HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOW 2009-11-23 Item 4C - Agreement - Seattle Southside Tourism Website with PJKH LLC for $52,920 COUNCIL AGENDA SYNOPSIS
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ITEM INFOR 1,,,
cAS NUMBER: 09-164 I ORIGINAL AGENDA DATE: NOVEMBER 23, 2009
kGENDA ITEM TITLE A contract with PJKH, LLC on behalf of Seattle Southside Visitor Services (SSVS) for
website redesign and production.
:ATEGORY Discussion Motion Resolution Ordinance Bic1Award Public Hearing Other
Mtg Date 11/23/09 Mtg Date 12/07/09 Mtg Date Mtg Date Mtg Date Mtg Date Mtg Date
:PONSOR Council Mayor Adm Svcs DCD Finance Fire Legal P&R Police PTY/
;PONSOR's The Council is being asked to authorize the Mayor to sign a contract with PMKH, LLC on
,UMMARY behalf of Seattle Southside Visitor Services (SSVS) for website redesign and production in
an amount not to exceed $52,920.
:EVIEWED BY COW Mtg. CA &P Cmte F &S Cmte Transportation Cmte
Utilities Cmte Arts Comm. Parks Comm. Planning Comm.
DATE: 11/17/09
LECOMMENDATIONS:
SPONSOR /ADMIN. Mayor's Office
COMMITTEE Unanimous Approval; Forward to Committee of the Whole
COST 11PACTS /YF,U :S OURCE
EXPENDITURE REQUIRED AMOUNT BUDGETED APPROPRIATION REQUIRED
$52,920 $100,000
urid Source: LODGING TAX FUND 101.00.557.301.44.12 (NOT GENERAL FUND)
'omments: Unanimous Approval by the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee; Forward to Finance Safety
VITG. DATE I RECORD OF: COUNCIL ACTION
11/23/09 J
VITG. DATE I ATTA
11/23/09 1 Informational Memorandum dated 11/18/09
Proposal from PJKH, LLC
Minutes from the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee meeting of 10/29/09
Minutes from the Finance and Safety Committee meeting of 11/17/09
12/07/09
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City of Tukwila
INFORMATIONAL MEMORANDUM
TO: Mayor Haggerton
FINANCE AND SAFETY COMMITTEE
FROM: Katherine Kertzman
TOURISM PROGRAM MANAGER
DATE: NOVEMBER 18, 2009
SUBJECT: SEATTLE SOUTHSIDE WEBSITE REDESIGN
ISSUE
The council is being asked to authorize a contract with PJKH, LLC on behalf of Seattle Southside
Visitor Services (SSVS) for website redesign and production.
DISCUSSION
The website is a component of Seattle Southside's current project to enhance its brand and will work in
conjunction with a new advertising strategy directing users to the website. The enhanced website will
greatly increase the end user's ability to search for relevant information, create a visitor profile to
encourage them to revisit, create travel itineraries and utilize an interactive map. User stories, photo
tour and a new events calendar will encourage the user to stay in the website longer resulting in the
increased likelihood of a booked vacation. The new website will provide an internet booking engine
called Global Distribution System (GDS) allowing users to book hotel rooms, rental cars, and airline
tickets thereby reducing staff time by managing availability, inventory and rates of different extranets in
"one -go
Though it is not included in this contract, in the future we plan to provide translations into Spanish and
Japanese along with a version adapted to mobile devices.
Staff requested proposals from three website developers: Green Rubino, Exclaim, and PJKH, LLC.
Green Rubino did not respond to the request. Exclaim's proposal totaled $73,150 and included full
design. The proposal from PJKH totaled $50,400 but did not include full design. If we select the PJKH
proposal and separately contract with Exclaim for the design portion (which would add $17,000) the
total cost would be $67,400. We recommend adding 5% to the proposals to cover related expenses.
Jim Haggerton, Mayor
The current website (www.SeattleSouthside.com) is now 7 years old. While it was innovative at the time
of its creation, the site now lacks functionality for users and is not comparable to competitors.
Redesigning the Seattle Southside website was recommended by the Tukwila, SeaTac, Kent and Des
Moines Lodging Tax Advisory Committees.
Seattle Southside's website currently receives on average 14,346 unique visitors monthly since
implementing a new search engine optimization campaign in June 2009; that is up 180% from the same
timeframe last year. With an updated website that utilizes the current standards for online marketing
built in to the backend these numbers will increase.
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INFORMATIONAL MEMO
Page 2
Staff recommends PJKH, LLC because the firm is highly qualified to perform the work and provided the
lowest cost proposal.
