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Home My WebLink About20 COMM SVC BROCHURE 03-07-94DATE: February 24, 1994 Inter-Com NO. 20 3-7-94 TO: WILLIAM A. HUSTON, CITY MANAGER FROM: COMMUNITY SERVICES DEPARTMENT SUBJEC~ AWARD OFCONTRACT - COMMUNITY SERVICES BROCHURE RECOMMENDATION: ...... To..approve..Alternative_I .... Accept the_bid proposal..from.Shorco_to layout, print, deliver and sell advertising for the brochure beginning with the Summer 1994 issue. Contract for a period of one year and then reissue the RFP. ALTERNATIVES Io ContraCt with Shorco to layout, print, deliver and sell advertising for the brochure. II. Layout the brochure using in-house staff and contract with San Dieguito to print and deliver the brochure. Do not sell advertising. III. Contract with SanDieguitoto print and deliver the brochure. Contract with ZGF West to layout the brochure and sell advertising. IV. Contract with San Dieguitoto print and deliver the brochure. Use in-house staff to layout the brochure and sell advertising. BACKGROUND: In November 1993 staff issued a Request for Proposal for services related to the layout, sale of advertising and printing of the Tustin Today, the Community Services Department brochure. Staff recommended that the contract be awarded to San Dieguito Publishers and Ed Cohen. (Attachment-Award of Contract) Since that time, Ed Cohen has withdrawn his proposal. Staff is therefore reviewing alternate proposals. Presently the layout of the brochure is performed by in-house clerical staff at an estimated cost of $631 per issue. San Dieguito Publishers are responsible for the printing and delivery of the brochure at a cost of $2,860 for 28 pages. Shorco Publishing sells advertising and splits the revenue with the City, Shorco receives 60% and the City receives 40%. Shorco Publishing has notified the City that they will no longer sell-advertising only. A copy of their new proposal has been included as an attachment to this report. CENTRAL PROBLEM To determine the most efficient method for producing the Community Services brochure. RELEVANT FACTORS 1. The Tustin Today is the primary vehicle for the Community Services Department and the City to communicate with citizens· Community Development, Engineering and the City Council have ..................... used the_.bro~hure~to distribute_information ................................... · The estimated cost for in-house staff to layout the brochure is $631. · The City has an agreement with San Dieguito Publishing to print and deliver the brochure for $2,860. If the City wishes to end this agreement notice must be provided to San Dieguito 90 days in advance to the printing of the brochure. The next print date is May 17th. · Shorco has notified the City that they will no longer only sell advertising for the brochure as of Summer 1994. · Shorco has submitted a new proposal for services related to the brochure including layout, sale of advertising, printing and delivery. The proposal would cost $2,800 per issue. While unlikely, the cost could decrease if Shorco were to sell more than $5,000 in advertising per issue. · ZGF West proposed complete layout services for $25/page or about $700 per 28 page edition. (Attachment-ZGF Bid Proposal) · ZGF West proposed selling advertising for the brochure and splitting revenue 50/50 with the City. However, ZGF West has no previous experience selling advertising. · $15,400 for printing, postage and filing fees was included in the 1993/94 budget and deposited in the Tustin Public Information operating account. Over the past year the City received around $8,000 in advertising revenue from Shorco. That money was used to offset printing costs. ~ Postage for the bulk mailing the brochure to every residence in Tustin costs $2,646 per quarter. 10. The first draft of Summer 1994 copy is due March 28. ANALYSIS OF ALTERNATIVES I · Contract with Shorco to layout, print, deliver and sell advertising for the brochure. Fiscal Impact: The City would have to pay a maximum of $2,800 per quarter for the brochure. Costs would decrease if advertising revenues were to increase. An additional appropriation of $6,680 would have to be made to the 1994/95 Tustin Public Information operating budget. A. Advantages Shorco Publishing is an established company with a .proven_track record working_with cities, to.produce community activity brochures. · Shorco has experience selling advertising. Last year advertising sales averaged $5,000 per quarter. Be Disadvantages · Funding to pay for the production of the brochure is not currently included in the budget. Costs for the brochure could be as much as $11,200 per year, not including postage. · While Shorco has sold advertising in the past, sales have been flat. Shorco does not seem motivated to sell advertising for the Tustin brochure. Local resources have been ignored. II. Layout the brochure using in-house staff and contract with San Dieguito to print and deliver the