goal: >
  Prepare a concise research handover for turning Bay Area Email Services into a separate
  marketing/Product-Led landing page that can later support SaaS positioning.
current_phase: >
  research
owner: >
  swarm-researcher
context:
  - The separate project folder already exists at C:/Users/a931627/Documents/gitea/bayarea/E-Mail Webseite Marketing.
  - Existing project content positions the offer as local Corpus Christi business email setup/support plus a distinct Bay Area Email Services hosting offer.
  - Current core offer from local materials: 25 GB business mailbox, $5 per inbox, domain email, DNS setup for MX/SPF/DKIM/DMARC, migration, spam filtering, aliases/forwards/auto-replies, Outlook/mobile setup, and local support.
  - Infrastructure positioning from existing materials: AWS-based platform, inbound S3 buffering before delivery, outbound Amazon SES, hot standby failover, DNS/migration/day-to-day management handled locally.
  - Google Workspace Business Starter is a relevant comparison anchor: custom business email, 30 GB pooled storage per user, listed at $7/user/month on annual billing in the checked US-facing page.
  - Microsoft 365 Business Basic is a relevant comparison anchor: custom business email plus web/mobile Office apps, Teams, OneDrive, spam/malware filtering, listed at $6/user/month paid yearly on the checked US-facing page.
  - AWS SES documentation supports claims around deliverability insights, configuration recommendations, and SPF/DKIM/DMARC support, but not a blanket guarantee that every message reaches inboxes.
  - AWS S3 Standard documentation supports a factual durability/availability claim for objects stored in S3, but that should not be converted into an email-platform uptime guarantee unless the service has its own SLA.
  - Google SEO guidance favors descriptive URLs, helpful reliable people-first content, and structured data where it accurately describes the page/business.
recommended_sections:
  - id: hero
    purpose: >
      State the product-level promise before listing infrastructure.
    content_direction:
      - "Headline option: Business email that stays professional, deliverable, and locally supported."
      - "Subcopy should combine domain email, DNS correctness, migration, and local Corpus Christi support."
      - "Primary CTA: Get email set up / Book assessment. Secondary CTA: Compare plans or See how migration works."
    decision_points:
      - Decide whether "$5 per inbox" appears in the hero or in the pricing band; hero price is strong for product-led positioning, but may attract low-intent buyers if setup/support is the real margin.
  - id: problem
    purpose: >
      Name the business pain in non-technical terms before introducing SPF/DKIM/DMARC.
    content_direction:
      - "Missed leads from spam-folder delivery."
      - "Unprofessional free Gmail/Yahoo addresses."
      - "Downtime or lockouts from old/shared hosting email."
      - "No clear local support when email breaks."
  - id: product_snapshot
    purpose: >
      Make the offer scannable as a product, not only a consulting service.
    content_direction:
      - "25 GB mailbox."
      - "$5 per inbox."
      - "Domain email addresses."
      - "DNS authentication setup."
      - "Migration and device setup."
      - "Local support."
  - id: benefits_map
    purpose: >
      Translate technical features into buyer outcomes.
    content_direction:
      - "SPF/DKIM/DMARC -> better authentication and lower spoofing/spam risk."
      - "S3 inbound buffering -> continuity during maintenance or server issues."
      - "Amazon SES outbound -> deliverability tooling and sender-authentication foundation."
      - "Hot standby -> reduced downtime risk."
      - "Local setup/support -> fewer self-service admin failures."
  - id: how_it_works
    purpose: >
      Explain the architecture without making unsupported guarantees.
    content_direction:
      - "1. We verify your domain and DNS."
      - "2. We create mailboxes, aliases, forwards, and spam rules."
      - "3. We migrate existing mail and configure Outlook/iPhone/iPad."
      - "4. We monitor and support day-to-day changes."
      - "Optional visual: inbound email -> S3 buffer -> mailbox delivery; outbound email -> SES -> recipients."
  - id: pricing
    purpose: >
      Present the offer as simple and transparent while leaving room for migration/setup fees.
    content_direction:
      - "Single anchor: $5 per inbox/month, 25 GB included."
      - "Separate setup/migration/support line items if they are not included."
      - "Use a comparison row against Google Workspace Starter and Microsoft 365 Business Basic only for fit, not as attack copy."
    decision_points:
      - Clarify whether $5 includes support, DNS setup, migration, backup/buffering, and device setup or whether those are onboarding/support add-ons.
      - Clarify billing interval, minimum mailbox count, cancellation policy, and whether taxes/fees apply.
  - id: comparison
    purpose: >
      Differentiate against Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, and shared hosting.
    content_direction:
      - "Google Workspace: best when a business wants the full Google productivity suite and AI/collaboration bundle."
      - "Microsoft 365: best when a business wants Microsoft apps, Teams, OneDrive, and broader Office ecosystem."
      - "Shared hosting email: often cheap, but weaker support, deliverability, admin control, and resilience story."
      - "Bay Area Email Services: best when a small local business wants professional email, careful DNS/migration, resilient hosting, and local support without buying a full office suite."
  - id: trust_security
    purpose: >
      Reduce perceived risk around email infrastructure.
    content_direction:
      - "30+ years IT experience."
