Answers to Questions

Documented Quote AHEC-27400-D

Online Ticketing and Tour Booking System for Golda Meir House Museum

Metropolitan State University of Denver

This document contains all questions submitted by the deadline specified. Vendors’ questions are in black text, and AHEC’s answers are in red text.

Q1. PCI compliance — We plan to use Stripe as our payment processor, which provides a PCI DSS Attestation of Compliance. Will this satisfy the PCI DSS v4.0.1 requirement, or is a separate vendor-level AOC required?

A1. AHEC requires the successful vendor to demonstrate compliance with the solicitation requirements. Vendors should submit the required documentation described in the solicitation.

Q2. References — The solicitation requests three references from similar platform work within the last two years. Can you clarify if references from booking/e-commerce platforms (not strictly museum ticketing) would be acceptable?

A2. References for comparable booking or e-commerce platforms may be considered if they demonstrate experience with similar functionality and complexity.

Q3. Approximately how many ticketing transactions (annual and peak hourly) does the Museum anticipate so we can size payment processing, licensing tiers, and hosting resources appropriately?

A3. The Golda Meir House Museum is a relatively small museum. Historical transaction volumes are not available at this time. Vendors should propose a solution that can appropriately support the Museum's anticipated operations and allow for future growth.

Q4. Does AHEC require use of an existing state or campus merchant account/gateway (e.g., Authorize.net, Elavon, TouchNet), or may vendors propose their own integrated gateway?

A4. AHEC is open to vendor recommendations. Vendors should describe their proposed payment processing solution and any associated merchant account or gateway requirements as part of their response.

Q5. Which CRM or email-marketing platform(s) does the Museum currently use, and is real-time API integration required or will periodic CSV exports be sufficient?

https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=http%3a%2f%2fAuthorize.net&c=E,1,Zf75ve_O1XKDdLL8z53GiymaW__mArdFAZBT59b1xaMrRA_IUo9Qtncg6L34LUJ44mzPvUC3NPnCAUkQQHg3CPktNx22Yiioq7UTh7crCQ,,&typo=1

A5. The Museum does not have a required CRM or email marketing platform for this project. Vendors are encouraged to describe the capabilities of their solution, including available integrations and data export options.

Q6. Will staff need an on-site point-of-sale/scanning solution for walk-up sales and ticket validation, and if so are hardware devices to be included in scope?

A6. The Museum anticipates the need for point-of-sale functionality and ticket validation for on-site operations. If the proposed solution requires hardware to support these functions, vendors should include the recommended hardware and associated costs in their proposal.

Q7. What is the target go-live date for public ticket sales, and are there immovable event deadlines driving the schedule?

A7. While the Museum would like to implement the solution as soon as practical following contract award, there is no specific event or immovable deadline driving the implementation schedule. Vendors should include a proposed implementation timeline as part of their response

Q8. Could you provide the approximate operating expenses for the Museum?

A8. Currently, we are unable to provide the Museum's approximate operating expenses as it operates as a non-profit at the moment . Please base your proposal on the information provided within the solicitation documents.

Q9. We are in the process of completing our VPAT, which we are anticipating completion by the end of the year. Looking at the requirements, this might be a blocker. Would we delivering a completed VPAT by the end of the year be agreeable?

A9. A complete VPAT is required as part of the solicitation requirements. We are unable to make exceptions or modify the submission requirements for individual vendors.

Q10. In Section 2.4, would you be able to provide some use cases for this requirement - Administrative controls to review, flag or approve bookings, as applicable

A10. Examples include reviewing large group or school tour requests, flagging bookings requiring staff follow-up, and approving reservations for special events, guided tours, or other activities with limited capacity.

Q11. Section 1.4 states that the term includes implementation, training, and one (1) year of software licensing. Please confirm whether AHEC intends the resulting agreement to include any renewal options or extension periods after the initial one-year software license term. If renewals are permitted, please specify the number and length of renewal terms and any pricing/escalation requirements for renewal years.

A11. The initial contract includes implementation, training, and one year of software licensing. Any future renewals or extensions, if applicable, will be addressed in accordance with AHEC contracting requirements.

Q12. The Scope of Services requires functionality for adding an optional donation during checkout and making standalone donations. Could AHEC please provide more details on the expected donation management use cases, including whether donations must be tied to specific campaigns/funds, whether donor information and receipts must be managed within the system, and whether donation reporting/export requirements differ from ticketing and event revenue reporting?

A12. The Museum expects the ability to accept optional donations during checkout and standalone donations. Donations do not need to be tied to specific campaigns. The system should capture donor information, generate receipts, and provide reporting/export capabilities.

Q13. Today, how many users are required to access the system, including administrators, staff, docents, volunteers, and any other internal users?