brochure. Do not sell advertising. Fiscal Impact: The City would have to pay $2,860 for printing per issue. Existing staff would layout the brochure. An additional appropriation of $6,920 would have to be made to the 1994/95 Tustin Public Information operating budget. A· Advantages 1. There would be no competing advertising in the brochure. · · The City presently contracts with San Dieguito Publishing for printing the brochure. Layout of the brochure could be accomplished using existing staff. There would be no additional appropriation for layout. B. Disadvantages · Funding for printing the brochure is not currently included in the budget. Printing the brochure costs $2,860 per quarter for a 28 page edition or $11,440 a year. Printing costs should decrease slightly, about $150 per issue, because the brochure would contain approximately four less pages. · There would be no advertising revenue to offset printing costs. ........ Iii ~ _Con. tract .with ~_.s__an_Di_.eguito t0._pri_nt..-an~._ dg!._iver the_ _brochure Contract with ZGF West to layout the brochure and sel advertising. Fiscal Impact: The City would have to pay $2,860 for printing per issue. The layout of the brochure would cost $700 per issue. An additional appropriation of $9,720 would have to be made to the 1994/95 Tustin Public Information operating budget. Advertising revenue could offset some costs. A. Advantages · The City presently contracts with San Dieguito Publishing for printing the brochure. · Revenue from advertising sales could offset some costs of layout and printing. · In-house staff would not have to spend time on brochure layout. B. Disadvantages · Funding for printing the brochure is not currently included in the budget. Printing the brochure would cost $2,860 per quarter for a 28 page edition or $11,440 a year. · Funding for layout of the brochure is not currently included in the budget. Lay out of the brochure would cost $700 per quarter for a 28 page edition or $2,800 a year. e ZGF West proposed selling advertising for the brochure and splitting revenue 50/50 with the City. However, ZGF West has no previous experience selling advertising. IV. Contract with San Dieguito to print and deliver the brochure. Use in-house staff to layout the brochure and sell advertising. Fiscal Impact: The City would have to pay $2,860 for printing per issue. Existing staff would layout the brochure. An additional appropriation of $6,920 would have to be made to the 1994/95 Tustin Public Information operating budget. Advertising revenue could offset some costs. A. Advantages. · The City presently contracts with San Dieguito Publishing for printing the brochure. Re~en~e~f~0m advertising-sales coUid. -0-f-fs~t~-some- ..... costs of layout and printing. B. Disadvantages i · Funding for printing the brochure is not currently included in the budget. Printing the brochure woUld cost $2,860 per quarter for a 28 page edition or $11,440 a year. · In-house staff advertising. consuming job. have no experience selling Selling advertising is a time e Existing and planned staff work load does not allow time for this additional responsibility. DISCUSSION: The proposed alternatives address short term solutions for determining the most efficient method for producing the community brochure. This approach is necessary because the first draft of Summer 1994 copy is due March 28. Ail of the proposals also require an additional appropriation to the 1994/95 Tustin Public Information operating budget. Actual costs could be less depending upon ad sales. A cost/benefit analysis of brochure operations would have to be undertaken to arrive at a long term solution regarding contract class marketing. However, more time for analysis and a transition period would be necessary before any fundamental changes could take place. In addition to class information, The Tustin Today is the primary vehicle for the Community Services Department and the City to communicate with citizens. Presently the City does not have an agreement to sell advertising to offset the cost of producing the brochure. In order to continue to publish the brochure the City should enter an agreement that could generate revenue. Staff recommends Alternative I. to contract with Shorco to layout, print, deliver and sell advertising for the brochure. The agreement should be for one year so staff can thoroughly investigate other alternatives. Alternative I. would require an additional appropriation of $6,600 to the Tustin Public Information operating 1994/95 budget for a total of $22,080. Costs could be less depending upon advertising sales. Gary Magill Recreation Supervisor Susan M. Jones Recreation Superintendent Attachments: Award of Contract - Community Services Brochure Shorco Bid Proposal ZGF Bid Proposal C: BROCHURE DATE' January 7, 1994 inter-Corn TO: WILLIAM A. HUSTON, CITY MANAGER FROM: COMMUNITY SERVICES DEPARTMENT SUBJEC~ AWARD OF CONTRACTS - COMMUNITY SERVICES BROCHURE RECOMMENDATION :. 