Proposal presented by McWeeney.
Feb 6, 2015
Table of Contents:
Challenge.
CKI is not capitalizing on recent media attention for articles written by Charles Koch, and not converting that traffic into meaningful interactions.
Solution.
We'll create a digital platform designed to host articles written by Charles Koch and any constituents, centered around (5-6) important issues that affect us as a nation. CKI can now effectively realize the media attention these articles generate and participate in the influence the Koch name offers, in a way they haven't before.
Readers will find articles containing a range of relevant media to tell a more complete story and involve them through smart, social integration. The platform will essentially, offer readers a unique point of view, and perspective on issues that might seem distant or until now, not fully understood.
Creative.
Crafting interaction with clarity and coherence.
We're here to move fast. We estimate (4-6) weeks to plan, design, and build the new platform for CKI. Beginning with brief discussions to quickly identify our readers, and our strategy, ending with a round of thorough testing, then launch.
Kickoff (Week 1)
We'll work closely with CKI to first, understand more about the needs of our reader groups, starting with who they are, what they need to see, to which type of collaboration options to offer them at launch and in the future. Doing so will ensure they'll favor the experience, return, share and talk about the experience elsewhere.Strategy (Week 1) With a clear picture of our readers, we'll contine to work closely with the CKI team to develop a strategy that enables us to present each issue with clarity and coherence, so every reader fully understands our position.
Copy/Brand Voice (Week 1/2) We'll develop the voice for this new brand/platform, alongside the CKI team, influencing how our mission statement and the overall tone of the experience. This core terminology and attitude will also influence interface elements to produce a truly cohesive experience.
Experience Design (Week 1/2/3) We'll take what we've learned and how we should describe this new platform to craft the simplest, most efficient path to issues and guide readers toward participation and sharing. The subject of each article will the focus, seamlessly integtating related content as part of the story, giving the reader a comprehensive picture of our point of view, and invite him to debate it, reinforcing the idea our platform is open, and worth sharing. The outcome will be a series of hi-quality wireframes we'll use to develop and design the experience.
Visual Design (Week 3/4/5) Using the wireframes as our guide, we'll design a beautifully simple, uncluttered space where issues are bold, well organized, and easy to consume on any device. Keeping the focus on what readers came for is our design strategy. As a result, we'll give them ways to quickly consume more, and share what they find.
Development (Week 2/3/4/5) Using the wireframes and early strategy discussions as a guide, we'll setup the basic WordPress functionality as soon as possible, using it as a foundation to build upon. Starting early enables CKI to enter content into WordPress from nearly the beginning, and it gives us real content to work with, reducing assumptions and expediting the workflow.
Launch (Week 5/6) We'll send rought a week BETA testing to ensure nothing was overlooled. Once everyone's happy, we'll move the website will from the secure development environment to the new domain.
Features and functionality.
- About page
- (5) issues (what, why, and info on each), including:
- Suggestion box (include ‘share your story’ – highlight some of the suggestions that come in)
- Ability to post original content: op-eds and advertorials (allowing comments)
- Comment moderation (DISQUS has been covered as an option)
Integrated social (e.g., share the story or site without leaving the site, latest tweets, a daily question asking visitors to tweet their response with the appropriate hashtag, etc.) - Data capture to stay informed of project and any events or articles about a specific issue
- “More to come” feature, explaining the long term commitment to these and future issues and an upcoming “get involved” feature (the reasons for people to believe in CKI’s commitment, return and take action)
Support.
Ensuring peace of mind and guidance for growth. Included.
For (1) year post-launch, we'll provide 24/7 technical and creative support up to (4) hours per month. We're here to address unexpected events, software upgrades, refine the interface, or help improve how the content is presented to ensure the user experience, and the performance of the platform remain top notch. We propose monthly meetings, on the second Friday, to discuss everything from internal and social feedback to the latest competitors, to upcoming editorial calendars, to plans for marketing and special events (see Marketing Opportunities below.)
Relevant Experience.
Together with our development partner Cremalab, we've created several award winning, highly-trafficked digital platforms, focused on helping grow communinites, introduce new resources, or raise attention for important civic and non-profit organizations.
1 Million Cups for the Kauffman Foundation.
Visit 1 Million Cups
Often times in large Foundations, the organization finds itself a few steps removed from the customers they're actually trying to serve. 1 Million Cups was built by Cremalab as an experiment to deliver meaningful content directly to entrepreneurs. In under three years, the program has grown faster than anyone imagined. 1 Million Cups operates weekly in 70 U.S. cities, and has gained major media attention for the Kauffman Foundation in Forbes, Fast Company, WSJ, and the New York Times.
