RFQ Advertising Directory and Magazine Website

This is a request for quotes for the creation of an advertising directory website using Drupal 6.x for a life-style magazine.  More detailed requirements can be provided, but this document should provide a sense of scale and general idea of what we are looking for.

The main sections of the website will be:

• Articles
• Directory 
• Coupons 
• Engagement Announcements 
• Discussions/Comments 
• Ratings/Reviews 
• Banner Management 

In addition, several custom blocks must be created.  Ideally, the solution will not use any custom modules, but will be built using common and stable Drupal modules such as CCK, Location, Views 2, Faceted Search, Organic Groups, Flat Comments, etc... as you find appropriate.

An example of a site with similar functionality is: http://www.chossonandkallah.com/

A custom module will be considered if it meets Drupal coding standards, is fully documented, and we are given full rights to the source code.  Any custom code or changes to existing modules you make can be donated back to the community.

About Us

We have been working with Drupal in-house for about 6 months and will be using it as our platform of choice going forward.  We have launched one internally developed website to date at www.MachonMishpat.com.  New site requests are coming in and we need to grow internally, develop long term relationships with outside developers, and outsource projects as needed.

Based on our experience, we understand the effort involved in design and development and can communicate more precise technical requirements. We're not end users and have had over a dozen years developing websites.

Budget

The budget for this site is around $1500.  We know it is not a large amount for this type of site – but it is what a client came to us with.  We are extending this RFQ in the hopes that someone has created a similar site in the past and will be able to do it again very efficiently or has different cost structures than we do.

Timelines

We would like to receive quotes by June 24th 2009.  We will notify bidders by approximately July 3rd. We would like completion within approximately 5 weeks from the start date with milestones along the way.

Site Design

We will purchase an existing Drupal template (with your recommendation) and expect you to customize it as needed. The template should be cross browser compatible and separate the content from the design via template HTML files and a clean style sheet.

Articles

PDF versions of articles from the magazine will be uploaded to the site each month.  Each uploaded PDF article will also have a Title, Author, Description, Magazine Publication Date, Image, and Comments section.

Each month one article will be selected as a featured article and entered into the site as rich text.  This featured article will be displayed on the homepage as a teaser with a link and under the Articles section in its entirety.

An archive listing of articles should be available by year and month.  Each month's listing should have the teaser for the featured article first and then continue the list with the PDF articles for that month.

Directory

Businesses will be listed in the Directory and be organized by both:

• Categories and sub-categories 
• Location (States: California, New York, New Jersey, Florida) 

Users should be able to find businesses based on the categories and/or by the location for example, using the Faceted Search module to drill down first by Location and the by Category or by Category and then Location.

Each business in the directory will need the following fields: Name, Address, Phone, Website URL, Photo, Categories, and Hours of Operations

For each category a Businesses is added to, the following options should be available: Paid Placement? (Y or N) and Placement Position (N/A or a number).

When viewing a category in the directory, the paid for placement businesses will be listed first and in the order of their Placement Position.

Coupons

Registered Users that are members of the “Advertisers” role will be able to create and list coupons associated with their business listing.  All coupons will have a standard look and logo.  Users will specify the following fields:

Header: A short text field that will display in really large letters (10% OFF)

Details: Medium text field (10% Off During July – In Store Only)

Fine Print:A long text field that contains any disclaimers

Expiration Date:Date field that must not be larger than 1 month past the advertiser's membership on the website.

The website will display the advertiser's coupon details formatted to look like a print coupon that website visitors can print, cut out, and bring into retailers.

Engagement Announcements

Visitors to the website can create an engagement announcement. To create an announcement they must first register on the site and then complete a form which will include: names of the engaged, wedding date, and photo.  When an announcement is created by a visitor, the Announcement Managers receive an email and must log into the site to edit/approve it.

Discussions/Comments

A flat threaded discussion and commenting system must accompany each article and business listing.  Website visitors must register on the site before being allowed to post a comment.

Ratings/Reviews

A 1 to 5 star rating/review system must be available for each business listing.  Website visitors must register on the site before being allowed to rate/review a business.

Banner/Ads Management

Creation of ads in various IAB standard sizes.  Must have the following fields for each ad: Ad Name, Image, URL Address, Start Date, End Date, Business, and Categories to be Displayed.  In addition, the system must track the number or impressions and click throughs for each ad.

Banner ads will be created by users with the Banner Manager role. When a banner is created it must be associated with a Business and the locations (Categories and/or the sections of the homepage/website) it should be displayed in.

Businesses will be able to log into the site and see the impressions and clickthroughs of their ads (See Custom Drupal Blocks below).

Banner Ads will appear on on the top, bottom, and sides of the site. In addition, ads will also appear on the top of categories. If multiple ads are specified for the same location, their display order must be randomized.

Users, Roles, and Permissions

Administrators:Full access to the entire Drupal installation

Site Admins:The content owners of the website.  These people have full access to create and modify all content on the site including creation of new users in any role except “Administrators”, but do not have permissions to change or configure the way the site functions.

Article Managers:Can upload and edit articles

Announcement Managers:Create, Edit, and Approve engagement announcements

Banner Manager:Create and Edit banner ads

Subscription Managers:Can create and edit Advertisers and Subscribers

Advertisers: Have permission to edit their own business information and can modify and create coupons

Subscribers:An authenticated user that can subscribe to the site and be part of the mailing list

Custom Drupal Blocks

My Subscription: Allows a person with Subscriber Role to view their subscription start and end date for the magazine and the address the magazine is being sent to.  Also, a link to renew their subscription as well as a link to edit their subscription information.

My Advertisements:Allows a person with Advertiser Role to see a list of their advertisements, the number of impressions, number of clicks, and when the advertisements will expire.  There will also be a link to renew or modify their advertisements.

My Business Information:Allows a person with Advertiser Role to see their business information (Name, Address, Phone, URL, and Business hours) as well as the list of categories their business is listed under.  They can also click a link to request changes to their assigned categories.

My Coupons:List all the coupons the business has including the main text and expiration date.  The user can click each coupon to edit its information.  Also, a notice will be displayed that says when the business's advertising contract will expire (and therefore the last day the coupons will remain on the site).

Article Archives:List the titles of this month's articles, then the names of the three most recent months, then the name of each year.  Links on article titles will take them to the article.  Links on each month name will go to a list of articles in that month.  Links on each year will go to the a page that list all the articles of that year, grouped by months descending.

My Admin Functions:This block will list the different administrative functions based on the role of the person.  For example, Article Managers will have Create Article and List Articles; Announcement Managers will see a list of new announcements that need approval and have links to list announcements and create an announcement; Banner Manager will have links to create a banner ad and list/view banner ads; Subscription Managers will see requests for new subscriptions or changes to existing subscriptions and links to list and create Advertisers and Subscribers.