1) To award a-contract -fOr the' delivery'and'-printing of the Community Services brochure to San Dieguito Publishers.. 2) To award a contract for layout and sale of advertising to ~ Cohen, Editor and Publisher. San Dieguito Publishers and Ed Cohen submitted a joint proposal for services related to the brochure. FISCAL IMPACT: Presently the layout of the Community Services Department brochure is done in house by clerical staff. Clerical staff time required for layout is about thirty two hours per issue. The cost of thirty two hours of clerical time is calculated as follows: 32 hours X $16.43/hr = $ 525.76 20% benefits ~ 105.~5 TOTAL 630.91 Shorco is responsible for the sale of advertising. Shorco receives 60% of advertising revenue while the City retains 40%. Proceeds from the sale of advertising are used to offset the cost of printing. The cost of the brochure over the last year was as follows: Spring Summer Fall Winter Printing Cost $3,412 $3,118 $2,948 $1,935' Layout + 631 + 63~ + 631 + 631 Total Cost 4,043 3,749 3,579 2,566 Ad Revenue ,2. 406 -1. 940 ~ -_~ Net Cost $1,637 $1,809 $1,537 $ 352 * Includes $1,000 credit from printer. Under the terms of the proposed agreement Ed Cohen would not charge the. City for layout. Proceeds from the sale of advertising would be split 80% to Ed Cohen and 20% to the City. Advertising revenue paid to the City would be used to offset printing costs. Total gross revenue from the sale of advertising projections for the first several issues is between $6,000 - $10,000 per issue. The City would receive 20% of that revenue-; or $1,200 - $2,000 per issue. Overall the fiscal impact would be minor unless ad revenues increase. There would be a savings in clerical staff time since the layout of the brochure would be provided by the publisher. An estimated cost of the brochure under the new proposal would be as follows: Printing Cost $2,860 Layout. 0 Total Cost $2,860 Ad Revenue -1,200 Net Cost $1,660 The annual'financial obligation to the City under the new contr~ct would be $11,440 ($2,860 X 4) for printing. This.obligation would be offset by ad revenues. Using a conservative estimate the City could expect to receive $4,800 (1,200 X 4) to offset printing costs. The estimated annual financial obligation to the City would be: Printing Costs Ad Revenue · ANNUAL TOTAL COST $11,440 - 4,800 $ 6,640 $15,400 for printing, postage and filing fees has been included in the 93/94 budget and deposited-in the Tusin Public Information operating account. BACKGROUND: The Tustin Today lists the activities, services and classes provided by the Community Services Department and serves as a City newsletter. Thirty three thousand copies of the brochure are printed each quarter. Brochure distribution is as follows: 25,200 5,000 2,800 33,000 Postal distribution to 92680 & 92681 Schools outside of 92680 & Private schools Office use Brochures are mailed to every residence and P.O. Box in Tustin and to non-residents who have previously registered for Community Services classes. Bulk mailing of the brochure is paid for by the Tustin Public Information Foundation. In November the City issued a Request for Proposal for services related to the layout, sale of advertising and printing of the brochure. Bidders were invited to submit proposals for any or all services solicited. DISCUSSION: Eight bids were received, however bids were not submitted in all categories from every company. A bid summary is included as an attachment to this report (Exhibit A). Bidders representing the threelbest proposals~were--interviewed.- Those-interviewed included San Dieguito Publishing, Shorco Publishing and ZGF West. The City was looking for a professional firm to handle the layo~ and printing of the Tustin Today. The sale of advertising would be used to offset the costs associated with these services so that the net cost to the city would be minimal. Staff is recommending that the contract for services related to the Community Services brochure be awarded to San Dieguito Publishing and Ed Co~n beginning with the summer 1994 issue. Recreation Supervisor Susan M. Jones ~ Recreation Superintendent Attachment: Request for Proposal Summary Sheet C: BROC~t%~R~. WA~ Exhibit A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL COMMUNITY SERVICES BROCHURE Proposer I. Layout II. Advertising III. Printing Carol Caldwell Gardner Comm. H. C. Pub. San Dieguito $1,120 $40/pg No Proposal No Proposal $1,200 No Proposal $5,500 $42.86/pg $840 No Proposal $3,427 $30/pg No Charge 80/20 $2,860 Shorco $1,400 $50/pg + $300 design per quarter Varies $4,620 w/sales Tustin News $45/pg No Proposal $5,748 Type Factory $35/pg No Proposal No Proposal ZGF West .. $25/pg 50/50* One time $200 design No Proposal * ZGF sales supplemental to Shorco advertising. . SHORCO PUBLISHING, INC. 3140 Hedhiil Ave. Suite150, Costa Mesa CA 926~'6 · (714) 545-8640 · FAX (714) 545-4105 BID PROPOSAL FORM ' City of Tustin Community Services Brochure Quarterly size Approx. 