Website Development Services

The Vendor is required to provide web development services to agency marketing and communications team.
- Provide website and content management system development, and maintenance services for agency primary website.
- The user experience:
1. Connected Brand Story
•    Tell a compelling, connected brand story across the site that helps different user types to engage with relevant content, e.g., blogs, videos, news items. 
•    Encourage content sharing through social media.
2. Easier Access to Program Information
•    Help users quickly find information about programs of interest, including newly launched programs promoted through social media and other outreach. 
•    Streamline the applicant journey – from discovery to application intake.
3. Communicating Value and Impact
•    Identify better ways to show the value and impact of council investments leveraging mixed media, interactive maps and data.
4. Managing and Leveraging Inbound Communication
•    Implement a more effective way to manage inbound communication via forms, chat and email to ensure that requests for information and assistance are recorded, appropriately responded to, and analyzed for reporting purposes. 
•    Integrate closed AI chat technology to better serve users.
5. Encouraging Community Feedback
•    Establish a way for the community to provide feedback on invest council-funded projects and provide input on investment opportunities within the community.
- Provide to create a modern, user-friendly digital platform that effectively communicates the agency's mission, programs, and impact to a diverse audience, including residents, businesses, partners, and government officials.
- The new website must enhance the user experience, improve program engagement, and serve as a powerful brand asset.
- Key Functionalities:
•    Content and storytelling: features to tell a compelling brand story through mixed media, including blogs, videos, and social media integration.
•    Data visualization: integration of interactive maps and data dashboards to showcase the impact of council investments.
•    Program information: a streamlined and user-intuitive way to access program details, with a clear path from discovery to application intake.
•    Repository and news: a searchable repository for public reports and a dynamic news section with archiving capabilities. This feature should be searchable by the end-user (audience of the website).
•    Engagement tools: integration of forms, chat, and a bookings tool for managing inbound communication and requests.
•    Search Engine Optimization (SEO): The website must be built with robust SEO practices to ensure high visibility.
- Primary Project Requirements:
•    Website development strategy: partnering with the marketing and communications team for strategy, design, development, launch, and maintenance.
•    Stakeholder discovery: vendor-led discovery (surveys, interviews) with council staff and potential users.
o    Brand persona/guidelines will be provided by council.
•    User-intuitive program access: development of clear, easy navigation for high-priority and multitude of programs, tailored to different user types.
o    The current website does not integrate well with council current application intake systems. 
o    Council currently has two application intake systems in place named neighborly, and forward platform.
o    Interactive maps & data for dashboards may originate from GIS data, economic impact data, and program participation data.
o    Council envisions the level of interactivity with maps/dashboards to include simple filters and drill down capabilities.
•    Reports repository: design and development of an organized, searchable repository for public reports.
•    Acceptable file formats include .pdf, .xlsx, .doc as well as links to external sites.
•    Dynamic news section: creation of a searchable news section with press releases, news coverage, blogs, videos, archiving, and search capabilities.
•    Search engine optimization (SEO): mandatory inclusion of comprehensive SEO strategies.
•    Intuitive navigation & alignment: a clear navigation strategy, with a plan for aligning sub-brand and partner websites.
o    Currently atlinbusiness.com with the potential of others coming online
•    Flexible content management system (CMS): providing a flexible CMS that allows for easy content creation, editing, organization, publishing, and access control based on user roles.
o    Current content management system (CMS): nebo
o    Council prefers an open-source CMS solution that can be efficiently managed by a marketing and communications team.
•    Microsite capability: providing a website with the ability to easily create branded microsites for specific programs within the CMS (e.g., women's entrepreneurship initiative) with clean, shareable URLS.
•    Potential microsites include:
o    Women’s entrepreneurship initiative (WEI)
o    Atlinbusiness.com
o    Atlanta emerging markets Inc. (AEMI)
o    council partnership council partnership
•    Engagement points & CRM integration: design and development of clear contact forms/requests for follow-up, and strong recommendations with council existing bookings tool, live chat, and CRM system. Integrate closed AI chat technology to make communication and servicing more efficient.
o    CRM integration: NetSuite
o    Current bookings tool: Microsoft bookings
o    Current live chat platform: olark live chat
•    Analytics & measurement: integration of tools to measure user behavior, engagement, and traffic sourcing.
o    Current analytics tool: google analytics 4
o    Council is open to alternatives that integrate better with the new website.
•    Ongoing partnership: expectation of a plan demonstrating ongoing support for future changes, upgrades, and enhancements.
o    Council is seeking ongoing support for a period of 3 years after website implementation
•    Hosting plan: a recommended website hosting plan, including maintenance and cost.
o    Current third-party host: liquid web
o    Preferred programming languages: html, CSS, JavaScript and python or ruby.

- Contract Period/Term: 2 years
- Informational Session (virtual) Date: September 01, 2025
- Questions/Inquires Deadline: September 04, 2025