Before designing my project proposal I wrote the below content so that I could consider various formats in relation to the specific sections.

Title Page

Client company name: Cathedral Quarter Trust

Project title: Hill Street Brand and Website Design Project

Document type: Proposal

Version of proposal: Version 0.1

Submission date: November 19th

Your company name: Rachel’s Design Lab

Proposal authors: Rachel Donaldson

Project reference numbers: 211119

Cost: £3475

Confidential: Reproduction of this document by any entity outside of Cathedral Quarter Trust or Rachel’s Design Lab is strictly forbidden.

In my title/ cover page, I have included the project title and document type. I want these to be the two key features in my proposal title page and intent to highlight them in size and potentially colour as well. Along with the above information I also intend to include my logo and the client’s company logo. I appreciate that if this were a design proposal for a real client I would need to ask the client permission before using their logo.

I have also included a reference number for the document. When including a reference number like this I always use the date ordered YYMMDD. This means it should be easier to locate as long as I have a general idea of the date it was first released to the client. It also means the client cannot keep track of the number of proposals I am sending out.

Revision History

Table 1.1 Revision History Table

Revision	Section	Description	Editor	Date
1.0		Original Document	RDL	19-Nov-2021

Above is a revision history table. This is a great way to keep track of any changes to a proposal as such I wanted to include it from the first copy. The sections I have included are the revision number, the section/ sections that have been revised, a description of the changes, who edited the document and the date it was edited on. This provides all of the required information to have a full understanding of how the document has evolved since the first attrition.

Project Overview

Brief

Cathedral Quarter Trust are seeking to create a brand identity and website for Hill Street. Hill Street is a popular area for nightlife and businesses in Belfast. However, there has been a decline in popularity in this area following COVID-19. A brand identity will help to build awareness around the area. A strong brand identity will be created to attract new businesses, community members and tourists back to the area. The logo will be associated with the area’s cultural heritage, sense of community and thriving business spaces.

A web presence will provide businesses, tourists and community members with information on what’s happening in the area. This will include events, eating options, parking and travel options, the history of the area and nightlife. A news page will provide more information on upcoming and past events in the area. It will also highlight the areas focus on working with businesses and supporting art and culture.

Experience

As a User Experience Designer, I have experience working on a variety of branding projects and website designs. My expertise in user experience research will help me to identify reasons for the decline in popularity in the area. I can then address these issues and test a number of solutions to produce a brand and product tailored for the area’s needs.

I have split my project overview into two sections. The first section is the brief. Here I have outlined the problems faced by the client and my proposed solution. I focus on the brand and websites as two separate entities and address the benefits of gaining each individually. This is followed by a short paragraph about my experience as a designer. I specifically focus on my experience in branding and web design as well as my experience in user research. I outline very briefly how this experience is best suited to meeting the needs of the client here also.

Project Approach

Brand Identity

The primary objective of Hill Street’s brand identity is to capture the essence of the area in a brand personality. The following workflow will be used to achieve this.

Research (Establishing Brand Ideals and Tone of Voice) – Sketching, Idea Generation and Feedback – Production and Feedback – Variations

Website

The primary objective of the website is to encourage businesses back into the area. A large emphasis will be placed on targeting the needs of businesses followed by community members and tourists. Phases of research will include Discovery, Exploration, Testing and Listening. This will happen in sprints alongside the design and build of the website. Please see below workflow.

Recommendations

Scope of Work

Provided by Rachel’s Design Lab

I was approached by Cathedral Quarter Trust to provide all services required in the development of a brand identity. I was also requested to provide all services required to build a website for Hill Street. Rachel’s Design Lab will establish brand values, tone of voice and the required visual elements associated with the Hill Street brand including a logo. Rachel’s Design Lab will solely focus on the User Experience and User Interface aspects of the Hill Street website.

Provided by Cathedral Quarter Trust

Cathedral Quarter Trust will provide feedback on Hill Street’s brand identity and will partake in a number of interviews in relation to the brand’s values and tone of voice. Cathedral Quarter Trust will also provide feedback on all aspects of the Hill Street website in accordance with the project plan. Cathedral Quarter Trust will be responsible for the development of the website and adherence to the brand guidelines in any self-published materials. Cathedral Quarter Trust will ensure any developers working on the Hill Street website are receptive to using an agile workflow methodology.

