquisition of new photo and video assets.
- Are there integrations with the website not stated in the RFP that can be shared with bidders? Are these integrations through third parties or coded within the website?
Answer: We do not have any other third-party integrations.
- Does your organization expect new content to be written by the selected vendor or just optimized for the website?
Answer: The RFP describes some of the challenges we have with our current content and ways we hope to improve and streamline it. We are not expecting a contractor to rewrite all of our written content for us. We do hope to find a partner with demonstrated experience helping clients strategically improve or streamline site content. This could include performing an audit of the content during the discovery phase and making recommendations for how to make it more engaging. We would expect the contractor to take the lead on developing any new design elements, graphical content, or modified information architecture. ECOS and our partners can take the lead on creating or modifying most text. We will rely on the contractor’s expertise to help us strategically modify it and migrate it to the new site.
- Has any research been conducted to gather UX and design feedback about the current website?
Answer: The team involved with managing content on the current site has provided input which helped inform the RFP. That team will be available during the project for further input. We also plan to solicit input from a small number of additional users during the discovery phase.
- Can you provide additional information about the number and use of the newsletter and email templates that are within scope?
Answer: We currently have 2 templates in Mailchimp–one for our quarterly newsletter and another for occasional email blasts.
- How do users typically arrive on your website?
Answer: We believe most users arrive through direct searches or from links in our quarterly newsletter or occasional email blasts.
- Is the content management team familiar with infographic tools? If yes, what tools are they familiar with?
Answer: No. We would rely on the contractor to help us develop any new infographics for the site.
- Is your IT team able to provide a dedicated development and testing environment in addition to the production environment?
Answer: ECOS is a small organization and we do not have an IT team. We would rely on the contractor working in conjunction with our web host to deploy the necessary development and testing environments.
- With respect to the project team and 10 user representatives, how much overlap is there between the roles and responsibilities of the 10 users you mentioned? I’m wondering if we can or should group individuals into a team workshop environment, schedule 1:1 interviews with each of them individually, or perhaps a combination of both. In other words, please let me know if you have any specific requirements or requests regarding how we structure the research process.
Answer: There is some overlap in the user roles in the group. We are open to either group or individual interviews. The site is simple enough that it would likely lend itself fine to group engagements.
- Are there any specific requirements or constraints regarding the hosting environment, other than the preference for Liquid Web?
Answer: No.
- What are the key reasons for preferring WordPress as the content management system? Are there specific features or functionalities that make WordPress the preferred choice?
Answer: Our primary reason is that our small staff is already familiar with the WordPress platform. Sticking with that platform will likely offer the least steep learning curve and allow us to make a more seamless and easy transition to the new site.
- How do you currently measure user engagement on the existing website, and are there specific metrics or Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that you would like to see improved with the redesign?
Answer: We have access to standard usage metrics through Google Analytics, but we have not made very strategic use of them to date.
- Is there any specific expectation for website navigation and layout to be improved to make it more appealing and engaging?
Answer: We do not have any specific specifications at this time. We hope to tap into the advice and expertise of the contractor to help guide us through some recommended adjustments based on modern best practices.
- Is there any specification on the expected frequency and nature of content updates on the website post-launch?
Answer: The content for the site does not tend to change all that frequently and ECOS would hope to be able to handle the vast majority of content updates/additions independently without contractor support.
- What are the key elements of the current brand you want to retain?
Answer: As described in the RFP, we only want to update and brighten the color scheme of the logo. We are not looking for a more extensive redesign of the logo or other brand elements at this time.
- Could you provide more details on the types of routine maintenance activities expected during the 2-year maintenance period?
Answer: We don’t anticipate a significant number of maintenance tickets from month to month. Once the site is deployed, we will mostly want to lean on the contractor to help us keep the CMS and any plug-ins up to date, ensure backups are running properly, deploy any necessary security patches, and make any necessary modifications to the site to ensure that its components are compatible with updates to the CMS and plug-ins. In the event that we identify a need for new or significantly enhanced functionality, we would work with the contractor to identify the level of effort and agree on a budget.
- What is the average number of maintenance tickets per month?
Answer: We don’t anticipate a significant number of maintenance tickets from month to month. Once the site is deployed, we will mostly want to lean on the contractor to help us keep the CMS and any plug-ins up to date, ensure backups are running properly, deploy any necessary security patches, and make any necessary modifications to the site to ensure that its components are compatible with updates to the CMS and plug-ins. In the event that we identify a need for new or significantly enhanced functionality, we would work with the contractor to identify the level of effort and agree on a budget.
- Are there any specific security requirements for the website?
Answer: Nothing specific. We will rely on the advice and expertise of the selected contractor to provide advice and work with our web host to ensure an appropriate level of security.
- Are there external consultants or agencies providing services, and what is their fee structure?
Answer: No.
- Are there current expenses for online marketing or advertising efforts related to the website?
Answer: No, ECOS does not have a budget for marketing or advertising.
- Is there an identified list of key keywords and phrases for the new website content? (or any SEO)
Answer: We do not have such a list at this time, but would be happy to work with the selected contractor to create one.
- Apart from Admin user, can you please let us know if we need any user role for the new website?
Answer: We would appreciate having the ability to add full site administrators as well as content editors with more limited permissions.
- Can you please let us know the current version of WordPress being used in the existing website?
Answer: The current website is running WordPress version 6.4.2
- Would you be open to theme-based design approach, or do you need custom design for the new website?
Answer: Our priority is a site that looks great, functions well, and allows us to easily add or modify content . We are very open to theme-based designs if they can meet those goals.
- For any integration with plug-ins/services, please confirm the client will provide us the APIs.
Answer: If integration with a third-party service such as MailChimp is required, then ECOS will make that information available to the contractor.
- Regarding search engine optimization, we will implement on-page SEO services. Please confirm if this meets your requirement.
Answer: ECOS does not have in-house expertise in Search Engine Optimization, so we will rely on the advice and recommendations of the contractor on the best approach.
- Do you need dynamic webpages? If yes, please let us know how many webpages need to be dynamic?
Answer: We do not anticipate a need for dynamic webpages, but bidders are welcome to propose that as part of a solution if you feel it would add value.
- Are you using the Managed WordPress product by LiquidWeb and if so, what plan are you currently paying for? If not, what product from LiquidWeb are you using?
Answer: We are not using Liquid Web’s managed WordPress product. We are using a fully managed Linux server.
- Is there any preference of the teams location, onshore only, offshore only or combination of both?
Answer: We will be using funds from a government grant for this project, so we need to seek clarity from our funding agency about whether there are any restrictions on contracting with entities outside the US. We have not yet received a definitive answer on this question. You are very welcome to submit a proposal and we will give it full consideration if we are able. In cases where a bidder is located in the US, but uses employees or contractors located in other countries, please indicate this in your proposal. We are open to considering such arrangements, but do acknowledge that there may be communication challenges if time zones are significantly out of alignment.
- Can you provide current GA4 metrics in terms of traffic and demographics? (We are looking for high-level information to understand website resource requirements, target audience (browsers, devices) for testing, etc)
Answer: According to GA4, the site averages around 800 users a month viewing an average of 1.77 pages per session and an average session duration of 1 minute. Users are mostly on desktop but some are on mobile devices. Chrome, Edge, and Safari are the most common browsers.
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