      - "30+ local businesses supported, if verifiable."
      - "Plain-English DNS/security explanations."
      - "Corpus Christi / Coastal Bend local support."
      - "Use exact terms: SPF, DKIM, DMARC, spam filtering, authentication, failover, S3 buffering, SES."
    decision_points:
      - Avoid absolute claims like 'no emails lost' or 'guaranteed inbox placement' unless backed by SLA/logging/legal review.
      - Decide whether to publish uptime history, SLA, data retention, backup, and incident-response language.
  - id: migration_onboarding
    purpose: >
      Turn switching anxiety into a managed process.
    content_direction:
      - "What we need: domain access, user list, current provider details."
      - "What happens next: discovery, DNS plan, mailbox creation, migration window, device setup, post-migration check."
      - "Address downtime explicitly with realistic expectations."
  - id: local_seo
    purpose: >
      Capture Corpus Christi and Coastal Bend demand while preserving product-led readability.
    content_direction:
      - "Primary URL idea: /business-email-hosting-corpus-christi or /business-email-services-corpus-christi."
      - "Support pages/blogs: business email vs Google Workspace vs Microsoft 365; why business emails go to spam; SPF DKIM DMARC setup; email migration checklist; shared hosting email problems."
      - "Use LocalBusiness/ProfessionalService structured data for the local company page and Product/Offer-style schema only where pricing/offer details are accurate."
  - id: faq
    purpose: >
      Answer purchase-blocking questions and support SEO long-tail queries.
    content_direction:
      - "Is this Google Workspace or Microsoft 365?"
      - "Can you migrate from Gmail/Yahoo/shared hosting?"
      - "Will my emails stop going to spam?"
      - "What does $5 per inbox include?"
      - "Do you set up Outlook/iPhone/iPad?"
      - "What happens if the mail server is down?"
      - "Do you support aliases, forwards, shared inboxes, and auto-replies?"
constraints:
  - Keep claims legally and technically defensible; use 'designed to', 'helps', 'reduces risk', and 'supports' where infrastructure docs do not prove end-to-end guarantees.
  - The page must work both as a local service landing page now and as a SaaS/product landing page later.
  - Do not position directly against Google Workspace/Microsoft 365 as universally better; position by fit and buyer need.
  - Existing content has encoding artifacts in src/pages/ServicesPage.tsx, so future implementation should normalize copy/encoding before reuse.
assumptions:
  - The product brand remains Bay Area Email Services unless a new SaaS brand/domain is chosen.
  - The first target audience is small businesses in Corpus Christi/Coastal Bend, not national self-serve SaaS buyers.
  - $5 per inbox is an ongoing mailbox price, while setup/migration/support terms still need clarification.
  - The AWS/S3/SES architecture is already implemented or will be implemented as described in current materials.
open_questions:
  - Is there a separate setup fee, migration fee, monthly support plan, or minimum mailbox count?
  - What exact uptime/failover/SLA claims are allowed?
  - What retention period applies to S3-buffered inbound messages?
  - Are testimonials, case studies, Google reviews, or named customer logos available?
  - Will the site use the existing Bay Area IT domain, a subdomain, or a standalone product domain?
  - Should the product target only Corpus Christi/Coastal Bend or expand to broader US small businesses?
requested_output:
  - A landingpage plan that converts the recommended_sections into wireframe-level content blocks.
  - A pricing/packaging decision sheet clarifying what $5 includes and which services are add-ons.
  - A claim-safety checklist for all infrastructure, deliverability, uptime, security, and migration claims.
done_definition:
  - The next role can draft a landingpage without rediscovering product facts, competitor anchors, SEO direction, or unresolved decisions.
  - Each major section has a clear purpose, content direction, and known decision points.
  - Unsupported claims are flagged before implementation.
verification:
  - Checked local project for existing email-service copy and product facts.
  - Confirmed separate marketing folder exists and added this research handover under research/.
  - Checked current public pages/docs for Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, Google Search Central, AWS SES, and AWS S3.
  - Agent launch was attempted but blocked by the current collab thread limit; research was completed sequentially as fallback.
sources:
  - "Existing brief: C:/Users/a931627/Documents/gitea/bayarea/E-Mail Webseite Marketing/PROJECT_BRIEF.md"
  - "Existing repo content: C:/Users/a931627/Documents/gitea/bayarea/byarea/src/data/seoData.ts"
  - "Existing repo content: C:/Users/a931627/Documents/gitea/bayarea/byarea/src/pages/ServicesPage.tsx"
  - "Google Workspace Business pricing/features: https://workspace.google.com/intl/en_US/business/"
  - "Microsoft 365 Business Basic pricing/features: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/business/microsoft-365-business-basic"
  - "Google SEO Starter Guide: https://developers.google.com/search/docs/fundamentals/seo-starter-guide"
  - "Google LocalBusiness structured data: https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/local-business"
  - "Amazon SES documentation overview: https://aws.amazon.com/documentation-overview/ses/"
  - "Amazon S3 data durability documentation: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonS3/latest/userguide/DataDurability.html"