Budget impacts: There is no additional budget request for this item. The cost for this work is included
within the Council approved 2009 -2010 budget; however, because the proposed contract is over
$40,000, it requires Council approval.
Since this is a tourism program item, this item will be paid out of lodging taxes, not the City's general
fund.
RECOMMENDATION
The Council is being asked to authorize the mayor to sign a contract with PJKH, LLC for website
production in an amount not to exceed $52,920. The Council is also asked to consider this item at the
November 23, 2009 Committee of the Whole meeting and subsequent December 7, 2009 Regular
Meeting.
ATTACHMENTS
PJKH, LLC Web Development Proposal
U.12009 InfoMemos\Memo to Fin Safety 2009 Website (Version4).doc
SSVS Wepsite Re
Prepared for: Katherine Kertzman,
Seattle Southside Visitor Services
Prepared by: Philip Hallstrom
PJKH, LLC
Prepared on: October 14, 2009
�ova
A 3106 60th Loop SE Olympia, WA 98501 T 360.480.1209 E philip @pjkh.com W www.pjkh.com
PJKH, LLC
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PJKH, LLC
Objective
Extend and enhance the existing seattlesouthside.com website to provide a richer experience for its visitors and increase
overall site utilization and visitor retention.
Timeline
The timeline for this project has not currently been defined and is dependent upon completion of website graphical
redesign.
Solution
Develop the website using the Ruby on Rails framework. RoR allows for very fast development and provides many nice
features that can be implemented easily. A general purpose content management tool for pages that are "mostly static"
will be built. Additionally, custom tools will be built for areas of the site that require them. The design will be executed by
third -party resources and will be implemented as part of this project.
A note on "Entities"
Throughout this document the word "entity" or "entities" refers to a restaurant, shop, hotel, attraction, meeting space,
transportation company, etc.
Re
ovatio
s
PJKH, LLC
General
Design of the website will be handled by a third party, most likely by internal committee resources.
Site will be developed using the Ruby on Rails framework (www. nihvonrails.nrn).
Hosting will be managed by a third party provider. I will provide recommendations and oversee site deployment.
All forms will use a captcha system to reduce the amount of spam (www.recaptcha.net).
Site will be tested for compliance against the Firefox 2.0, 1E6, IE7, and Safari web browsers.
Graphical Refresh
The current look and feel of the website, while having served its purpose well, is beginning to show its age. It has been
requested that a new design be implemented to bring the site up to date with current design practices. While the final
design will be a result of interaction between the designer and SSVS staff, the following goals should be realized:
Widen the overall page width from it's current 730px to 900px. Currently 95% of visitors have a screen width of
1024px or greater. This will provide more room "above the fold" for valuable content.
Create two distinct areas; one for the general public, one for businesses and press. The latter would contain the
majority of information currently residing in the right navigation bar.
Make it more apparent to visitors where and how they can interact with the site (i.e. newsletters, RSS, travel itineraries,
trip advisors, user stories, etc.)
Make the entity directories less like a directory listing and more categorical and browsable. One way to do this would
be to create a page for each entity "feature" (i.e. /hotels /with pools/ would list all hotels with a pool).
Organize packages based on category and have featured ones that rotate on the home page.
Brochure and info request needs to be more compact and customizable.
Have feature stories on local people, business, stores, festivals, activities, artists that rotate on the homepage with links
to an archive.
Photographic tour of the area. Allow staff to upload images, set captions, determine the order. System will generate a
slideshow of uploaded photos.
Hotel reservation button on home page with search for all different aspects. Search will utilize the Jack Rabbit
reservation system.
Create "printer friendly" version of all pages.
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Entity Enhancements
Create system to allow SSVS staff to associate entities with one another to indicate a relationship between them. On
the entity detail page these related entities would appear in list format and be linked to their own detail page.
Enhance the current entity models to allow an unlimited number of photos to be attached. These photos would
display as a slideshow on the detail page.
Enhance the current entity model to allow an unlimited number of YouTube videos to be attached. These videos would
display as a slideshow on the detail page (perhaps via an overlay similar to how many Apple movie trailers play).
Create RSS feeds to provide information on new entities, updated entities, promotions, coupons, etc.
Have different sections for groups and meeting planners.
Add functionality to handle transportation needs via a 'Need Transportation' link/button.
Free e- postcards.
Jack Rabbit booking agent.
Improve entity searching to utilize full text and fuzzy match algorithms.
Allow for multiple languages. This will require the assistance of a third -party translator.
