Designing a New User-Centric College Public

Website

Richard SchumacherManager, Technology Initiatives

George Sackett Web Content Supervisor

Who Are We? Largest community college system in

Missouri serving an area of about 700 square miles; created by area voters in 1962

League for Innovation institution Four campuses Three education centers Transfer, career and developmental

programs Non-credit continuing education courses Various workforce development

initiatives

St. Louis Community College

25,000 credit students each semester 48,000 non-credit each year 28,000 workforce development students

FY2007 90 credit programs 57 workforce development programs 2,000 faculty 4,000 employees

College Websites Public Website Users Website

(faculty, student organizations, classes, and staff) Intranet (three sites: key resources menu, static

content pages, and a SPS2001 document center)

Wayback – 1997 & 2001

Why Create a New Site? “One College” Issues and

problems with current site

Developing a new brand identity for the institution

One College

… but several identities on the web site

Which Student Resources?

Issues and Problems Contains hundreds of mini-sites that

don’t connect to each other or the site as a whole

Site is difficult to navigate – and to find content – 16,000 pages with no standard navigation!

Reflects the internal organization, not the users’ needs or expectations

Internal use content mixed in with other content

Pages don’t follow best practices for web design

Issues and Problems Most pages don’t comply with our

loosely defined college standards Common to have over 2,000 broken links Out-of-date content Non-compliance with ADA requirements No unified appearance – brand identity is

fragmented No workflow, review or style editing

process

Non-Unified Appearance

No Standard Navigation

Lack of Consistancy Across Programs

Content Challenges Taking content from the existing 16,000

pages to distill the items of need to audiences

Taking multiple subsites (i.e., programs and departments) and integrating them together

Discovery – Audiences Vendor – marketing communications firm Meetings at each campus to introduce

project and seek cooperation and support

2005 – Audience research conducted by contracted firm

Current and prospective students – focus groups and online surveys

Discovery – Audiences Continuing Education and high school

guidance counselors – focus groups Key administrators and faculty

influencers – phone interviews Larger sample of faculty and staff –

random, online survey

Discovery – Technical Studied site’s navigation and search

capabilities Charted the entire site 92 charts provided a snapshot of the

site’s technological structure, showing the: Types of pages (html, asp, etc.) Graphics used (jpg, gif, swf, etc.) Links (html, CSS, mailto, scripted) Server side (SSI) and client scripting Other document types (pdf, doc, xls, ppt, etc.)

Discovery – Web Operations

One-on-one interviews with: Senior administrators Technology executives Student services staff Web coordinators and others

These employees were directly related to the web site’s operation, administration, updates and/or maintenance

Objectives for the New Site

Overall

Technical

User-centric

Overall Objectives Rebrand the site to project STLCC as one

college Build a site that allows visitors to select

a path based on personal needs Create a new web content delivery

system: Easy to update Reinforces web standards Provides a consistent user experience Flexible to respond to changing needs Embeds review, tracking and accountability

Technical Objectives Acquire and deploy technology that

expedites and streamlines the ongoing content development and maintenance of the site

Continually evaluate the site’s effectiveness by reviewing traffic metrics, click paths, on site searches, and user studies

Use the fault-tolerant design of the existing site

Create an agile technical environment for future web-based functionalities

User-Centric Objectives Understand the current user experience

(qualitative research) and issues Determine features and functionalities

desired by users Reorganize and rewrite the content to fit

the needs of our target audiences Integrate the site into the ongoing, daily

processes of the college Develop an integrated, user-centric, web-

based platform for delivering student services and informing the community at large

Objectives Branding Targeting visitors and their needs

Audiences Critical top-level site elements Navigation required to expose key elements

Content Technical

Let’s Go! New firms selected through bid process

for advertising, branding, web site development, including content

Selection of a web content management system

Creation of Web Advisory Committee –cross-functional and campus representation

First Up – Rebranding Branding – research-rich process to

uncover who we are internally and externally

Image – signal of our personal identity and success

Loyalty – a preference of one brand over another

Equity – assets linked to our brand name that add to or subtract from our value

Rebranding Revealed our blurred image – image

fragmentation Revealed our publications, advertising

and Web site have inconsistent messages Tie branding with enrollment

management communications strategies

Rebranding

Enrollment Management Use the web site as the tool for

prospective student contact Funnel inquiries to appropriate

departments, responding Take action that can be tracked and

follow-up appropriately Hired director of enrollment

management

Targeted VisitorsNew students

Current students

Continuing Education

Workforce

Distance

Foundation

Faculty and Staff

Job Seekers

What Students Say They Access on the Public Website

84.7% - Registration 82.4% - Student Resources 81.8% - Class Schedules 77.9% - Blackboard 60.3% - College Catalog

29.9% - can’t find what they are looking for

Ervin Marketing Report, May 2006

Student Web Expectations Registration Hub for student news and

communications Access to all programs and classes Class availability, times/room numbers,

changes, grades Do everything online:

Pay for classes Get parking passes Get books “Not have to go to the campus”

Ervin Marketing Report, May 2006

Most Important Student Website Expectations

73% - accurate and timely information 70% - easy registration process 66% - ease of navigation 61% - descriptions of programs 55% - easy payment

Ervin Marketing Report, May 2006

What Makes a Good Website?

Comprehensive and up-to-date? Well organized? Easy to navigate or find content? Appropriate, consistent and functional

layout, branding, presentation and graphics?

Meets the needs of the intended audience(s)?

Does it “deliver the goods”?

