DePaul Athletics

Request for Information

Men’s Basketball Recruiting Website

Request for Information Issue Date

Date: May 26, 2011

Due Date

Date: June 2, 2011 Time: 11:00am

DePaul University Contact: Jake Moy Technology Buyer (312) 362-8542 [email protected] I. Summary and Objectives

DePaul University is seeking information relating to the design and development of a men’s basketball recruiting website. This site would be separate from the main athletics website (www.depaulbluedemons.com) and be geared towards prospective student athletes and other individuals associated with them (e.g. parents, family members, coaches, teachers, mentors).

This new website would be designed to: • Showcase the high quality of life that comes with being a part of DePaul Basketball, including the campus and city of Chicago • Ensure visitors to the site are energized and excited to become a part of the DePaul Basketball program • Show visitors the personalities of the players, coaches and everyone involved in the program • Allow prospective student athletes to contact the University for more information, indicate interest in recruitment, etc.

Additionally, this site may be used to also promote the program to gain interest and support from the DePaul and Chicagoland community. It may also be featured in Athletic Booster programs as a way to further increase affinity of the program.

A draft site map can be found in Appendix A.

The intent of this Request for Information (RFI) is to determine background information on the requirements, concepts and ideas that providers are able to offer, learn more about potential providers and then meet with top providers to further refine ideas.

Proposals must be received by the University via email by June 2nd at 11am CST to [email protected]. Hard copies are not necessary. We will accept a USB drive with the PDF if the file is too large to email.

II. Process

After receiving responses to this RFI, a team made up of staff from the DePaul Athletic Business Office, Men’s Basketball Program and Procurement Services will review responses and determine next steps. We anticipate inviting the top three to five respondents to campus to meet with relevant employees to further refine a plan for the website. Following these meetings, additional questions may be issued and a provider selected. There is no guarantee a contract will be awarded to any of the participants, nor that the process will continue past this RFI.

Projected Timeline RFI issued May 26 RFI responses due June 2 Vendor meetings Week of June 6 (dates TBD)

Page 2 of 7 Follow-up questions issued Week of June 9 Follow-up questions due Week of June 16 Selection made Week of June 23 Site launch August 1, 2011

Respondents should hold the week of June 6 on their calendars should they be invited to campus for review. If there are specific dates/times that will not work with your schedule please indicate them in your response.

Throughout this process, questions and discussion of the RFI should be limited to Jake Moy. Discussing with others on either the selection committee or the University may void your response. Additionally, the University does not pay for any information requested in this RFI, nor is it liable for any costs incurred by the participant in responding to this request.

III. Overview of DePaul Athletics & Men’s Basketball Program

DePaul University began sponsoring athletic teams in the early 1900’s and intercollegiate athletics came into being in the 1920’s. DePaul offered football, men’s basketball, baseball and men’s gymnastics in its early years. World War II effectively ended the football and baseball programs but the men’s basketball program continued to thrive, posting many winning seasons in the early 1930’s.

In 1943, the Blue Demons made their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament’s Final Four and in 1945 DePaul captured its first national title of any kind when the men’s basketball team, led by three-time All-American George Mikan, won the NIT Championship.

Legendary men’s basketball coach Ray Meyer helped put DePaul on the map in the 1970’s as the program elevated itself to national prominence by reaching the NCAA Elite Eight in 1978 and the program’s second Final Four in 1979. Meyer, whose 42-year coaching reign ended in 1984, posted 724 wins which currently ranks 23rd in the NCAA record book. With an 87 year history, the men’s basketball program has participated in 22 NCAA Championships while 16 teams have qualified for the NIT Tournament.

Historic Alumni Hall closed its doors in March of 2000, but across the street the Sullivan Athletics Center opened its doors that April. The sophisticated training facility features three full-sized multipurpose basketball courts, retractable seating for 3,000, and a comprehensive 2,400 square foot weight room, upgraded in the summer of 2010. The Sullivan Athletic Center also includes office spaces for coaches and administrators along with a state-of-the-art training room, student-athlete locker rooms and an academic support area for studying, tutoring and computer use. McGrath Arena, which the women’s basketball and volleyball programs call home, is also housed in the Sullivan Athletic Center and is known as one of the toughest places to compete in the country.

The Allstate Arena in Rosemont begins its 30th season as home to the men’s basketball program. The facility, which was renovated in both 1999 and 2004, was built in 1979. The $20 million renovation has made the Allstate Arena a state-of-the-art facility which was host to the 1987 and

Page 3 of 7 1993 Men’s NCAA First and Second Rounds, the 1996 NCAA Women’s Regional, the 2005 NCAA Men’s Regional, and the 2006 NCAA Women Basketball First and Second Rounds.

As the Blue Demon athletics program reaches its century mark, DePaul has claimed countless team championships, won multiple individual titles and renovated and built new facilities to meet the growing needs of its student-athletes, fans and coaching staffs. Thousands of student-athletes have worn the Blue Demon uniform proudly and have earned accolades both in the classroom and on the playing field.