8~/'~x107~ 33,000 Client · Type of Medium Frequency Quanity # Pages Cover Stock Paper Stock Color 28 341b. E-Brite (22 Pages City Text) 4-Color ,Cover/Black Interior Per quarter cost Per quarter cost Per quarter cost Phase I Design Development $ 300.00 $ $ Phase II Typesetting and $ 1400.00 $ $ Layout Phase Ii'i Spot Color $ N/A $ Phase IV Camera Work Color Seperations Blue Line Preview Phase V Printing Supervision and Binding Phase VI Postal Presort $ 250.00 $ $ $ 4520.00 $ $ N/A $ $ Phase Vii Postage $ N/A $ Phase ViII Delivery $ 100.00 $ $ TOTAL FOR ALL PHASES $ 6570.00 $ $ Cost for additionsl copies per 1,000 Cost for each addilionsl 4 pages $ $ $ 37.00 $ 784.00 $ $ If SHORCO sells advertising in the brochure the following credits would apply: Advertising Content Percentage: Not to exceed 50% of total number of page Advertising Client Pays SHORCO Credits Net Cost Revenue Shorco Client To Client $0-5,000 6570.00 3,770.00 2~800.00 -- 5,001-10,000 10,001-15,000 15,001and over 6570.00 6570.00 6570.00 4,770.00 5,770.00 6,770.00 1,800.00 800.00 --0-- Goals: PROPOSAL FOR THE PRODUCTION OF THE COMMUNITY SERVICES DIRECTORY OF THE CITY OF TUSTIN Provided by Joan Field ZGF West; 12586 Vista Panorama, Santa Ana, CA 92705 December 6, 1993 The primary goals of the Commun. ity Service Department of the City of Tastin re. the publication of a Community Services booklet are: (1) to remove layout/typesetting activities from the office freeing the empioyee for more pertinent .activitiesand (2) to reduce the overall cost to the city of Tustin (currently approximately 53200 per year). To address these goals, the Community Services Department has opened a bidding process to the graphics trade encompassing all three aspects of the publication m lavourJ typesetting, marketing of advertising/production of ads, and printing. As an attendee ar the RFP Conference, I gathered that the City is relatively satisfied with the printer and printing costs. It is somewhat unhappy with the advertising contractor since the number of ad inserts obtained did not cover the cost of production. Finally, the City is concerned about the time required to rweak a new program, with its concomitant learning curve, (Pagemaker 4.0 for the IBM) into a creative, eye-appealing product. Achieving the Goals: ZGF West suggests the following: (1) I would handle all aspects of the layout design and .typesetting, having considerable experience in producing directories and newsletters. The cost is a flat $25 per page ~or u, pesetting and page layout. E.g., a 28 page booklet would cost $700. In addition, there would be a one-time fee of $200 for redesign of the cover and interior pages. The $25 per page fee would include time interfacing with the printer, the advertising agency and the City. (2a) Shoreco, the current advertising agency, has regularly obtained advertising that accounts for about 4.5 - 5 solid pages of advertising of the 28 page booklet. Some advertisers are on annual contracts for ad placement in Tusrin Today. ZGF proposes to market advertising ontv supplemental to those ads acquired by'ShOreco. A 50/50 division with the Cin, of -&e additional advertising fees would be utilized to reach the break-even point, covering costs ~'or (a) layout/ typesetting and (b) some printing charges. It is possible that Shoreco, being threatened with loss of the City contract, will be inspired to increase its marketing activities on the City's behalf, requiring less additional advertising to reach a break-even point. ZGF proposes to obtain $1,500 - $2,000 gross in additional advertising, thus providing $750 - $1,000 to the Cit3,, ea6a quarter. (2b) ZGF West will locate the lowest priced quality web printer who speciaiizes in this job size. Currently that is San Dieguito Publishers, the printer you have been ming. The San Dieguito estimate is enclosed, as well as those from two competitors. Cost effective printing requires the availability of a medium-sized web press, which pertains to only a few printers in this geographic area. There would be little cost savings to changc the format to a 6 l/8"x 10" sizcd booklet if the number of pages is increased proportionately, e.g. from 28 pages to about 40. One printer claims that organizations which have switched to the smaller format have also reduced the number of pages by various means in order to cut costs. It is difficult to see how this could happen in the case of Tustin Today since the amount of advertising may increase, reducing editorial space and requiring more, not fewer pages. In the smaller format, mailing costs would be reduced by about $300 per year independent of the number of pages. SPECIFICS Layout Design/Typesetting ZGF West is able to convert 3.5" IBM disks, including files from both Pagemaker 4.0 and Word Perfect into readable Macintosh files. The file would be typeset in Quark X-Press 3.2 using the Styles menu and its text wrap ability to speed the