Thank you for your interest in joining a dynamic team of professionals working to save land and promote sound land use planning on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.
The Eastern Shore Land Conservancy is a leading regional land trust on Maryland’s rural Eastern Shore responsible for preserving nearly 65,000 acres since 1990. Do you want to be engaged in the future of the beautiful Eastern Shore? Then come join our exciting and dynamic team at the award-winning Eastern Shore Conservation Center in Easton’s charming historic district!
Our office in downtown Easton, Maryland.
Eastern Shore Land Conservancy is currently seeking to fill the following open role:
Communications
Contract
Per Contract
Remote
Request for Proposals: Website Redesign and Branding
The Eastern Shore Land Conservancy in Easton, Maryland, is seeking a qualified and creative web designer or digital marketing agency to redesign, develop, and implement a WordPress-based website and help rethink the organization’s branding. This may include a logo redesign, if the contractor has both skill sets.
RFP Timeline*:
*All dates are subject to change with or without notice.
About Eastern Shore Land Conservancy
We are a nonprofit charitable organization with a mission to conserve, steward, and advocate for the unique rural landscape of Maryland’s Eastern Shore.
Since its founding in 1990, when there was widespread concern that the region’s important wildlife habitat and prime farmland were being consumed by sprawling development, ESLC has established a record of land preservation that far exceeds any other conservancy in the state and is one of the most successful in the country. We have permanently protected approximately 65,000 acres of farms and forest and provided new public access to parks, farmland, hiking trails, urban gardens, and the Chesapeake Bay.
The threats to the region have never been greater, as climate change and development of all kinds continue to pressure the fundamental rural and agricultural quality of Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Under new leadership since 2021, ESLC continues to pursue land preservation while influencing policies that can help local landowners and leaders more effectively implement conservation, benefit natural resources, and sustain the region’s character. This includes pioneering innovative land protection programs in an effort to help farms stay viable, assisting younger generations of farmers in becoming landowners, and helping landowners and communities to discover, evaluate, and implement the land preservation options available to them.
We have a team of 11 full-time staff members and a 19-person Board of Directors. Your partners in the redesign process will primarily be ESLC’s Communications Manager Caitlin Fisher, CEO Steve Kline, and Communications Consultant Kristyn Brady, who is also managing the RFP process.
Project Description
ESLC is accepting proposals for the design and development of a new website from concept to completion. The current website is mobile responsive and relatively modern, but ESLC has experienced much change and growth over the past few years and the current website does not fully convey the current work of the organization, particularly given the priorities laid out in the most recent strategic plan.
We’re looking for an engaging, user-friendly design that is optimized to convert visitors to email subscribers, maximizes time spent on the site, and makes our value proposition crystal clear. An effective redesign will showcase our programs, events, and news content and better integrate giving opportunities. We are also interested in showcasing our land preservation impacts through an interactive map of the Eastern Shore.
Specific pain points, audience needs, and goals will be discussed during a discovery phase of the project. At this time, we’ll assess the viability of redesigning the organization’s logo and whether that work can be done by this contractor or if a subcontractor is needed.
In the design phase, the contractor will provide a set of mockups to approve. Copywriting and photo research/acquisition will be assigned to and done by ESLC. Approved copy and photos/videos will be provided to the contractor ahead of the development phase. We would prefer two rounds of QA on the fully coded site on a staging server before going live.
The finished product should be easily updated by non-technical staff. This project should therefore include the creation of templates that empower ESLC to make new pages and posts as needs arise. There should also be a training phase just ahead of site launch, when the contractor can give ESLC staff the tools they need to maintain the website and create new content.
ESLC’s current website was designed/developed in 2019 and can be found here. It is built on the WordPress platform (version 6.1.3) and hosted by the original third-party developer via InMotion Hosting. Contact and donation forms are supported by Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge.
Key Objectives and Considerations
To be effective, our new website must:
The successful candidate will be an excellent project manager with a demonstrated track record of communicating openly and regularly throughout a project. They will be skilled in WordPress development, have knowledge of current digital marketing trends, and be mindful of website accessibility. Preference will be given to contractors with knowledge of the unique challenges of nonprofits, particularly in the conservation space.
Proposal Requirements
All proposals for this contract should include:
Proposals may only be submitted by email. Send a single PDF by link or attachment to Kristyn Brady at kristynbradycomms@gmail.com by no later than 11:59pm ET on October 1, 2023.
ESLC reserves the right to reject any or all bids, accept or reject any or all items in the proposals, and/or award the contract in whole or in part as deemed to be in the best interest of the organization. ESLC reserves the right to cancel, delay, amend, or reissue this RFP at any time. Each respondent submitting a proposal will be notified via email of ESLC’s decision concerning their proposal.
The Eastern Shore of Maryland is a region rich in diversity of all kinds, from our people to our natural resources. The future of this iconic place depends on the engagement of everyone, from all backgrounds and experiences. ESLC values diversity in all its forms and encourages all qualified individuals to submit a proposal for this project.
Thank you for your interest.
Proposals may only be submitted by email. Send a single PDF by link or attachment to Kristyn Brady at kristynbradycomms@gmail.com by no later than 11:59pm ET on October 1, 2023
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