Prepared for Northwest Flower & Garden Show.

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1 Prepared for Northwest Flower & Garden Show June 16, 2010

2 Table of Contents Project Team...3 Project Summary...3 Challenges and Solutions...3 Project Goals...4 Company Background...4 Audience/Market...4 Calls to action...5 Competitor Analysis / Website References...5 Key differentiators from the competition...7 Tone & Manner...7 Design Direction...7 Website Design...8 Wireframe Designs...9 Site Architecture Content Management System (CMS) Functionality Details Search Engine Optimization Hosting Supported Browsers & Operating Systems Photo Content Written Content Embedded Video Page Width Client Responsibilities Schedule Working Agreement

3 Project Team Floyd Kolmer Eben Greene, Vision Keeper ext. 301 Patti Foster, Client Services ext. 322 Gabe Brauer, Creative Services Project Summary The creative team will design and develop a new website for the Northwest Flower and Garden show. In terms of design, the site will feature a modern and lasting design, with an easily interchangeable way to promote each annual show. On the homepage, the site will speak more directly to Exhibitors and Attendees, provide clear pathways for each group to follow. Show Highlight lead-ins will be featured for easy access to more information. Quick link ads ( Purchase Tickets My Garden Blog etc.) will be accessible at the bottom of ever page of the website. The website will be developed within the WordPress Content Management System (CMS). This will provide non-technical staff with simple methods for editing the content of existing pages, and creating new pages. Much of the current ColdFusion functionality will continue to be used, but will be more seamlessly integrate into the rest of the website. Challenges and Solutions The current Northwest Flower & Garden website has served the organization fairly well to this point. However, the site currently uses several disparate technologies which make the website difficult to maintain. Additionally, messaging and calls to action are not nearly direct enough. Specific Challenges and Solutions include: Challenge The website needs to appeal to a wider range of possible participants, and needs to speak more directly to both Exhibitors and Attendees. Solution Create a more visually exciting web presence, including a main feature area that can be modified annually to support and promote the upcoming event. Additionally, develop an area geared specifically towards Exhibitors and Attendees and provide them with clear calls to action. Challenge Having separate navigation items for The Show and Show Highlights is confusing Solution Consolidate those sections by moving the Show Highlights pages directly under The Show. Promote the show highlight items on the homepage through the use of javascript tab functionality 3

4 Challenge The current website utilizes several technologies (.asp, ColdFusion, standard.html) for the display of both static and dynamic content. This makes it difficult and confusing to maintain, and specifically requires that the navigation be updated in multiple areas each time a new page is added. Solution Re-develop the website within the WordPress content management system for simple maintenance of content. Continue to utilize the ColdFusion functionality as there was a significant investment in those tools and they continue to function well. Develop a dynamic header and footer which will be called by all pages, meaning the navigation will never need to be updated manually. Project Goals To design a website that will appeal to a greater range of possible visitors. To create a solid and longer lasting design that will allow for specific elements to be interchangeable to reflect each year s theme. To develop a website that is easier to update, maintain, and use. To increase the visitor base. Company Background The Northwest Flower & Garden Show is an annual show that is held at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle. It debuted in 1989 and was modeled after the garden shows in Philadelphia and New England, as well as the Chelsea Flower Show in London. Planning for the event begins many months in advance. Each year there is a featured theme. For 2011, the theme is Great literature brought to life. The theme will be executed through marketing, the web, and in the garden designs. Audience/Market Primary Audience: 1. Exhibitors 2. Attendees/gardeners Secondary Audience: 1. Potential Attendees 2. Press There needs to be a clear path for each of the primary audience groups to take to get to the information they need. Of the approximately 75 pages on the current site, only about 8 of them are directed at exhibitors. These pages need to be easily accessible and straight forward. A subsection of attendees/gardeners group that needs to be targeted is the under 35 year old new gardener. Imagery should target a range of genders, races, and people of varying economic statuses. 4

