Request for Proposal
Web Design for Propel 2 Grow (“Propel”)
30th September 2016
(Revised October 14th 2016 - issue 2.1)
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Contents
Introduction
Overview
o Propel2Grow(“Propel”)
o Ourtargetaudience
Specification
o Newwebsiteobjectives
o Newwebsitefunctionalityrequirements
o Optionalnewwebsitefunctionalities/wishlist
o ERDFBrandingandPublicityRequirements
Guidanceforcompleters
o Awardcriteria
o Proposalrequirements
o
RFPandProjectTimelinedetails
o
Questionsandclarifications
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Introduction
Propel2Grow(“Propel”)
WebsiteDesign&Development
RequestforProposal
ThisRFPisfordesignanddevelopmentservicesforanewwebsiteforPropel2Grow(“Propel”)
RFPSent:30thSeptember2016
ResponsesDue:3pmFriday14thOctober2016
SendanyquestionsontheRFPto:CraigHines,PropelProjectManager,
[email protected]
Sendproposalsto:CraigHines,PropelProjectManager,[email protected]
Goalfornewwebsitelaunch:Phase1-November2016,Phase2January2017
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Overview
Propel2Grow(“Propel”)
Propel2Grow(marketedas“Propel”)isanERDFfundedprojectofferingbusinesssupportto
growthreadySMEbusinesseswithinthecountyofLancashireUK.Theprojectwillalsooffer
supporttonewstart-upsandbusinessestradinglessthanoneyear.
TheprojectisdeliveredonbehalfoftheDepartmentforCommunitiesandLocalGovernment
byVedasRecruitment&TrainingLtd.
DespitethehighestproportionofpeopleemployedintheSMEsector,theNorthWestremains
thesecondlowestregioninEnglandintermsofeconomicprosperity,5thregionintheUKin
termsofGDPandatisalsothefourthregioninthecountryforBusinessBirthsandDeaths.It
naturallyfollowsthatifincreasedeconomicgrowthisgoingtobedeliveredwithinthisregion,it
istheSMEsectorthatisbestpositionedtodeliver.
Bydovetailingwithotherlocalandnationalsupportprogrammes,theprojectwillsupportthe
capabilityandcapacityofSMEbusinesseswithinLancashiretoachievehighgrowth(minimum
20%p.a)byprovidingindepthmarketandcurrentstateanalysis,strategicdirection,andthen
thepracticalimplementationofthesegrowthstrategiesbydevelopingpeoplecapability/
operationalcapacity/newproductdevelopmentthroughaccesstoworldclassspecialist
providers.Thebeneficiarywillbeaccountmanagedthroughouttheprocesstomaximise
success.
TheprojectaimstoachieveanincreaseinGVAof£7mfortheregionaleconomy,promotebest
practiceandimproveefficiencyandeffectiveness,create499newjobsandlaunch57new
productstothemarketbytheendof2018.
Additionally,theprojectwilldevelopstrongandinclusivepartnershipswithlocalstakeholders
tosignpostbusinessesthatcannotbesupportedbythe‘Propel2Grow’offer.Thiswillinclude
theLancashireGrowthHuborothersourcesofsupport–whetherpublicorprivate-toensure
allcompaniesthatseeksupport,receivetheappropriatehelporguidance.
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OurTargetAudience
Ourtargetaudiencearekeydecisionmakers(typicallyownermanagers,managingdirectorsor
seniorleaders)withintargetbeneficiarybusinesseswithinLancashire.
ThetargetbeneficiariesareSMEsincludingStart-upbusinessesi.e.newlycreatedbusinesses,
whohavethedesireandrealisticpotentialtoachievehighsustainablegrowthi.e.
•
•
•
SMEswithfewerthan10employees-thatover3yearshavethepotentialtoincrease
employmentby7membersofstaffORincreaseturnoverby£0.75millionperannum
SMEswithmorethan10employeeswiththepotentialtoincreaseeitherturnoverOR
staffemployedbyanaverageof20%perannumoverthe3yearperiod
Start-upbusinesseswiththepotentialtoachieveturnoverof£1millionwithin3yearsof
startingtradingORtohaveatminimumof10employeeswithin3years.