Cremalab is currently building the global platform for 1 Million Cups scheduled to launch this Spring.
Neighbor.ly
Visit Neighbor.ly
Neighbor.ly offers a new experience for those launching their own projects, while maintaining the integrity of their existing brand. Made by Cremalab.
NFL Players Association.
Visit Your PAF
Launched in May 2014, to critcal acclaim within the NFL community, this unique publishing platform gives NFL players a new way to manage their lives after football. Each player can tailor the experience to suit his needs, connect with a resource, and easily share something important with other players.
Marketing Opportunities.
Working in close collaboration with the CKI team, we can offer years of award winning, consumer marketing experience, and connections with top media companies, to help spread the word about this new platform in meaningful ways. From unique media placements and social experiences, to interactive retail and event installations, and new uses of technology, to building partnerships and identifying interesting campaign opportunities.
Some of our successful, award winning consumer work.
Revlon.
Social Experience
We found women were using make to cover up or common colors to blend in. Revlon has been a leader in color and glamour for over 50 years, and felt it was time to remind the world. We created a global social experience that challenged women to try new Revlon colors and products in a way that focused on their features and accentuated their personality. With Revlon Brand Ambassadors and their celebrities friends involved, we introduced women to a new way of motivating and supporting each other using Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. As a result, Revlon experienced a rebirth as the original color pioneers, and inspired a new generation of women. At it's peak, more than 20,000 women a month participated and/or shared this unique experience.
United States Air Force.
Reality Show & Social Experience
The Air Force was after a new class of mechanice and engineers, the breed of engineers interested in making innovative new products and aircraft. Leveraging the reputation of World renowned Galpin Auto Sports, and the very best active-duty Air Force mechanics and engineers, Project Supercar was a unique build off to create two one-of-a-kind supercars. Fans flocked to Facebook and Twitter to follow and participate in the discussion, something the Air Force never experienced at this level. Recruitment numbers were 3-4x about average.
TD Bank.
Interactive Installation.
To publicize TD's unique paperless initiative in NYC, we brought the forest to the city. A life size, 0virtual habitat was created inside a TD Bank window and vintage NYC viewfinders were outfitted with audio and video. Busy New Yorkers were given the chance to interact with the animals, and virtually walk through the same environment TD is preserving everyday. In under 30 days, over 75,000 people spent more than 2 minutes with these experiences.
Time & Cost.
Creative (4-6 weeks)
$85,000
We've planned an expedited, yet extremely thourough creative process, with a trusted and experienced WordPress development partner with highly relevant foundation and digital community experience. We're confident we have the right team to create this new platform for CKI, and oversee its growth and industry influence.
24/7 Support.
(1) Year Agreement (Included)
Throughout this project and for a period of (1) year after launch, we'll work together to continuously monitor and improve the quality of the platform to ensure new features are meeting the original specifications for development, and our high standards of acceptance.
Hosting.
$250/mo. (Estimated)
We'd like to suggest CKI purchase hosting directly from Flywheel, a cloud-based WordPress only host based in Omaha. Flywheel has been Cremalab's trusted WordPress partner in terms of security and scaling, and more importantly, the dedication we look for in a host. We'll setup CKI with a custom plan to ensure we easily cover any spikes in activity. We can also suggest a domain registrar, if need be.
Marketing Opportunities.
We'd love to schedule a follow up meeting to discuss consumer marketing opportunities for CKI, designed to draw significant attention to this new platform. Recent efforts have ranged from $25,000 - $50,000 for concepting through a broad range of creative execution. We're currently working closely with a number of brands leading social efforts in terms of editorial calendars, content development and commerical photography. We're confident, together, we can create some groundbreaking consumer focused work in short order.
Thank You!
We welcome your thoughts and feedback.
Please don't hesitate to contact us with any questions, we'd look forward to continuing the conversation. We're ready to go as soon as you are.
More about Cremalab.
CremaLab, is a Kansas City based agency we've worked in the past on extremely compressed timelines, in particular, Bank Human Again for TD Bank was launched in less than a month, and even won us a coveted Webby Award. Crema's strengths lie in building smart, strategic, digital products with a lean and iterative process. On top of that, they have years of relevant experience leading strategy and projects for Kauffman Foundation, Independence Blue Cross and numerous start-ups and civic organizations.
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