City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: MAY 7, 2024
FROM: CITY MANAGER’S OFFICE WARDS: ALL
SUBJECT: PROFESSIONAL CONSULTANT SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH RAINCROSS, INC. OF RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA, FOR DOMAIN MANAGEMENT, ON-GOING WEBSITE DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT, AND SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION FOR VISITRIVERSIDE.COM, FOR AN ANNUAL AMOUNT OF $66,960 FOR A FIVE-YEAR TERM, WITH FIVE ONE-YEAR EXTENSIONS THAT CAN BE EXERCISED BY MUTAL AGREEMENT, FOR A TOTAL CONTRACT AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $334,800 ISSUE:
Approve a Professional Consultant Services Agreement with Raincross, Inc. of Riverside, California for domain management, on-going website design and development, and search engine optimization for VisitRiverside.com, for an annual amount of $66,960 for a five-year term, with five one-year extensions that can be exercised by mutual agreement, for a total contract amount not to exceed $334,800.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the City Council:
Approve the Professional Consultant Services Agreement with Raincross, Inc. for domain management, on-going website design and development, and search engine optimization for VisitRiverside.com, for an annual amount of $66,960 for a five-year term, with five one-year extensions that can be exercised by mutual agreement, for a total contract amount not to exceed $334,800.
Authorize the City Manager, or designee, to execute the Professional Consultant Services Agreement, including making minor and non-substantive changes, and the contract extensions for the amount not to exceed $66,960 annually.
BACKGROUND:
In 2023, recognizing its role in driving economic growth, the City Manager’s Office initiated a destination tourism campaign to stimulate tourism and attract visitors to the city, leading to the inception of the Visit Riverside initiative. To bolster public perception and establish Riverside as a premier destination, the Office of Communications initiated plans for a dedicated website. However, due to constraints in internal resources as it pertains to web development, Raincross, Inc. was enlisted for website design and development. The culmination of this effort came in January 2024 with the launch of VisitRiverside.com.
DISCUSSION:
Given the distinct features of VisitRiverside.com, the urgent time frame, and the overarching tourism objectives, it is crucial to maintain efforts in on-going website maintenance, design, development, and search engine optimization (SEO). This is vital for meeting awareness and growth, and ensuring the site remains dynamic and current with up-to-date content. The City Manager’s Office is seeking approval to enter into an agreement with Raincross, Inc. to provide these ongoing services. The agreement would remain in effect for five years, with five one-year extensions that could be exercised by mutual agreement.
The services provided by Raincross, Inc. would include domain management, on-going website design and development, and SEO for the domain (VisitRiverside.com).
SERVICE
MONTHLY FEE
ANNUAL COST
ON-GOING WEBSITE DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT
(BUSINESS/ORGANIZATION LISTINGS, CATEGORIES, MAINTENANCE, NEW FEATURES) $3,240.00
$38,880.00
SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION
(SEO)
$2,340.00
$28,080.00
TOTAL
$5,580.00
$66,960.00
Purchasing Resolution 24101, Section 702(d) states that, “Competitive Procurement through the Informal Procurement and Formal Procurement process shall not be required in any of the following circumstances: …(d) When the Procurement can only be obtained timely from a single source and the Manager is satisfied that the best price, terms and conditions for the Procurement thereof have been negotiated.” The Purchasing Manager concurs with the recommendation that this purchase is compliant with the Purchasing Resolution No. 24101, Section 702 (d).
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT:
On-going design and development for the Visit Riverside website contributes to Strategic Priority No. 3 – Economic Opportunity and Goal 3.1 – Facilitate partnerships and programs to develop, attract and retain innovative business sectors. .
This action aligns with each of the Cross-Cutting Threads as follows:
Community Trust – The Visit Riverside campaign will empower residents to participate in and benefit from the tourism industry. During the inception of VisitRiverside.com efforts were made to gather feedback from all major stakeholders within the city.
Equity – The increase in tourism to the city has the potential to generate revenue that will go back into the General Fund to provide citywide benefit.
Fiscal Responsibility – The Visit Riverside campaign has the potential to stimulate economic activity within the city and generate revenue.
Innovation – Raincross, Inc. utilizes the latest technologies in website design and management as well as SEO to optimize the website’s technical configuration, content relevance and link popularity so it’s pages can become easily findable, more relevant and popular towards user search queries.
Sustainability & Resiliency – The VisitRiverside website will promote eco-friendly attractions and activities such as hiking trails and parks. In addition, featuring locally owned businesses on the website helps to support the local economy and reduce carbon footprint associated with large chain businesses.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The total fiscal impact of the action is $334,800 for the life of the term, or $66,960 per year. The funds for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2023/24 are budgeted and available in the General Fund, Non-Departmental City Manager, Sundry account number 7211200-450247. Appropriations for future fiscal years will be included in the department’s submissions for those fiscal years to be presented to the City Council for approval.
Prepared by: Kaitlin Reierson, Marketing Officer
Certified as to
availability of funds: Kristie Thomas, Finance Director/Assistant Chief Financial Officer Approved by: Mike Futrell, City Manager Approved as to form: Phaedra A. Norton, City Attorney
Attachments:
Agreement
Single Source Justification Form
Very Brief Title of Report ● Page 2