Step 1: Initial meeting and payment

The County Party will review the website development scope, process, cost and get authorization to proceed with the project. 

1. You will meet with Activate Iowa team over Zoom to discuss the scope, process and cost of services available. If you are interested in HTML email services (mailchimp, Emma etc) we will go over those services as well. Once you have decided to go forward with web site design and/or Email setup you will let us know by email. We will be available for followup questions by email, phone or text.
2. Please have 50% of payment ready at the start of the project. We will need payment in order to begin.

Note:

• Your domain name will be migrated and registered under the Activate Iowa account at NameCheap.
• Your domain will be hosted at a premium WordPress hosting company called Flywheel.
• Because we are an all-volunteer organization running on a non-profit fee structure, we must keep our technology infrastructure as simple as possible. Therefore, we are not able to offer services to those using different website hosting companies.
• Your new WordPress theme will be Divi, a drag-and-drop WordPress theme and visual page builder that allows users to design and customize websites without needing to know code.
• You will be provided credentials for your website hosting.
• If you ever decide to migrate your domain name or website to other services, that can be done at any time – but Activate Iowa cannot provide ongoing support to those web sites.

Step 2: Domain name migration and registration

We will migrate your domain name to the Activate Iowa account at Namecheap, a domain hosting company. This is an inexpensive and highly rated company.  By having all the domains in one location we are able to keep costs down for everyone. Depending on the rules at your current domain hosting company, the migration of your name can take up to a week.

Timeline:

• 4-7 days

Step 3: Web Site Migration

We will migrate your website to the Activate Iowa account at Flywheel, a premium web site hosting company.  As with domain hosting, by having all the websites in one location we are able to keep costs down for everyone. In addition, by having all the websites in one location we are better able to train our volunteer staff on maintenance and optimization.

Timeline:

• 3-4 days

Step 4: Choose your template

Review the template options. As of Jan, 2026 we have 2 templates available. Each template has two Home Page options. You will choose the template and home page option you like. Please let us know which template you decide and email us with your decision.

Note:

• All of the images on the current site may be replaced with images specific to your county. Or, you are welcome to keep the images we have in place – they are copyright compliant.
• We have included pages that we think are useful for our County parties in Iowa. You do not have to use all of these pages, and some can be grouped together.
• We have included initial language for each page and section. We will be editing these to customize for your county as part of the design process. The bits that need to be customized are in bright pink.

Timeline:

• 1-2 days

Step 5: Begin the design process using our Pink Form

Once your domain name is registered and you have decided on a template, we can begin the design process. We have created a form called, the Pink Form, where you will be able to indicate all of the edits for your site. One of our volunteer staff or interns will be working with you directly at this point to make the edits on your website.

Access Activate’s Pink Form here.

Initial Content Preparation List:

• your logo in as high resolution as possible – if you do not have a logo we can design one for you
• photos
• social media addresses
• volunteer opportunities
• contact names and emails
• social media links
• officer names/roles
• meeting schedules

Note:

• The Pink Form will be available to you on a return basis. Meaning you can save your work and return later to edit or add more information.
• You will be able to load images directly into the Pink form.

Timeline:

• 5-10 days

Step 6: Proofreading

It is very important that you review every page of your website before announcing it to the public. Please have a couple of people from your county review the information. This is especially important for customizations on the Let’s Register and Let’s Vote pages.

Note:

• We understand and expect that there may be changes in upcoming months. Our team will be available to both train you in making basic edits and in making those edits for you as the case may be.

Timeline:

• 3-5 days

Step 7: Second Payment Due

Once the Proofreading is complete, we will invoice you for your second payment. Please make your payment in a timely fashion.

Note:

• Since we are a volunteer team, we are relying on the collaboration of all of our partners.

Timeline:

• 5-7 days

Step 8: Training

You will need to decide on one or two volunteers who are interested in learning how to make basic edits to your website. Once you have found those volunteers we will set up a couple of zoom meetings to train in basic procedures.

Note:

• The first priority for training will be getting one of your volunteers to learn how to make entries to the Calendar.
• The Activate Iowa team will be available if you get stuck!

Timeline:

• 7-14 days

Step 9: Tell the world about your new site

This one is on you! Let people know thru social media and your email about your new web site. Be sure to include the website information in any new publications.

Timeline:

• ongoing

Step 10: Post-launch Support 

The Activate Iowa team will be available to help train you and also get you out of a bind if issues arise.

Timeline:

• ongoing

As of Jan 10, 2026, the estimated timeline from the time of payment to completion: 25 to 50 days

We want to be able to launch your website asap. This will help you reach as many volunteers, donors, and voters as possible. We are working hard to scale up our volunteer base to meet the need. We just ask you to be timely in getting information to us. Together we can build a beautiful thing. : )