Project Scope
We will develop a fully responsive, custom WordPress site for Race to Alaska. The clean, professional and easy-to-navigate site will take full advantage of WordPress’ abilities and meet best practices in accessibility, coding, and performance.
To increase usability, interactivity and overall “pizzazz,” we’ll use programming tools such as AJAX and jQuery where appropriate. Non-technical staff can easily update the site’s content.
In addition to smartphone and tablet, we will test in the latest versions of these desktop browser/OS combinations:
- Chrome (Windows 11 & Mac OSX)
- Firefox (Windows 11 & Mac OSX)
- Safari (Mac OSX)
- Microsoft Edge (Windows 11)
About Jeff Brock Studio
With 25 years of experience in web design and development, Jeff Brock Studio LLC applies a wide range of technical and creative expertise to enhance our clients’ web presence. We empower our clients with tools and training, so they can manage their own content after we launch their sites.
The Studio’s background as WordPress experts will allow us to exceed the needs of Race to Alaska’s stakeholders. Owner Jeff Brock has been a featured speaker at WordCamp Seattle (the largest WordPress event in the Pacific Northwest) and at WordCamp Vancouver B.C. His first talk, “Client-Proofing Your WordPress Sites”, demonstrated the Studio’s commitment to making back-ends that are easy for clients to use. His second talk, “Bootstrap Your WordPress Workflow”, described his approach to streamlining WordPress development with Bootstrap, Git, and other tools.
We use our time efficiently and are enthusiastically meticulous! We write clean code that is fast loading; is compliant with current web standards/best practices; and is easy for search engines to index. We have a robust testing environment with multiple web browsers and operating systems, as well as version control so we can easily revert to earlier variations of code. We build infrastructure with an eye toward enabling future site expansion.
View our design and development case studies. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at 206.698.4421 or [email protected].
Section A: Infrastructure
A1: Setup of new web hosting service
The web hosting provider we recommend is WP Engine. They’ve fine-tuned their hardware and software specifically to WordPress. The appropriate plan for Race to Alaska’s needs is the “Managed WordPress – Professional” plan, $39/month. This plan includes 3 sites, allowing for future growth.
Some features include:
- Very speedy caching system with hundreds of WordPress-specific rules
- Automated daily backups, and unlimited manual backups, so the site can be instantly restored in a single click
- Staging site can be created and synced in one click
- Excellent page performance tool that offers recommendations for greater speed
- Free SSL certificate through “Let’s Encrypt”
- Proactive detection and elimination of malware
- Content Delivery Network (CDN) offering blazing fast load times for globally accessed content
- Multiple, powerful firewalls between your data and threats
- See access and error logs directly from the WordPress dashboard
- Redirect rules
We’ll install and configure a full suite of WordPress plugins, including:
- Yoast SEO: Customizes a wide range of search engine optimization needs such as titles and per-page META descriptions.
- Wordfence: Continuously prevents, patrols and protects site against today’s ultra-advanced cyber attacks, hacks and online security threats.
- Advanced Custom Fields PRO: Adds custom fields to the standard WordPress editor, making it easier & faster to manage your content.
- Site Kit by Google: Displays reports from Google Analytics and Google Search Console in your WordPress Dashboard.
- Admin Columns Pro: Allows administrators to organize, find and update WordPress content quickly.
- SearchWP: Provides a robust and customizable internal search engine, greatly improving upon WordPress’ native search function.
Performance boost: In addition to configuring the webserver’s page and database caching tools, we’ll deploy a quartet of plugins that work together to boost performance:
- Autoptimize (speeds up the site by combining and shrinking JavaScript, CSS and HTML)
- Shortpixel (optimizes images on the fly, by resizing them and using next-generation image formats like WebP)
- CriticalCSS (front-loads the CSS needed for a quick initial screenful on mobile)
- RapidLoad (greatly reduces size of CSS for each page by automatically including only what’s needed for that page)
Race to Alaska will be responsible for paying hosting fees to WP Engine separately.
