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Council asks staff to return with social-media and newsletter proposal after Seed House briefing
Summary
Council discussed contracting social media and a digital newsletter, reviewed a Seed House Creative proposal and existing print budget, and directed staff to negotiate a package to present for approval; no final contract or vote was taken.
Woodway councilmembers discussed options to professionalize the city's social media and newsletter functions and directed staff to return with a negotiated package for council approval.
Staff said the city budgeted $25,000 for contracted social-media/newsletter services; staff also noted the city has a separate $155,000 line item that supports the printed newsletter. Seed House Creative presented a range of services, including a digital newsletter and social-media management, and cautioned that a full suite of services would exceed the $25,000 allocation. "We could put together a $25,000 budget but it wouldn't include all of the things that are in this [larger] plan," the Seed House representative said.
Council members raised trade-offs between keeping the print newsletter, shifting to digital distribution, and ensuring residents without email are not left out. Councilwoman Gan said the objective was better public-information delivery: "We wanted to beef up our communication efforts in the community and I think we were trying to find a balance..." Staff and the consultant discussed approaches such as making a digital newsletter the default with opt-ins for printed copies and using analytics to measure reach.
Council discussed whether contracting would reduce staff workload and whether some social channels should remain under departmental control for breaking public-safety posts. ACM Rogers and staff said the arrangement would be collaborative: city departments would retain the ability to post critical, time-sensitive information while a contractor would streamline mainstream messaging and graphics.
Rather than select a specific option at the meeting, the council directed the city manager to negotiate a package with parameters and return to council with a proposal for formal approval. The transcript records that no final council action or contract award was taken at the Oct. 28 meeting.
Staff noted next steps would include drafting a package within the council's budget parameters, clarifying whether hot (tourism) funds could cover parts of the scope, and returning with a recommendation.