SEC) Enhancements
Dynamically generated sitemap.xml file used by search engines in real time.
Ensure that every entity has fields that apply to the page title, meta keywords, and meta description.
Modify all URLs to include entity title in SEC) friendly format (i.e. "Family Fun Center" attractions /family- fun center
Radius Searches
Using the address information provided for each entity create search mechanism that can answer the question "What
is near my hotel Allow user to filter on restaurants, attractions, and shops.
On hotel detail pages automatically show several nearby restaurants, attractions, and shops.
Create a single "map" page which would show all entities in an embedded Google map. Allow user to filter types of
entities shown (i.e. "show only restaurants This may require some testing to determine feasibility due to density of
entities in /around Westfield Southcenter.
Photo Tool
Redo the existing photo tool to streamline the administrative process and ease of use for the end user.
PJKH, LLC
Staff would upload a single high resolution JPEG image, provide meta information (title, description, category, etc.).
System will generate appropriate thumbnails for end user browsing.
End users, once authenticated, would be able to download high resolution JPEG images after answering a simple
questionnaire about the intended usage.
This questionnaire would be purely for informational purposes and would not prevent the download.
Create RSS feed to alert users to new images.
PJKH, LLC
Events Calendar
Update the events calendar UI to encourage users to book a hotel for the duration of the event. System could display
hotels physically near the event itself. Alternatively, if legal, the list could be generated from a list of featured hotels. Or
the list could be comprised of hotels that meet a certain AAA rating.
Create an embed -able calendar widget that other sites could use to quickly and easily have a Seattle Southside events
calendar. All links in widget would take user to SeattleSouthside.com.
Create an RSS feed for upcoming events. This could be used by the general public as well as embedded into other
sites with links back to SeattleSouthside.com.
Allow users to indicate a desire to be reminded about specific events before they happen. User would be able to
specify their email address and how early to be reminded (i.e. one day one week one month An email would
be sent at that time reminding them of the upcoming event.
Visitor Profile
The visitor profile would let end users register for a SSVS account and provide information that would tailor their
experience by auto suggesting entities that may be of interest to them. A small set of questions would need to be asked
to determine their preferences (Le. "Do you like small and quaint or large and luxurious which would be applicable to
every entity type. Entities would then be similar tagged and /or rules would be built in (i.e. All hotels whose nightly rate is
$200 or higher is "large and luxurious This information would then be used to build a user specific page with
recommendations for entities that user might be interested in. Additionally this information could be used to send emails
about upcoming events that match their preferences.
Travel Itineraries
Create a system that allows registered users the ability to add entities to an itinerary and provide notes for each.
Users would be able to save these itineraries as well as print them.
Integrate Google Maps to plot entities on the itinerary and provide driving directions from one to the next.
System would allow SSVS staff to easily copy a user's itinerary, make changes, and publish it to a central location for
other users to see.
User Stories
There might be an issue with allowing users to write comments about a specific entity due to legal ramifications and the
need to be an unbiased source of information. User stories are an attempt to circumvent that while still providing
valuable user generated content and source of interaction.
Users would be able to write a story/anecdote about their visit to the area. The idea is that this would be similar to the
guest books found in many bed and breakfasts where people indicate why they were there (i.e. it was our 10th
anniversary and we stayed at and had a wonderful dinner at after which we went dancing at
These stories would be submitted to SSVS staff for review and possible publication.
SSVS staff would be able to edit and associate the story with related entities (for cross linking purposes).
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Once SSVS staff approves the story it would appear in a blog like format in a dedicated section of the website.
Additionally it would appear as a link on all entity detail pages it is related to.
PJKH, LLC
e
cget
PJKH, LLC
Descri
st
Site Foundation
Data Migration
Site Testing
Server Setup /Provisioning
Entity Enhancements
Jack Rabbit Integration
SEO Enhancements
Radius Searching
Google Entity Map
Photo Tool
Events Calendar
Advanced Search (full text, phrase matching, etc.)
Travel Itineraries
Blog
Business /Member Area
$4,800
$2,400
$4,000
$1,600
$8,000
$1,600
$1,600
$1,600
$1,600
$2,400
$2,400
$1,600
$3,200
$1,600
$3,200
Subtotal $39,200
Optional Functionality
Visitor Profiles $3,200
Photo Tour $1,600
E- Postcards $1,600
Calendar Widget I $800
User Stories I $1,600
Total including optional functionality I $50,400
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Co
PJKH, LLC
3106 60th Loop SE
Olympia, WA 98501
T 360.480.1209
philip@pjkh.com
www.pjkh.com
tact nfor
ratio
PJKH, LLC
City of Tukwila
Lodging Tax Advisory Committee
October 29, 2009 Thursday
12:00 p.m. 1:30 p.m.