A13. The Museum anticipates approximately 10 internal users over the next several years, including administrators, staff, docents, and volunteers. The system should provide role-based permissions and allow for modest future growth.

Q14. If this information can be made public, what is the current and future budget allocated for this service? Alternatively, does AHEC have any cost expectations for vendors, or a threshold you expect the solution to fall within?

A14. AHEC is not releasing a project budget. Vendors should propose their best value solution based on the requirements in the solicitation.

Q15. Could you provide more details on the specific use cases you expect this solution to address, particularly for guided tours, group tours, school visits, special events, donations, and reporting?

A15. Expected use cases include self-guided admission, scheduled guided tours, school groups, private group tours, special events, optional and standalone donations, and standard reporting on attendance, revenue, and donations.

Q16. Is there an incumbent vendor currently providing the ticketing, tour booking, and/or donation management solution? If so, could you share the reason for issuing this new solicitation, such as performance concerns, feature gaps, end of contract term, or a new operational need?

A16. The Museum does not currently use a comprehensive online ticketing and tour booking solution. This solicitation is being issued to implement a new system that better supports Museum operations.

Q17. What is the most recent value and term of the contract for the current or most recent ticketing/tour booking solution, if applicable?

A17. Not applicable.

Q18. Will AHEC publish responses to vendor questions in the form of an official addendum or consolidated Q&A document?

A18. Yes. Responses will be issued through an official AHEC question-and-answer document or addendum.

Q19. Is the Golda Meir House Museum registered as a 501(c)(3) organization, and if so, is registered independently from the Auraria Higher Education Center? This information will help us determine appropriate software licensing pricing.

A19. The Golda Meir House Museum is operated in partnership with AHEC. Vendors should base licensing and pricing on the solicitation requirements.

Q20. What is the average number of attendees per tour currently and how high do you foresee that going in the future?

A20. Typical guided tours range from 1 to approximately 25 attendees. The Museum also hosts larger special events of approximately 50–300 attendees two to three times per year. Vendors should propose a solution that accommodates both routine tours and occasional larger events.

Q21. Is a scanner at tour check-in a required feature or a preferred (but non-essential) one?

A21. A dedicated ticket scanner is not required. The preferred solution allows ticket validation using a standard web browser or mobile device.

Q22. Please provide a full breakdown of your Ticket sales history for 2025 (2024, and 2023 if available) broken down by sales channel along with revenue. As this helps us to provide accurate pricing.

a. Online tickets

b. Box Office tickets

c. Group Tickets

d. Comp Tickets Please provide the total number of complimentary Tickets issued.

E. Season Tickets

A22. Historical ticket sales data are not available. Vendors should base pricing on the information provided in the solicitation.

Q23. Who will be the Merchant of Record, AHEC or the vendor?

A23. The Merchant of Record will be determined during implementation based on the selected solution and AHEC requirements.

Q24. Who is AHEC's current payment processor ? Is there any preferred payment processor?

A24. There is no required payment processor. Vendors may recommend their preferred integrated solution.

Q25. What system is currently used for ticket sales?

A25. The Museum does not currently use a dedicated online ticketing system.

Q26. What hardware components are currently used by AHEC?

A26. The Museum does not currently utilize dedicated ticketing hardware and prefers a cloud-based solution that minimizes or eliminates the need for specialized hardware.

Q27. What is the existing ticket printer model that is currently used for Box office /In-person person sales?

A27. Not applicable.

Q28. Does the AHEC pay for the ticket paper stock or the vendor needs to provide it as part of Annual Subscription?

A28. If specialized ticket stock is required, vendors should clearly identify ongoing supply requirements and costs.

Q29. How many POS devices in total are required for onsite ticket sales?

A29. No dedicated POS devices are required. If in-person sales are supported, the preferred solution should operate on a standard computer, tablet, or mobile device.

Q30. How many Ticket validation scanners is expected to be required in total?

A30. No dedicated ticket validation scanners are required. Validation using a mobile device or web browser is preferred.

Q31. Is the AHEC open to pay for the required point of sale hardware cost or the vendor needs to provide it for free to the city as part of the Annual Subscription?

A31. The Museum prefers a solution that minimizes or eliminates the need for dedicated hardware. If hardware is recommended, it should be optional and separately priced.

Q32. On the cost sheet, we see an Annual Subscription pricing model, is this the preferred pricing model? Or is AHEC open to considering a per ticket transaction pricing model (convenience fee) charged to the patron, with no cost to AHEC?

A32. The pricing template in the solicitation is preferred; however, vendors may propose alternative pricing models if clearly explained.

Q33. Are there any pain points /challenges with the current ticketing process that AHEC would like to improve upon??

A33. The Museum seeks to replace manual processes with an integrated system that streamlines online ticketing, tour scheduling, donations, reporting, and onsite operations while improving the visitor experience.