Why the Blue Demons? In 1900 when the first athletics team to ever represent DePaul University was organized, the monogram "D" was selected for the uniforms. From this originated the nickname "D-men" which evolved into "Demons." The blue, which combines with Demons, signifies loyalty and was chosen in 1901 by a vote of the student body.

IV. Information Requested

In your organization’s response, please include each question below, followed by a specific and concise answer. The overall response should not exceed ten pages.

General Overview

1. Provide a brief overview of your organization and the services offered.

2. Describe your organization’s experience in working higher education institutions, men’s basketball programs and/or recruitment websites. Please provide a list of clients where related projects took place with links to existing websites.

3. Describe the team that would be assigned to the University – if known include each person’s role and responsibilities, relevant credentials and related experience.

Website Design and Development

1. Describe the typical design and development process for a recruitment or similar website. Include a general timeframe for each milestone.

2. Describe typical content your organization includes in these types of sites. How is the site organized? After reviewing Appendix A, is there anything your organization would recommend be added, removed or changed from the draft site map?

3. Is it typical for your organization to develop content (e.g. video, articles, etc.)? Or does this typically come from the University directly? Describe any pros or cons you’ve found with each approach. a. Is your organization able to film raw footage or edit video into content for the website? What is your process to do so?

Page 4 of 7 4. How is the site typically maintained? Are there administration pages available to select University staff members? What is the process to update existing content vs. adding new content and/or sections?

5. Describe any initial thoughts for what a DePaul Men’s Basketball recruitment website would look like – design ideas, content, navigation, home screen, etc. What is the process used to determine the design of the site?

6. Describe the process post-launch. How involved is your organization typically in supporting the site after the initial roll out? How will the site be supported in terms of support, monitoring and maintenance? What types of security will be in place?

7. The primary athletics website features various RSS feeds (news, schedules, etc). Is your organization able to pull content onto the recruitment site?

8. Describe your organizations experience with search engine optimization. Provide any techniques that will be utilized to place this site towards the top of major search engines.

9. Who owns the URL of the site – your organization or the University? Who manages renewals? Is the site hosted on your organizations servers or a third-party? What is the guaranteed website uptime?

10. Describe any social media recommendations and integration options typically built into such sites (blogs, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Digg, MySpace, etc). How do you keep current on social media technology?

11. What sort of reporting is typically available? Describe any website traffic or other reports and how they would be delivered to the University (self-service, regular reporting from your organization, etc).

Pricing

1. What is the typical pricing structure for a site like this? Do you charge a flat-rate fee, hourly rates or other? What would a reasonable estimate for total cost for this project?

2. Please include a standard rate sheet for all services offered. Describe any discounting that would be made available to the University.

3. Describe any other costs that would be required to be paid for by the University for a project of this type, whether payable to your organization or a third-party.

Timeline

1. What is a general timeline for building and launching a site such as this?

Page 5 of 7 2. The University desires to go-live by August 1st, does this seem achievable to your organization? If not, we are open to launching in “phases” – describe what you see as achievable in Phase 1 that would be ready to launch by August 1st.

3. Is there anything the University should be planning to assist in launching this project?

General Business

1. Is your organization publically traded? If so, what is the stock symbol? If applicable, also provide your organization’s bond rating (Moody’s, Standard & Poors and/or Fitch).

2. How many clients does your organization have? What is your organization’s sales, client base and payroll growth for the past three years?

3. Does your organization foresee any difficulties in the future related to core operations, future growth, etc?

4. List any certifications your organization has as they relate to being a historically underutilized business (HUB). Include the date of the last certification and its expiration. Is your organization owned or operated by DePaul alumni?

5. List any key environmental organizations you belong or any certifications your organization carries (e.g. EPEAT, LEED, Cradle to Cradle, Green Seal, Energy Star, etc.). Include the date of the last certification and its expiration.

Other

1. Describe any other information relevant to this project that was not asked above.

Page 6 of 7 Appendix A – Draft Site Map

• Coach Purnell o Bio o Accomplishments o Family • Team o Roster o Individual Player Videos (Includes an intro video and highlights) o Coaching Staff/Support Staff • Schedule o Interactive schedule that includes Pre-game story before the game and a Post- game wrap-up (includes game story, box score, photos, highlights) • Videos o Season Highlights o Workout Videos o Strength and Conditioning o Campus Life . Dorms, Day in the Life, Gameday, Classes, etc. o Facilities o Travel o All-time Greats/All-time Great Moments • Buzz/In the News o All positive news stories that pertain to DePaul Basketball o TV News pieces • Blue Demons in the Pros o List all former players currently or formerly playing professional basketball o Have video highlights of their career professionally and at DePaul • Chicago o Features of the city and Lincoln Park area o Chicago sports history (video and/or story) o All-time best Chicago moments (video and/or story) • Additional Features o Gameday Countdown o Links to athletics website and basketball specific Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube pages

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