A2: Switchover of staging site to production
Includes:
- SSL certificate setup.
- Pointing URL to Race to Alaska’s server.
- Creating redirects from old pages to their counterparts on the new site, if necessary.
- Connecting Google Search Console to site.
- Other prep/cleanup.
Total for Infrastructure
Section B: Development
B1: Custom WordPress theme development
Following best practices, the theme will be based on Understrap, a rock-solid, open-source combination of:
- Bootstrap 5, the most popular HTML, CSS, and JavaScript framework for developing responsive web projects.
- Underscores, a starter HTML5 WordPress theme built by the company behind WordPress.com.
We’ve added to the framework a wide variety of custom front-end enhancements and intuitive back-end improvements.
The mobile-first and fully responsive website will be based on the Center’s design comps, but we’ll work with the Center’s designer early in the process to ensure the design is feasible to build within the budget and timeline. We’ll code the website so that Race to Alaska can easily change copy, images and navigation menu items, without knowing HTML or PHP.
Theme features will include:
- Navigation and utility menus.
- Robust search tool with predictive live search. In addition to web pages, the tool searches the text of PDFs.
- Custom page builder with easy-to-use drag-and-drop blocks, carefully tailored to Race to Alaska’s needs.
- Continued integration with Gravity Forms and Gravity Kit.
- Blog with categories.
- Ability to enforce image proportions with easy cropping tool.
- Custom webfonts.
- Favicon.
- Footer with grouped navigation links.
We’ll import existing pages, forms, blog posts, galleries, and the Media Library.
Technical features will include:
- Adherence to WCAG 2.1 Accessibility standards
- Properly indented and commented HTML5 and CSS3, built with SASS
- Optimized images
- Search engine optimization of code
- Latest version of WordPress
- Private GitHub repository
We’ll repeatedly run the site through Google PageSpeed Insights during development, to ensure it’s configured to run quickly. The site will use well-coded, best-of-breed plugins to ensure it’s as light a download as possible.
Includes 2 rounds of edits, as well as Testing & QA.
Total for Development
Section C: Training
C1: Training on how to maintain site
Empowering clients to maintain their own sites is one of the Studio’s strengths. Our WordPress training for R2AK staff will take place via Zoom, in a single 60-90 minute session, recorded for future reference.
Total for Training
Total for Overall Project
Development timeline
About this estimate
Project estimates are valid for 90 days from the date of this estimate. Jeff Brock Studio may re-estimate the project if, upon receipt of all project elements, we determine the scope of the project has been altered dramatically from the originally agreed upon concept.
Bug-free guarantee
We warrant that for 30 days following the launch of the website, the site will be free from programming errors. If any errors or other defects are discovered during the warranty period, we’ll promptly remedy them at our own expense.
Payment plan
Once we and Northwest Maritime Center agree upon the elements in this Proposal, we’ll convert it into a Work Plan and will prepare a Web Development Agreement. A deposit of $3,000 (50% of the estimated cost of the project) will be due when Race to Alaska electronically signs the Agreement via DocuSign.
We can begin work on the project once we receive the deposit.
Development will take place on the Center’s new WP Engine webserver. After Center staff have reviewed the final version of the site and are ready to launch, we’ll send a Launch Invoice for the remaining amount due. Once the Center has paid the Launch Invoice, we will make the site live within 1 business day.
Jeff Brock Studio LLC accepts payment by:
Ongoing maintenance
Upgrades
WordPress offers an easy upgrade system for its core and plugins; after the end of our initial contract, we’re available to install upgrades as they’re released, at $125/hour. This typically involves 30-60 minutes a month.
Technical support
Race to Alaska will have full access to upload and edit content on the site, but we’ll be available via phone or email for any questions that come up. As feedback comes in from users, we can work with Race to Alaska to add new features at $125/hour.