Oursecondaryaudienceareprovidersofsectorspecialistsupportwhomaybeabletosignpost
theirclientstotheprojectinordertoaccessadditionalsupportorfundingforgrowthactivities.
OurthirdaudienceistheemployeesoftargetbeneficiarySMEswhomaybeabletoinfluence
seniormanagerswithintheirbusinesstoobtainadditionalsupporttoaidthebusiness.
(SectorspecificexclusionsandeligibilityregulationsapplytoERDFfunding).
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Specification
NewWebsiteObjectives
Thewebsite’snumberoneobjectiveistogenerateinterestfromtargetbeneficiarycompanies
toenrolontotheprogramme.
Thesecondobjectiveforournewwebsiteistoinformandeducate,engageourfan/customer
baseandpositionourbrandasathoughtleaderthroughresourcecontent.
The‘Propel2Grow’websitewillprovideinformationabouttheservicesonoffer,including
thoseoftheLancashireGrowthHub.Itisdesireablethatthewebsitewillbeseenasa‘goto’
resourcetoolforthosecompaniesengagedonthe‘Propel2Grow’programmeandasign-in
portalonthewebsitewillbemadeavailabletothesegroupofcustomers.Tohelpfacilitate
this,thefollowingwillbeincluded:
Phase1
• Regularupdates:
o Businessnews
o SocialMediafeeds
o Videotestimonials
o Casestudies
o Servicedeliverychanges
o Calendarofevents
o ‘Registeryourinterest’form
• Linkstoandfromrelevantbusinessorganisationse.g.localbodiesincludingthe
LancashireGrowthHubandnationalbodiesincludingtheDepartmentforBusiness,
Innovation&Skills,UnitedKingdomTrade&Industry,InnovateUK
Phase2
• Clientsof‘Propel2Grow’willhavea‘sign-inarea’thattheycanaccessresourcetools
whichwillincludethefollowing(thoughnotlimitedto):
o Policies&Procedures
§ Equality&DiversityPolicy
§ SustainableDevelopmentPolicy
§ SocialResponsibilityPolicy
§ GreenTravelPolicy&Plan
§ SustainableProcurementPolicy
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o Selection&Recruitment–whattoconsider–whattoolstouse
o ContractsofEmployment
o ConsiderationsofdevelopingaSupplyChain–locally,regionally,nationally&
internationally
o Considerationstoenterexportmarkets
o Innovation
o Productandservicedevelopment–whatis,howtoachieveit
o Resourceefficiency
o Improvingbusinessperformance
NewWebsiteFunctionalityRequirements
Ournewwebsitewillneed:
• Aneasy-to-usecontentmanagementsystem(CMS)
• Intuitivenavigation
• Cleanandfocuseddesign
• OptimizedwithSEObestpractices
• Clearpathtoconversion/leadgeneration
• Ablog
• Socialmediaintegration(sharebuttons,followbuttons,etc.)
• Emailupdatesign-upform
• ContactForm
OptionalNewWebsiteFunctionalities/WishList
Wewouldlovetohavethefollowinginournewwebsite,dependingonhowtheseelements
wouldimpacttimelineand/orbudget.Pleaseprovidecostfortheseelementsseparately,and
noteifanyadditionaldesignordevelopmenttimewouldberequired.
• Homepagevideo
• Dynamicblogfeedsthroughoutwebsite
• Interactivemapoffacilities
• AdvancedSEOwork
• Separateloginareaforclients/suppliers
AlthoughcontentwillbeprovidedbyVedas,supportandguidancewillberequiredtoensure
thisismanagedanddisplayedinthemosteffectiveandprofessionalway.
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ERDFBrandingandPublicityRequirements
AsthisprojectispartfundedbytheEuropeanRegionalDevelopmentFund,allbrandingand
publicity(includingwebsites)needstobedesignedinaccordanceandcompliancewiththe
latestguidelines–alinktothelastestguidancepublication(September2016)canbefound
here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/553873/esif_
branding-and-publicity-requirements.pdf
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Guidanceforcompleters
Evaluationcriteria
Thefollowinginformationexplainshowyourresponsewillbeevaluatedandgivenascore.The
projectdoesnotbinditselftoacceptingthelowestcost,butseekstoawardonthebasisofthe
mosteconomicallyadvantageousoffer,withregardstoBOTHcostandquality.