Navigation and Content Design Role of the Ad Hoc Web Advisory

Committee – taxonomy (navigation structure, organization)

Navigation and organization of content must be intuitive

Must be timely, accurate and consistent Content management system to assure

fresh, reviewed content Frequently accessed content on home

page

Key Site Elements Student resources Program information Admissions and

Registration Workforce Development Continuing Education Distance Learning Foundation & Alumni Library Search Authenticated portal

link Learning management

system link

About STLCC Employee directory Campuses and Centers Maps Calendars Job opportunities Newsroom Contact information Legal disclaimers and

statements Access and disability

information Diversity at STLCC

Taxonomy Creates Navigation Provides structure to unstructured

content Organizes together content from

multiple sources Some users never search; and in

many cases search isn’t as effective as structure

Allows users to find the content they need in a way that makes sense to them

Site Taxonomy Worksheet

Wire-Frame Navigation

New Main Navigation

Home Page Layout

New Home Page

Subpage Layout

Newsroom

About the College

Content Development Tried using an outside firm on contract Most effective was the work of district

community relations personnel Reviews and edits were done internally

– a very slow process Final editing and checks for AP style by

community relations

User Evaluation and Discussion

Program Section Elements

Program Section

Typical Program

Campus Page

New Web Positions Community Relations

Web Content Supervisor Web Graphic Designer

Technology Support Web Manager Web Programmer

New Web Infrastructure

www.stlcc.edu

•Anonymous access•Official College content•Marketing focus•Unified navigation and appearance•Workflow based publishing and content approval process using Serena Collage WCMS•Google mini search

users.stlcc.edu

•Anonymous access•Faculty, staff, class, group/organization, and student content•Navigation limited to list of available “users” sites•Unmanaged publishing(although WCMS and suggested templates, or RSS feed from MOSS mysite, will be available)•Google mini search

my.stlcc.edu

•Authenticated access•Self-service password reset•Entry point into Banner, Blackboard, and other systems and content requiring authentication•Navigation is personalized to the user, standardized appearance•Publishing workflow varies depending on location within the site•MOSS 2007 search

Web Public Web Site Standards

Web Content Management System

Automate consistency and standards through templates and required elements

Allow authorized users to easily add or update content “anytime anywhere” through a browser

Rich text editing eliminates the need for HTML or web editor (i.e. Dreamweaver) experience

Manage workflows with the combination of task management (assign, track and categorize), version control, permissions and a review/approval system

Roll pages back to a previous version as needed Schedule content replacement or removal

Serena Collage

Content Managed WCMS based

Workflow-driven updates Special emergency/urgent content Deploys from WCMS

Content not in WCMS Needs to leverage template components and

standard font/color CSS (via SSI) Web applications (mostly asp/aspx) CORS Deployed by replication using ViceVersa Pro

Calendar System

Web Architecture Cisco load-balanced switch Two front-end web servers running

multiple websites in DMZ WCMS server and database server Server for content not managed by

WCMS

Users site remains separate Intranet will be replaced by MOSS 2007

site– a new portal for all things authenticated

www.stlcc.edu Architecture

Integration With Existing Systems

SungardHE Banner (ERP) Self-Service BlackBoard LMS Home-grown applications

Course Schedule Schedule of Late-Starting Courses Employee Directory Continuing Education Registration Student Application Sexual Harassment, FERPA, and Diversity

Tutorials New system – Windows Live student e-

mail

my.stlcc.edu

my.stlcc.edu Windows Live

Banner Self-Service Portal

Course Schedule

Employee Directory

Scoping and Planning

Gather Requirements

Develop Taxonomy

and Governance

Hardware and Software Deployment

System and Content Design

Usability Testing and

Documentation

Marketing and

Awareness

Rollout and Training

Process Changes Web publishing process Content review and approval process Content deployment process Requests for new/additional

content/subsites Change form

Governance

“Tight governance can stifle a site, preventing constituents from evolving it to fit their needs”

“Loose governance can result in a site flooded with broken or inappropriate content and functionality”

Zach Wall, ppc.com

Governance Ownership and areas of responsibility Modifications to the core navigation Subsite additions / modifications Site-wide standards “Look and feel” Style Taxonomy Metadata

Document types Navigation Coding Security

Communications Web Advisory

Committee Intranet Website Discussion with

college leaders Discussions with

faculty and staff Multiple usability

and beta tests Rollout

announcements

Challenges Along the Way Focus can get redirected based upon

urgency of communications Underestimating timeline for content

and technical specifications development Working with several different agencies Agency reshuffle – new AE Deploying new WCMS in conjunction

with new site

Challenges Along the Way New positions, new employees – no

blueprint for their jobs New employees in a large, complex

organization Internal audiences – time it takes to

communicate Managing expectations of new site –

1,600 vs. 16,000 pages

Challenges Along the Way New brand identity – advertising,

publications New logo and graphic standards

Go Live New website went live March 9:

http://www.stlcc.edu In order to have a go-live date, a “line” had to

be drawn somewhere on what content would be part of the initial deployment We used the Ad Hoc Web Committee to develop basic

guidelines for what was to be included for Phase 1

However, when you make such a decision, there are some who may feel their content was left out, or who may incorrectly feel that someone else had decided their content wasn’t important enough

Future “Phase 2” begins -

Corrections and updates WCMS contributor training Content that was not included in the initial deployment New content based on feedback and metrics analysis Some content needed to be delayed until we could develop

guidelines to present the information in a consistent manner

Further reinforce “One College” Development of interactive, more dynamic content Testimonial videos (Flash based)

“Phase 3” - Student credentials and my.stlcc.edu site

Contact Us Richard Schumacher

Manager, Technology Initiatives rschumacher@stlcc.edu

George Sackett Web Content Supervisor gsackett@stlcc.edu

Presentation is available online at:http://www.stlcc.edu/presentations/