5 Calls to action To encourage visitors to buy tickets. To encourage exhibitors to log in and keep their pages up to date To encourage visitors to use the website as a resource for learning about gardening (year round). Competitor Analysis / Website References Northwest Flower & Garden Show s Current Website Northwest Flower & Garden Show s Current Landing Page 5

6 LA Garden Show Chelsea Flower Show Flower-Show/2010 San Francisco Flower & Garden Show 6

7 Philadelphia International Flower Show Key differentiators from the competition More energy More intuitive navigation Better / more efficient use of space (less fluff ) Quicker to load Tone & Manner Fun, educational, engaging, entertaining, approachable, family-oriented, exciting, community-minded Design Direction Design Elements: The Northwest Flower & Garden Show logo, design elements related to and supportive of the 2011 theme: Great Literature Brought To Life Colors: The current Northwest Flower & Garden Show brand does not have established colors. We will choose a color palette that will be complementary to the logo design and subject matter. Other colors will be incorporated through the use of photography. Footer: See following design examples: (like the large, colorful footer with logo, links, image links for Facebook/Twitter; like the small shopping cart icon on the bottom of the page would be nice to do this for tickets) (like the large, colorful, exciting footer) 7

8 Website Design We will create one (1) unique homepage design solution, with up to three (3) rounds of refinements, if needed. By applying consistent styles from the approved homepage design, we will then create an interior (child) page design template to be used by all interior pages of the website. We will allow up to two (2) rounds of refinement for the child page design template. 8

9 Wireframe Designs The purpose of the wireframe design template is to visually arrange the elements that are to be included on the homepage in an intuitive way, with relevance in mind. The template will be used as a guide only in the design phase, and the submitted design may not follow the template in terms of layout. Homepage Design Template 9

10 Child Page Design Template 10

11 Site Architecture Main Navigation Home The Show o About the Show o Exhibitor List o Container Show o Flower Competition o Marketplace o Preview Party o Special Events o Food and Beverage o Great Plant Picks o Sproutopia o Show History o FAQ s o Sponsors o Show Promotions o About Us o Employment The Gardens o Judges o Past Winners Seminars o Seminar Schedule o Featured Speaker o Book Signing o Seminar Passes Tickets o Ticket Outlets Visitor Info o Getting here o Show services o Hotels o Join a Group Exhibitor Info o Show Applications Main Exhibitor Application (restyle) Garden Creator Container Show Floral Competition Living it Up o Exhibitor Downloads o Exhibitor Login 11

12 Press o o o o Press Kit Press Releases In the News Press Photos * Denotes Dynamic Section Footer Navigation Contact Site Map Privacy Policy Site Credits NOTE Major changes requested to the Site Architecture after approving this document may require a change order and incur additional charges. Bold items denote top-level pages - Dynamic Content: Functionality will be carried over as-is. Will be restyled to match the new look and feel. - Currently in a database. Will be converted to static editable content within WordPress. - Will be converted from.asp forms to.php forms. 12

13 Content Management System (CMS) Upon approval of these Website Specifications, we will set up the WordPress hosting environment. This will consist of working with the Northwest Flower and Garden Show to get the application running with their existing host. WordPress is a free publishing platform that makes it very simple to maintain the content of existing pages and develop new pages without the knowledge of.html. There are hundreds of free widgets available which can be seamlessly integrated into the site for added functionality. In order to provide you with the knowledge and skills necessary to maintain the website, up to two (2) hours of training will be provided by the creative team along with written documentation for reference. Functionality Details Dropdown navigation will be used for easy access to appropriate sub-categories The website templates will be built using W3C standard compliant.xhtml, to ensure consistent viewing for all web-enabled devices Much of the ColdFusion functionality developed by Seattle Web Group will continue to be utilized on the new website. This includes the administration tools used to maintain those areas. We have coordinated with Seattle Web Group to develop a plan for seamlessly integrating that functionality into the website. The result will be that all pages* will utilize the same header and footer files, meaning navigation will no longer have to be updated in multiple areas. The repurposed ColdFusion functionality includes: The Exhibitor List The Main Exhibitor Application Exhibitor Login Seminar Schedule Ticket Outlet * The exception is the secure ticket order area, which will remain a stand-alone section Several pages that currently utilize ColdFusion tools for content management will be integrated into the WordPress environment, meaning those pages will still be able to be edited in a simple content management environment. These pages include: Marketplace The Gardens Seminars Tip of the Week Past Winners (Word Press photo gallery module to be utilized for this functionality) 13