Meeting Notes
Location: DoubleTree Guest Suites
Tukwila, WA 98188
Chair: Council President Joan Hernandez
DRAFT
Lodging Tax Advisory Committee Members Present: Chair, Council President Joan Hernandez, Mike Miller;
Mike Hansen; Tom Dezutter; Andrew Ciarrocchi; Michael Schabbing
Absent: Brad Knutson
Others Present: Katherine Kertzman, SSVS; Meilee Anderson, SSVS; Ashley Comar, SSVS; Kristina Thorne,
SSVS; Derek Speck, Economic Development Administrator, City of Tukwila; Rhonda Berry, City Administrator,
City of Tukwila; Ken Grant, Brand Strategist and John Schuler, Creative Director with Exclaim.
Meeting Duration: 12:00 1:30
Staff Coordinators: Katherine Kertzman, Tourism Marketing Manager; Kristina Thorne, Visitor Information
Specialist
1. Welcome and Introductions
Council President Joan Hernandez called the meeting to order.
2. SSVS Brand Rejuvenation Update
Katherine Kertzman introduced Ken Grant, Brand Strategist and John Schuler, Creative Director with Exclaim.
Mr. Grant proceeded with a status report on the contract, concept, and presented a draft for a campaign look
and feel. John Schuler reviewed current identity, graphic mark for logo and its potential uses both electronically
online and in print. Mr. Schuler pointed out three examples of concepts capable of integration with other
campaigns for group or business travel.
3. Approval of the Minutes
Mike Hansen moved to approve the minutes as presented. Andrew Ciarrocchi seconded. Motion passed all in
favor.
4. Budget
Katherine Kertzman stated approximately half of the budget has been spent and reviewed the Tukwila only
expenditures related to the Rock N Roll Marathon.
5. Funding Requests 2010
Katherine Kertzman reviewed the list of funding requests for 2010. Discussion ensued. Mike Schabbing moved
to support all requests with the exception of Sister Communities for All Nations Cup. Mike Hansen seconded
with an amendment that a letter be sent to the Sister Communities Management informing the organization their
request is not endorsed by LTAC.
6. Visitor Center Lease in SeaTac
Derek Speck provided an update regarding lease negotiations for the 3100 Building in SeaTac. Lease
negotiations are taking longer than anticipated. Katherine Kertzman introduced the temporary office space
rented in SeaTac. Ms. Kertzman informed the group due to the relocation into temporary office space SSVS
contracted with the SWKC Chamber of Commerce to service walk -in visitors during this transition. Ms.
Kertzman informed the group that Meilee Anderson had secured corporate sponsor for the flat- screen television
SSVS will display in the reception area when the new Visitor Center space is completed.
7. Visitor Guide Development
Katherine Kertzman reported previous editions to the current Visitor Guide received minor updates over the
years and is now outdated. Ashley Comar recommended an Interactive Online Guide be implemented to stay
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DRAFT
current with consumer expectations. Ms. Comar recommended SSVS hire Lunar Cow to create an updated
Visitor Guide both in print and online. In addition Lunar Cow will work with SSVS on ad sales to generate
revenue to help cover the costs of the updated version. Tom Dezutter moved to accept Ms. Comar's
recommendation. Joan Hernandez seconded. Motion to approve Lunar Cow for Visitor Guide carried all in
favor. None opposed.
8. Website Development
Katherine Kertzman discussed the history of the SSVS website. Ashley Comar reported after reviewing
proposals from vendors and developers her recommendation is to hire Philip Hallstrom for development and
Exclaim for the creative. Andrew Ciarrocchi motioned to approve Ms. Comar's recommendation. Mike Hansen
seconded. Motion to hire Philip Hallstrom for web development and Exclaim for creative content carried all in
favor, none opposed.
9. Special Projects
Katherine Kertzman reported on her role in the Governor's Tourism Commission and expressed a desire to see
Washington State Destination Marketing Organizations work in cooperation with Washington State Hotel
Lodging Associations to host a Governor's Tourism Conference. Ms. Kertzman stated the importance of
bringing the entire tourism industry together. Kristina Thorne reported the last Governor's Conference was in
2005. Ms. Thorne is serving on a committee to plan a 2010 Conference in Washington State. Ms. Thorne
provided a brief outline of the tentative plans for key note speaker, guest speakers, awards banquet, networking
opportunities, break out sessions.