Weightings
In order to achieve the most economically advantageous solution, with regards to cost and
quality,tenderresponseevaluationswillholdthefollowingweightings:
i.
Cost40%
Costwillcarryaweightingof40%oftheoverallscoreandwillbeevaluatedthroughtherate
submitted‘PricingSchedule’.ThePricingSchedulemustcoverallapplicablecosts,(travelcosts,
expensesetc.),shallbefixedforthelengthofthecontract,andbeexclusiveofVAT.
Pricing is evaluated on the basis that the lowest bid will be awarded the full 40% score. The
remaininghigherbidsarethenawardedapercentageusingthebelowformula:
Pricessubmittedaspartofyourtenderresponseshouldremainvalidfor90days(fromthedate
ofsubmission).
ii.
Quality60%
Qualitywillbeevaluatedthroughananalysisoftheinformationprovidedinyourresponseto
Requirements, and any clarification questions answered in writing or in interviews, (where
required).Scoresattributedtoresponses,aredecidedbasedontheexpectationsofthespecialist
projectmanagementpanel,measuredagainsttheproject’sobjectiverequirementsassetoutin
thisdocument.
Below is the evaluation criteria that will be used to score the Quality element of the tender
responses:
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Doesnotmeetthe
requirement
Partiallymeetsthe
requirement
Meetsthe
requirement
Exceedsthe
requirement
Allocate0points
Allocate1point
Allocate3points
Allocate5points
•
Alloftherequirementswillbescoredoutofamaximumoffive(5)pointseachandhold
aweightingof60%oftheoverallscore.
ClarificationInterviews
Interview dates may be arranged as part of the tender process. Interviews will focus on the
informationprovidedinyourtenderresponse.Thepurposeoftheinterviewsistoevidenceand
reiterateinformationprovidedinthetenderresponse,providingclarificationwhererequired.
Should interviews be required they will be held week commencing 17th October 2016 at our
offices(StJamesHouse,StJamesRow,BurnleyBB111DR).
ProposalRequirements
Pleaseincludethefollowinginyourproposalresponse:
• Overviewofyourcompany
• Overviewofhowyouwillmeetourobjectives
• Explanationofyourproposedplatform/CMS
• Outlineofyourwebsitedesign&developmentstrategy
• Proposedwebsitetimelinefromkickofftolaunch
• Detailsaboutyourteam
• Recentdesign&developmentexamples
• References
• Anykeydifferentiatorsaboutyou?
• Pricingwithoptionalelementsline-itemed
• Terms&conditions
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RFP&ProjectTimelineDetails
Inordertobeconsidered,anelectroniccopyofyourproposalshouldbereturnedviaemail
nolaterthan3pmonFriday14thOctober2016.
RFPSent:30thSeptember2016
ResponsesDue:3pm,Friday14thOctober2016
FinalistsSelected&Contacted:byWednesday19thOctober2016
WinnerSelected&Contacted:Friday21stOctober2016
ProjectKick-off:Monday24thOctober2016
NewWebsiteLaunchTargetDate(phase1):endNovember2016
NewWebsiteLaunchTargetDate(phase2):endJanuary2017
Questionsandclarifications
Ifyouhaveanyquestions,[email protected].
Pleasenotethatanyanswerstoanyquestionsorclarificationsmaybesharedwillallsuppliers
whohaveaindicatedadesiretorespondtothisRFP.
Previouslysubmittedquestionsandclarifications
Isthereanyformofcreativebrief,forthefront-enddesign?
Aspartofthistender,weareseekingguidancefromthesuppliertoformulatethe
creativebriefinconjunctionwithus.Wecanprovidebrandingguidelinesand
logos.Thewebsiteneedstobecontemporary,responsiveetc.Inregardstothe
designandimageryweexpectthesuppliertoadviseonandprovide.
Not
limitedtothebelow,wewouldneedpagescovering:
HomePage,Page(s)with
Propelcontent,CaseStudies,Tenders,Contact,Events,News
Doesthecalendarofeventsrequireanyspecifictechnology/customerinteraction,
orisitsufficienttomakethisa'standardcalendar'
WewouldliketoseeeventsselectedfromthecalendartolinktoEventbriteto
register/bookon.