Here I have clearly outlined exactly what will fall under my remit and what will fall under the client’s remit. This information will be based on the brief and previous conversations with the client outlining the scope of work in relation to what I will supply and what they will supply.

Assumptions

Brand and Website Assumptions

It is necessary that Cathedral Quarter Trust provide the following assets and resources. An inability to provide the assets and resources in a timely or complete manner may lead to the unsuccessful or delayed delivery of this project.

The following assets and resources are required:

-Timely access to all required information relating to former and present businesses located in the area.

-Timely access to all required Cathedral Quarter Trust Employee’s.

-Timely access to all resources and individuals required for the completion of research.

-Timely access to any required source materials and previous research.

-Content required for the design of the Hill Street brand and website including but not limited to copy, imagery, audio, video etc. relating to any aspect of the project.

-The provision of a domain name.

-Timely access to all required Hill Street website developers.

Here I am outlining what my assumptions/ needs are from the client to complete the project. Many of these will likely not have been discussed however they are very important to include here to avoid any ambiguity or problems later in the project. I have tried to create as complete a list as possible however I imagine that knowing what to include here is something that comes with experience. However, missing something from this section may be a costly mistake so better to avoid learning by experience in this instance as much as is possible.

Deliverables

Brand Identity

The creation of a Logo and Brand Guidelines in adherence to established brand values. The Brand Guidelines will include Brand Story, Logo usage, Colour Palette, Typography, Imagery, Tone of voice, Brand Dictionary and Brand Applications. These elements will be used to create a strong and unique brand identity. The logo will provide associations with the area’s cultural heritage, sense of community and thriving business spaces.

Website

The design of a website that targets the needs of businesses, community members and tourists interested in the Hill Street area. Content will be organised in a manner that places a large emphasis on encouraging business back into the area.

The web presence will provide businesses, tourists and community members with information on what’s happening in the area. This will include events, eating options, parking and travel options, the history of the area and nightlife. A news page will provide more information on upcoming and past events in the area. It will also highlight the areas focus on working with businesses and supporting art and culture.

Extras

It is possible to have hosting included if required.

In this section, I have broken down each of the projects and listed out all of the deliverables the client can expect. This is a page that I can refer to while working on the project and ensure that as new requests come in, I am charging for them. I have also included an extra’s section here with the option to include hosting. Again as I gain more experience I will have a better understanding of what clients generally want in addition to a branding or web design project and will be able to include these items here also.

Ownership and Rights

This Agreement covers the preparation of the Hill Street Brand and Website Design. Rachel’s Design Lab will receive total payment upon satisfactory completion in adherence to the payment schedule. Rachel’s Design Lab will deliver to Cathedral Quarter Trust on or before the agreed dates the Hill Street Brand and Website Design satisfactory to Cathedral Quarter Trust.

Rachel’s Design Lab is an independent contractor. This work is considered work-for-hire under the Copyright Act of 1976. All concepts, ideas, copy, sketches, artwork, electronic files and other materials related to the project will become the property of Cathedral Quarter Trust. Rachel’s Design Lab acknowledges that the Hill Street Brand and Website Design is being created by Rachel’s Design Lab for use by Cathedral Quarter Trust.

At Cathedral Quarter Trust’s sole and absolute discretion, Cathedral Quarter Trust may make any changes, including additions or deletions to the Hill Street Brand and Website Design. Cathedral Quarter Trust is not under any obligation to use the Hill Street Brand and Website Design or related materials.

As I have no real understanding of the specifics of ownerships and rights I have stuck to outlining the basic principles of a work for hire agreement using the following source: https://www.docracy.com/4834/work-for-hire-agreement

The above was a great resource that allowed me to pull all of the essential information and adjust according to the specifics of the project it is being applied to.