Meilee Anderson reported on a cooperative effort to host a Conference /Familiarization trip to introduce the area
to Military Reunion Planners. Meilee facilitated a joint effort and generated sponsorships from hotels,
attractions, restaurants and transportation providers to provide Reunion Planners with a 3 night/4 day
experience in the region.
Ashley Comar reported the first Voluntourism package promoted on the SSVS website has generated bookings
for the Homewood Suites.
Meilee Anderson updated the group on the annual winter promotion "Shop Like a Rockstar."
Ashley Comar updated the Committee on recent PR efforts.
Ashley Comar and Meilee Anderson served on a committee for the Washington State Tourism Office's
sweepstakes "Experience More." Ashley reported the State Tourism Office agreed to invest $22,500 monthly in
advertising from November 2009 thru April 2010 to promote travel to Washington State during the non -peak
winter months. Each CVB and DMO has an opportunity to participate. Ms. Anderson secured packages
sponsored by hotels, restaurants and attractions to promote the Seattle Southside region in the state
sweepstakes.
10. Suggested Nominees
Katherine Kertzman reported there are two empty positions on the LTAC available and requested nominees for
consideration. Ms. Kertzman suggested three possible candidates for consideration: Miesa Berry, General
Manager, Homewood Suites; Maureen Huffman, General Manager, Embassy Suites; and Mike Bush, Marketing
Director, The Museum of Flight. Tom Dezutter mentioned Maureen Huffman had been trained by former LTAC
member Donna Rios and she would probably make a strong addition to the committee.
11. Other Business
Council President Joan Hernandez stated her term as the Chairperson for the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee
was nearing its end and that it has been her pleasure to serve on the Committee.
12. Future Agenda Items
Mike Hansen suggested the 2010 Rock N Roll Marathon be an agenda item at the next LTAC meeting.
13. Meeting Adjourned at 1:30pm
Lodging Tax Advisory Committee Members: Tom Dezutter, Mikel Hansen, Michael Miller, Michael
Schabbing, Andrew Ciarrocchi, Council President Joan Hernandez,
PRESENT
Councilmembers: Pam Linder, Chair; Joe Dune and De' Sean Quinn
Staff: Shawn Hunstock, Gail Labanara, Nick Olivas, Derek Speck, Mary Miotke, Katherine
Kertzman, Ashley Comar, Jack Pace, Rhonda Berry and Kimberly Matej
CALL TO ORDER: Chair Linder called the meeting to order at 5:05 p.m.
I. PRESENTATIONS
No presentations.
II. BUSINESS AGENDA
A. Seattle Southside Visitors Services Website Redesien
Staff is seeking full Council approval to enter into a contract with PJKH, LLC (Philip Hallstrom) in the
amount of $50,400 plus expenses in an amount not to exceed 5% of the contract total for the web
redevelopment (coding and language) of seattlesouthside.com website.
FINANCE AND SAFETY COMMITTEE
Meeting Minutes
November 17, 2009 5.00 p.m., Conference Room #3
City of Tukwila
Finance and Safety Committee
PJKH will work in cooperation with Exclaim, LLC in redesign of Seattle Southside's website in order to
increase the site's functionality and usability. The contract with Exclaim, for the creative development of
the site is within the limits of the Mayor's signing authority and does not require Council approval.
This item is included in the Tourism program budget which is funded with lodging tax monies, not the
City's General Fund.
Committee members requested an updated memo from staff to the COW, providing clarification on
specific contract cost breakdowns and justification of bidder selection. UNANIMOUS APPROVAL.
FORWARD TO NOVEMBER 23 COW FOR DISCUSSION.
B. Seattle Southside Visitors Services Vacation Planner Redesien
Staff is seeking full Council approval to enter into a contract with Lunar Cow in the amount of $48,484
plus expenses in an amount not to exceed 5% of the contract total for the new design and printing of the
2010 Vacation Planner.
The Vacation Planner is the official visitors' guide of Seattle Southside which is produced in cooperation
with the Seattle Southside Cities Tukwila, SeaTac, Kent and Des Moines. The proposal calls for
complete redesign of the guide including new data incorporation and an online guide. The guide redesign
has been approved and supported by each city's Lodging Tax Advisory Committee.
Although Lunar Cow is the highest proposal that was received, total expenses are offset by ad sales and
the costs may end up reducing costs.
This item is included in the Tourism program budget which is funded with lodging tax monies, not the
City's General Fund. UNANIMOUS APPROVAL. FORWARD TO NOVEMBER 23 COW FOR
DISCUSSION.
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