Nonprofit Website Development Contest

BetterWeb is a digital marketing non-agency who works with vetted freelancers to deliver expertise without the huge price tag. They supply its clients with a single point of contact so there's no need to manage an entire team. Their services include marketing strategy, website strategy, website design, graphic design, website development, search engine optimization, contest writing, social media management, paid social ads, paid Google ads, e-mail marketing and other marketing services. Because they only engage freelancers when needed, BetterWeb is able to customize their client’s marketing plan or project to fit their specific needs. By moving away from the agency model, they are able to remain nimble, without unnecessary red tape or fees.

Application Process

Who Can Apply

The Contest is limited to non-profit organizations that meet all of the following criteria:

• It must be registered as a 501c(3) charitable organization;
• It must have an annual operating budget of $2,000,000 or less;
• It must have at least one dedicated person who can spend a minimum of 15 hours on the website project; and
• It must be based within the State of Ohio.

BetterWeb is not responsible for any lost, delayed, incomplete, or erroneous entries. All entries become the property of BetterWeb and may be retained by it.

No purchase is necessary to apply. No application fee is required.

The form to apply may be accessed on the Betterweb.gives landing page. Applications must be received by BetterWeb before June 1, 2024. Any applications received after May 31, 2024 will not be considered.

BetterWeb’s decision on all matters concerning this Contest and its interpretation and application of these Contest Rules shall be final. The Contest is void where prohibited by law.

Cancellation of the Contest

If for any reason the Contest is not capable of being run as planned, whether within the control of BetterWeb or not, the Contest may be canceled, terminated or suspended, as determined in the sole discretion of BetterWeb. BetterWeb assumes no responsibility for any error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in transmission, destruction, unauthorized access or alteration of entries or any problems or technical malfunction of any network, computer systems, server or failure of any entry to be received for any reason.

Selection Process

Upon the closing of the application process, BetterWeb will check all applications for accuracy and validity. BetterWeb may, in its sole discretion, contact any applying organization to complete the application or answer any questions that it may have regarding its application.

BetterWeb will review all applications and, in their sole discretion, determine three (3) organizations to be the finalists in the Contest. The finalists may be determined without regard to any specific criteria or reason. No applicant should have any expectation of being named a finalist. Any time or expenses incurred in applying for the Contest are the sole responsibility of the applicant. The three (3) finalists to the Contest will be announced and contacted on or before June 24, 2024.

Voting among the three (3) finalists will be conducted from June 24, 2024 until June 30, 2024 to determine the winner of the Contest. All voting will take place solely via the attached link to betterweb.gives on the BetterWeb website. There is no limit to how many times a person can vote. The winner will be announced on July 1, 2024. Failure to respond to any notification of winning the Contest within fifteen (15) days of such notice shall result in the disqualification of such potential winner and an alternate winner shall be selected.

The winner of the Contest is responsible for all taxes associated with the Contest, including, but not limited to, any local, state, and federal taxes due to the award of the website.

Applicant Authorizations

By applying for this Contest, your organization hereby:

• Authorizes BetterWeb and its assignees who have assisted BetterWeb in this Contest to use your name, likeness and any statements made by you regarding the Contest or the website awarded for winning the Contest in their marketing materials without any compensation or fee, including, without limitation, naming the finalists and winner of the Contest on their websites, social media platforms and other marketing publications;
• Releases and agrees to indemnify, defend and hold harmless BetterWeb and those persons and entities who have assisted BetterWeb in this Contest and their respective shareholders, members, directors, managers, officers, employees and agents from any and all claims, causes of action, costs, expenses, losses, rights, damages and liabilities (including reasonable attorney fees) with respect to the Contest, including, but not limited to, the selection process, the application of the Contest Rules and the development of the website if you are selected as the winning organization.

The Prize

The winner of the contest will receive a new website design by BetterWeb, subject to the limitations set forth in these Contest Rules.

The development of the website will be done solely by BetterWeb and any winner of this Contest shall look solely at BetterWeb for its prize.

Terms and Conditions of the Development of the Website

The development of the website is subject to the terms of these Contest Rules. Notwithstanding any provision in BetterWeb’s standard terms or other customary industry procedures and practices, the products and services associated with the development of the website provided to the Contest winner shall be limited as follows:

Preliminary Items

• One 2 hour virtual meeting with the Contest winner’s contact personnel to discuss the project, the organization and its goals, audiences served and marketing strategy
  
  • In-person meetings at the Contest winner’s location are not included but can be added by the Contest winner at BetterWeb’s normal fees, including all transportation expenses
• The sitemap may contain up to 15 core pages
  • The sitemap may have only one (1) round of revisions
• Keyword research will include a maximum of 3 competitors and/or up to 4 hours of research
• Content strategy document which aligns the sitemap and keywords for content writing, which shall be done by the Contest winner
• A homepage blueprint (ie. wireframe) will be submitted for approval
  • The homepage blueprint may have only one (1) round of revisions