Additional Costs and Fees

Recommendations

Additional user testing and feedback can be provided by Rachel’s Design Lab following the launch of the Hill Street Brand and Website and relevant design updates delivered to the development team at a rate of £25 per hour for the agreed hours worked.

Extras

Rachel’s Design Lab can provide hosting services starting as low as £15 per month, with a £15 start-up fee.

In the event that outside resources are required (such as content, image, fonts, etc.), these shall be identified, approved by and billed to Cathedral Quarter Trust.

For my additional cost and fee’s I have essentially outlined adding additional sprints to the website to continue the development of its design at the hourly rate applied to all elements included in the proposal. My extra’s section outlines the inclusion of hosting and costs of additional resources required by Cathedral Quarter.

Project Pricing

Brand Identity

Research and analysis: 12hrs x £25 = £300

Idea generation and feedback: 4hrs x £25 = £100

Design production and feedback 16hrs x £25 = £400

Variations: 8hrs x £25 = £200

Project Management: 9hrs x £25 = £225

Total= £1225

 

Website

Idea generation, user research and testing and wireframing iterations and design will occur in 2 sprints. Each sprint will be designated 30hrs as shown below.

Desktop/survey research and analysis: 12hrs x £25 = £300

Sprint 1: 30hrs x £25 = £750

Sprint 2: 30hrs x £25 = £750

Project Management: 18hrs x £25 = £450

Total= £2,250

I wanted to clearly link the project pricing to my process, that way it cannot be argued that anything is removed. The above breakdown should also provide a clear understanding of how costs are being attributed to each stage of the project as I clearly explain they are paying me hourly for my time and demonstrate this in the presentation of hours. This also provides a rough time scale without me having to actually commit to a timescale. Committing to a time scale is not something I would want to do until I have more experience and can provide more accurate predictions.

I have also included project management at 25% of the hours for each of the branding and web design elements in the proposal. This was following the advice provided in A project guide to UX Design. I would also consider this time to include any unexpected items that might arise during the course of the project that may not have been accounted for.

Payment Schedule

Payment will take place in three phases:

Phase 1 Following the completion of the Brand Identity for the amount of £1225 (plus any additional pre-agreed costs)

Phase 2 Following the completion of Sprint 1 of the Website for the amount of £1050 (plus any additional pre-agreed costs)

Phase 3 Following the completion of the Website for the amount of £1150 (plus any additional pre-agreed costs)

I wanted to link my payment schedule to each deliverable stage of the project. When the brand is complete a meeting will be made to discuss any final changes and at this point, before the final outcome is provided to the client there will be the opportunity to remind them about payment. I think that in receiving tangible deliverables the client will be more inclined to pay. I also felt that breaking the payment into three was enough given the fact that the total is only £3475 any more individual payments than this might be viewed by the client as unnecessarily troublesome.

Acknowledgement and Sign-off

This proposal is agreed and acknowledged by Cathedral Quarter Trust. The proposal must be signed and dated by an authorised representative of Cathedral Quarter Trust in order to be in effect.

This proposal constitutes the entire agreement between the parties in relation to the subject matter of this proposal. This proposal merges and supersedes all prior oral or written agreements, discussions, negotiations, commitments, writings, or understandings. This includes without limitation any representation contained on any sales literature, brochures, or other written descriptive or advertising material and is the complete and exclusive statement of the terms of the parties agreement. Each of the parties acknowledges and agrees that in executing this proposal it has not relied upon, and it expressly disclaims any reliance upon, any representation or statement not set forth herein or on the Agreement.

Accepted by the authorised representatives of:

Rachel’s Design Lab

Name ________________________

Title__________________________

Date__________________________

Signature______________________

Cathedral Quarter Trust

Name ________________________

Title__________________________

Date__________________________

Signature______________________

I followed the example provided in A project guide to UX Design for this portion of the proposal also. Here I amended any relevant items however I avoided making any changes I felt would alter or undermine the agreement.

Overall I am very pleased with the outcome of my proposal content and believe that it covers all aspects of a branding and web design project clearly. I also believe the above content clearly demonstrates the value of my approach and experiences as a UX designer which should hopefully be reflected in the project’s pricing.