14 Sponsor Section (Ads) with ability to randomly display multiple ads* Featured Speaker *There is an advertising manager plugin available for WordPress. If you need additional functionality, such as a counter for number of clicks or views, we can integrate this plugin at an hourly rate. There are several forms that send results via and utilize.asp for processing. These will be converted to.php forms so that they function within the WordPress Environment. These forms include: Garden Creator Container Show Floral Competition Living It Up Search Engine Optimization While some search engine optimization (SEO) services are included in the scope of this project, more robust, guaranteed SEO service through a vendor-partner is a recommended option. The following SEO techniques will be implemented as part of the project scope: Adding meta tags, descriptions, and other data to the code (if provided) Creating an html site map page which contains links to all pages of the site Creating a Google site map to improve rankings on that search engine Naming images and page titles with SEO in mind Redirecting pages from the current website to associated pages of the new website Site map submission to Google, creation of Google Analytics account Hosting The Northwest Flower & Garden Show will continue hosting with their current hosting partner. The creative team is not responsible for costs associated with current or new hosting solutions (set-up or monthly fees) or the setting up and configuration of new hosting plans. 14

15 Supported Browsers & Operating Systems To maintain the integrity of our designs, all websites are thoroughly optimized for proper display. According to industry standard, we support internet browsers and operating systems in use by the majority of internet users. Supported browsers and operating systems include: Internet Browsers Internet Explorer 7 Internet Explorer 8 Mozilla Firefox 2 Mozilla Firefox 3 Google Chrome Safari 3 Safari 4 Operating Systems Windows Mac Due to Microsoft phasing out support for Internet Explorer 6, we no longer include display optimization in this browser. However, we can provide website optimization for Internet Explorer 6 or other browsers not listed upon client request, which will be charged at our standard hourly rate. Photo Content If necessary, the creative team will search for stock images to purchase, which expense, upon approval, will be billed to Northwest Flower & Garden Show. We also recommend a custom photo shoot. Written Content All content will be provided by the Northwest Flower & Garden Show in MS Word formatted, or will be copied over from the current website. The creative team will load content for the first level pages in the navigation. The Northwest Flower & Garden Show staff will be responsible for loading content for all lower-level pages. 15

16 Embedded Video The creative team will integrate up to 3 video files into the Flash video player and embed them on various pages of the website. Acceptable Formats:.mov,.avi,.mpeg,.dvi,.wmv,.flv Dimensions: Videos should be submitted at a size no larger than 600px in width.. File Size: File size can vary greatly depending on the length of the video. Typically, it is best practice to keep the video file size under 5MB. Additional file size will affect load time. Page Width The website will be built at a fixed width, optimized for 1024 x 768 resolution browsers. Client Responsibilities The following items are the responsibility of the client: Approval on all designs before development begins Providing photography or approving stock photography estimates Written copy for pages not included as part of the creative team s copywriting services (in MS Word format) Approval of entire site prior to launch Should the Northwest Flower & Garden Show elect to host the new site on the existing hosting account, account login and FTP information will need to be provided. If the Northwest Flower & Garden Show elects to set up a new hosting account, we will set up the account and have all necessary access information. Schedule We re estimating that this project will take approximately 9 weeks to complete. Delays in review or approval will add to its length. This timeline will begin once this specification document is signed. Milestones include: Homepage Designs 3 weeks Interior Page Design Templates 2 weeks Development 4 weeks 16

17 ***Please initial and date every page of the spec before submitting the signed copy Working Agreement I agree to the scope of this project proposal. Northwest Flower & Garden Show CLIENT NAME Title 17