WORDPRESS WEB PROJECT

Transcription

1 WORDPRESS WEB PROJECT Information Architecture and User Experience Recommendations February 19, 2014 Kate Winsor

2 The Digital Status Quo 2 the evolution of mobile, social, video and Web publishing are transforming the way higher education engages students online. There's a growing sense of urgency from higher education leaders I talk to that the digital status quo is unacceptable. -Jeff Cam, Why Are Colleges Flunking Web Strategy 101?

3 Site Goals for the End User 3 Easy access to information that is important to the user Easy to navigate, informational and transactional Clear and concise, easily search-able, things grouped by content, very few clicks to get from point A to point B, don t split up information Up-to-date information Encourage users to take action

4 Information Architecture Process 4 Create inventory of existing content Review current analytical data Analyze competitors and review other higher education websites Create a new, efficient site structure that is easy to maintain Reallocate content pages to new site structure Make content easily accessible: Content should follow a logical and intuitive path Grouped so that the hierarchy is balanced and uncluttered Create consistencies among college content

5 5 Google Analytics Browser Traffic Screen Resolutions Most Visited Pages

6 Browser Traffic: Jan 1, 2013 to Feb 1, Internet Explorer 40% Internet Explorer Chrome Safari Firefox Android Browser Mozilla Safari (in-app) IE with Chrome Frame Amazon Silk Opera

7 Screen Resolution: Jan 1, 2013 to Feb 1, x480 5% 1366x768 27% 1366x x x x x x x x x x480

8 Top 25 Pages: Jan 1, 2013 to Feb 1, Page Pageviews / 3,543,437 /current-students/ 1,538,495 /faculty-staff/ 357,409 / .shtml 341,948 /future-students/ 149,901 /degrees.shtml 138,464 /services/counseling/resume/phrases.html 128,735 /future-students/onlinedegrees.shtml 85,619 /services/museums/miles-mineral/diamond.shtml 61,064 /academics/class-schedule/ 57,357 /future-students/applynow.html 46,516 /academics/library/index.shtml 46,358 /about/directory/people-search.php 44,914 /future-students/tuition/index.shtml 38,747 /academics/library/periodicals.shtml 36,570 /calendar/ 35,642 /academics/resources/degrees/degree-plans.shtml 34,823 /current-students/important_dates.html 34,521 /services/counseling/student/index.php 32,766 /services/hr/ 30,969 /academics/assessment/faculty/manual/verb_list.shtml 26,321 /mba/online/index.shtml 23,602 /athletics/index.php 23,333 /mba/online/degree-plan-requirements.shtml 20,291 /parents-visitors/ 19,938

9 9 Competitors New Mexico Highlands University Western New Mexico University New Mexico State University University of New Mexico New Mexico Tech West Texas A&M Texas Tech Wayland Baptist Lubbock Christian University

10 Main Navigation 10 Staying somewhat consistent with most college s site navigation decreases site learning curve.

11 11 Secondary Navigation

12 12 New Site Recommendations Sitemap Information Architecture Content Strategy Wireframes Wordpress Template

13 13 Sitemap * Please keep in mind that a sitemap does not indicate page flow.

14 New Information Architecture 14 Existing content has been re-distributed to new architecture This content will need to be reviewed with stakeholders for accuracy and be refreshed as needed Content can also be re-organized or flagged for removal Recommend only three levels of navigation, exclusive of in page body links

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16 How You Can Use This IA 16 Future content planning, long-term strategy Track content updates needed for launch Track delivery of content from various team members for launch Facilitate section reviews with stakeholder groups Track and remove out-of-date or incorrect content pages

17 New Site Requirements 17 Wordpress Content Management System Responsive/mobile friendly ADA compliant SEO optimized

18 Site Content Strategy 18 Take the focus off the entry and exit pages Home Page, Request Information and Apply The middle contains pages that are highly influential in the journey and decision process Show users WHY Why visit Why apply Why attend Why give Showcase people, programs and proof

19 Topical/Thematic Overlay 19 Every school has signature features that truly differentiate it from other schools. Celebrate them. Personal Touch Affordable Community and belonging Success

20 Homepage 20 Large, very visual featured content area focused on key themes and messaging Show students what they can do with an ENMU education Highlight students who attend ENMU Showcase faculty who work at ENMU Be transparent about what it is like to attend ENMU Showcase campus and location Three calls to action to drive the user to act Use syndicated and dynamic content, like news, events and social media while being flexible when sourcing content for these areas Fat footer with commonly accessed links

21 Homepage, Responsive View 21 Dubbed the mostly fluid responsive design pattern by Luke Wroblewski, the multi-column layout scales from large screens down to small screens by stacking columns vertically in its narrowest incarnations. The core structure of the layout does not really change until the smallest screen by using fluid grids to adapt to a variety of screen sizes:

22 Degree Programs 22 Create one central location for all degree information All college sites will link to this page Take responsibility off individual programs for maintaining content Supplement degree plan documentation with value-added content: Program description Career areas Popular minors Present content that relates topically without forcing the user to jump all around the site Include advisor contact information and a contact form Best in class examples: Majors-Minors-and-Curriculum/ Accounting.aspx marketing

23 Visit 23 Getting a prospective student on campus for a tour significantly increases the likelihood of enrollment Build excitement around the campus visit before the prospective student arrives Use this opportunity to differentiate the campus visit Informational Experiential Transactional

24 Visit 24 Informational Experiential Transactional A visit section instead of one long page. Let the student know what to expect, when the sessions are and who will be showing them around. Help the planning process. Show off some of the great things to do in Portales other than visit the campus. Make the form great. And mobile.

25 Social 25 Integrate with a social strategy, not just randomly Keep users on the site: Include dynamic student feeds in the Student Life section Flickr/Instagram feed of crowd sourced campus photos

26 Footer 26 Persistent on very page Add visit to the footer High-value page links Contact form for quick information requests

27 College Sites 27 Streamline content across all colleges by creating consistent site structures Visually differentiate college sites from university site Highlight departments and faculty, college accomplishments and programs

28 Template: Avada 28 To ease the burden of development, allow the communications team to focus on content and meet the launch deadline, purchasing Wordpress template that comes with many built-in features is recommended. This will ensure a quality product in a short amount of time, will assist developers who are unfamiliar with the Wordpress engine, and standardize coding. The Avada template is recommended for its robust features, fully customizable template and clean design.

29 Why Use Avada Template 29 Easy installation and setup Fully responsive and touch enabled Completely customizable Cross-Browser Compatibility: FireFox, Safari, Chrome, IE8, IE9, IE10 Built with HTML5 and CSS3 60 Layered PSDs for customization SEO optimized Advanced administrative controls Shortcode builder Extensive documentation and support

30 Additional Resources /11/16/top-first-responsive-websites-in-highered/

31 THANK YOU!