DoesthewebsiteneedtoconnecttoanyformofCRMsystemorotherplatform
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(passingformdatathroughtoanothertool)
No
Doyourequireustoincludehostingoptionsintheproposal?
PleaseprovideanoptionalhostingcostingwhichisinclusiveofCMSupdatesand
alltechnicalissuesrelatingtothesitei.e.securityissues,browsercompatibility
etc.
Doesthephase2projectrequireeachusertoseedifferent/personalised
documents,orisitsafetoassumethateveryuserlogsintoseestandardised
documents(socustomerAseesthesameascustomerB)
Weneedthreelevelsofaccess.Internalstaff(a),consultants(b)andcustomers
(c).Internalstaffwillhavesightofall3levels(a,b,c).Consultantswillhaveaccess
totheirownfiles(b)andCustomerstheirownfiles(c).
Weassumethatthephase2proposalneedstobeincludedinthisproposal,asa
laterdevelopment.Technically(giveninformationprovided),thisisn'tcomplex,
andcouldeasilybedeliveredwithphase1.Isthisaseparatephasefora
reason?
Weareopentothisphasebeingcompletedatthesametimeifthereisnoimpact
onourexpectedlaunchdate.
WhowouldbetheprojectmanageratPropel-whatavailabilitywouldtheyhave
formeetings/consultation,andaretheyfull-time,part-time?
DanNuttall/FullTime.Flexibleavailabilityformeetings.
Whichsocialmediaplatformsareyoucurrentlyusing?Whichnewonesneedto
beintegratedaspartofyourrequirements?
Twitter,LinkedIn
Whichemailmarketingplatformareyouusing?
MailChimp
Page3andpage11ofthetenderdocstatesthatyourgoalforthenewphase1
websitelaunchisendofNovember2016andendofJanuary2017forphase2.
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However,shouldinterviewberequired,thenfacetofacemeetingswillnottake
placeuntil17thNovember.
Ourapologiesthisisanerror.Clarificationinterviews(ifrequired)willtakeplace
w/c17thOctober
Whilstdeliveringawebsitewithin5weeksisdoable,itdoesbringwithitsome
projectchallengestoensurethewebsiteisabsolutelyoptimisedforwhenitgoes
live.Isthereahardstrategicdriverforthe5weekdeliverydeadline,giventhatit
maybepushedbackby4-5weeksshouldclarificationinterviewsberequired?
Yes.Despiteadelaytotheagreementoffunding(causedinpartbythe
consequencesofthereferendumandchangeofgovernment),theoriginal
businesscaseforoutputsremainsthesamefortheprojecttobeviable.Asa
consequencewehaveaneedforaveryfaststartupphase.
Page10states'Allofthe15requirementsinSection2-Requirements,willbe
scoredoutofamaximumoffive(5)pointseachandholdaweightingof60%of
theoverallscore'.However,ifIcombine'NewWebsiteFunctionality
Requirements'and'OptionalNewWebsiteFunctionalities/WishList',Icanonly
comeupwith14items.CanyouconfirmwhetherI'mreferringtotherightlistsof
requirementsorwhetheritshouldbebasedon14itemsnot15?
Itis14not15.
Ifthequalityscoreisonlygaugedontherequirementsstatedinsection2,isthere
anyqualityscoreweightingappliedtothefollowingproposalrequirementslisted
onpage10?
•Overviewofyourcompany
•Overviewofhowyouwillmeetourobjectives
•Explanationofyourproposedplatform/CMS
•Outlineofyourwebsitedesign&developmentstrategy
•Proposedwebsitetimelinefromkickofftolaunch
•Detailsaboutyourteam
•Recentdesign&developmentexamples
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•References
•Anykeydifferentiatorsaboutyou?
•Pricingwithoptionalelementsline-itemed
•Terms&conditions
Contentisscoredonpages6-8requirements(exceptpoint10-pricing)but
inclusionslistedhelptosetthecontextfortheevaluator.
ThankyouforyourinterestinrespondingtothisRFPwithaproposalforournewwebsite.
Welookforwardtoyourresponse.
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