Design

• Preliminary design survey to assess aesthetic preferences
• If the organization does not have set brand colors, BetterWeb will provide a pallet with up to three (3) brand colors
  
  • Two (2) color palettes will be submitted for approval
  • There will be no revisions to palette colors
• Two (2) concepts of a homepage design will be presented
  • The homepage design may have only one (1) round of revisions

Development

• Fresh install of WordPress on the development server
  
  • If the website is hosted with BetterWeb, a dev server will be provided
  • If the website is hosted elsewhere, a dev server on the intended live-site host must be provided by Contest winner
• The website will be built on WordPress using Themeco Pro’s Cornerstone page builder
• Content will be uploaded for all 15 core pages
  
  • Core pages will include page titles and meta descriptions
  • Alt tags will be provided for images
• An image tracking sheet will be provided for guidance
• Listing and individual templates will be created for pages such as blog, news, resources and webinars, but the Contest winner is responsible to migrate any current content for these sections

Launch

• The approved site will be tested on the most recent version of three (3) major browsers – Chrome, Safari, and Edge
• The approved site will be tested on mobile devices using the latest version of Android and iPhone
• During testing, no design, content or imagery changes will be permitted and any fixes (errors) will only be updated prior to launch
• Any text and imagery changes shall be managed by the Contest winner after the launch
• If the website is hosted on BetterWeb’s servers, BetterWeb will handle the DNS update
• If the website is not hosted on BetterWeb’s servers, BetterWeb will provide the new DNS information for the Content winner to update, but any troubleshooting will be invoiced at BetterWeb’s then customary rate
• Two (2) hours of virtual training will be provided

Items Specifically Excluded from the Website

The following items are not included in the scope of the website developed under this Contest and shall remain the sole responsibility of the Contest winner:

• Visual Images. BetterWeb will provide a shared drive and a tracker for guidance, but it will not provide any imagery for the website. The Contest winner may retain BetterWeb to provide visual images at BetterWeb’s normal rates.
• Content Writing. BetterWeb will provide a shared drive and content documents for guidance, but it will not provide content writing for the website. The Contest winner may retain BetterWeb to provide content writing at BetterWeb’s normal rates.
• Hosting. The Contest winner will be responsible for hosting the website. The Contest winner may retain BetterWeb to provide hosting at BetterWeb’s normal rates.
• Maintenance. The Contest winner will be responsible for all maintenance, bugs, viruses, fixes, connectivity, updates, modifications, upgrades and new versions for the website. The Contest winner may retain BetterWeb to provide its monthly maintenance services for the website at BetterWeb’s normal rates.
• Custom Integrations. BetterWeb will not connect any custom integrations for the website. Further, BetterWeb will not delay launch while awaiting for any third-party custom integration development.
• Analytics. BetterWeb will not connect Google Analytics, Tag Manager, Search Console or other search optimization tool to the website.
• Third Party Fees. All third party fees such as paid plug-ins will be discussed ahead of launch and the cost will be paid by the Contest winner.

Hourly Limitation

Notwithstanding any provision of BetterWeb’s terms and conditions or these Contest Rules, the maximum number of hours that BetterWeb will dedicate to the development of the winner’s website will be eighty-five (85) hours. Hours will be determined by BetterWeb and its employees and freelancers in accordance with their respective normal operating procedures. In the event BetterWeb reaches such hourly limit, the Contest winner may either abandon the development of the website or engage BetterWeb on a fee basis to complete the website.

Right To Terminate

BetterWeb reserves the right to terminate its products and services for the development of the website if the Contest winner breaches any terms of these Contest Rules, fails to make any deliveries in the time required or is uncooperative or is otherwise deemed difficult, all in BetterWeb’s sole determination, and BetterWeb shall have no liability to Contest winner and no further products or services shall be owed to the Contest winner.

Limitation of Liability

BetterWeb makes no warranty, express or implied, including, without limitation, any express or implied warranty of non-infringement, merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. In no event will BetterWeb be liable for any incidental, special, exemplary, or consequential damages to Contest winner or any claims or demands brought against Contest winner, even if BetterWeb has been advised of the possibility of such claims or demands.

General Conditions

Applicants to the Contest agree to abide by these Contest Rules. This Contest shall be governed by the laws of the State of Ohio. This Contest may not be conducted outside of the State of Ohio. All federal, state, local and municipal laws and regulations apply. All taxes arising out of the prize awarded under this Contest shall be the sole responsibility of the prize winner. Non-compliance with any provision herein shall result in the disqualification of such entry and an alternate winner will be selected.