job. All preliminary design work would be forwarded to"the City for approval aceording 'to the Schedule,- ZGF his ia' large eleCii-0'nic Clip"art collection for illustrating the editorial copy. If need be, some space could be saved by using screened artwork behind the copy, rather than utilizing open space. Only when the advertising has been approved by the City, will we move to final layout. Camera-ready ads would be scanned into the computer for accurate placement and ease of rearrangement. Ads acquired by ZGF West's marketing efforts, requiring composition, would be designed in-house as part of the 50% fee retainer. Ail such ads would be firs; forwarded to the City for approval according to the time schedule. All photos would be scanned into the computer for placement purposes. The full-color cover photograph (whether transparency or print) would also be scanned into the computer and output as a completed cover with color separations on film. This provides the opportunity for a more interesting cover design. This cost, estimated at $70, will reduce the printer's cost by at least $144 (see print estimate). Excluding the cover, all output will be from a 600 dpi postscript laser printer. Some printers will work directly from the unpasted laser copies, not requiring meciaanic~s. If the printer chosen requires mechanicals, ZGF will provide the pasteup. Typos or errors made by the typesetter will be corrected at no charge, no matter when discovered. AA's (changes made by client) are charged on a time basis @ 550 per hour. Because a change could affect many pages behind it, it depends on the size of the change and how significantly it effects the layout. Thus, I prefer to offer an hourly rate. Changes that take less than an hour will be pro-rated @ $50 per hour. Advertising and Production of Ads For the supplemental advertising, I will seek ne~v advertisers among the most likelv groups: Children's and adult entertainment such as karate/self defense instruction, health clubs, swimming dubs, pre-schools, golf clubs and instruction, adult/evening schools, and children's play centers. In addition, I will contact Tustin Chamber of Commerce members to elicit additional advertising. ZGF will provide layout and typesetting for ads as part of the ad insert fee. Half (50%) of the gross fees will be forwarded to the Community Services Department. Finally, as part of the process, I will attempt to place a four color ad on the back cover, since it will not increase printing costs. Printing ZGF would provide oversight of the printing and delivery process. The lowest priced qualified printer will be chosen, printer to saddle stitch and bundle as required for delivery to the post office and the City of Tustin of}ices. The printer will also provide halftones for the booklet, ZGF to provide color separations for page 1. There will be no commission added to the printing fCC$. Currently, San Dieguito Publishers, is the low bidder- 28 pages at $2,860.00. I believe they have submitted a separate proposal to your office. I. LAYOUT PROPOSAL SHEET Please use this sheet or include the following items in the format given in your proposal. Attach additional sheets if necessary to address other points of this bid and for your list of references. The undersigned vendor certifies that they have read and understand all documents related to this bid, and in conformance with these documents now bids the following: A. Price for layout and typesetting of brochure $7e0' quarterly B. Price for additional pages over 28 pages. $ $?~ par pag~ /ea~w~~Q~a~4~pg~9s C. Typesetting changes and charges. (Please see attached prop osal) During initial typesetting $ /chanc~ During dummy or back-to-back .$ /change Addition of a class/article $ /addition During blue-line stage $ /chance . · · · F. Length of Agreement 1 year Ge Other information or services your firm would provide the City in the scope of this contract- (attach additional sheets if necessary) *An additional $200 is suggested for new design, a one-time cost Please. see attached pro~o~ Scanning/enhancing photos 4-color front cover o~p~t nn ~!]m Supplement~] ~dv~r~i~inc SUPPLEMENTARY ADVERTISING II. SALE OF ADVERTISING AND PRODUCTION PROPOSAL SHEET Please use this sheet or include the following items in the format given in your proposal. Attach additional sheets if necessary to address other points of this bid.and for your list of references. The undersigned vendor certifies that they have read and understand all documents related to this bid, and in conformance with these documents now bids the {ollowing: A. Percentage split of advertising revenue between City and vendor City percentage 5O % Vendor p_e_r~entage 5_0 % Be Ce De Payment terms: your 50% cn completion of ad sales Length of Agreement one year Other information or services your firm would p~'ovide the City in the scope of this contract: (attach additional sheets if necessary) See layout page and attached proposal