This document summarizes the key components of a digital strategy for redeveloping a university website, as outlined by Steve Mau and Chris Traganos. It discusses goal setting and findings from analyzing the existing site. It also covers assembling an internal and external team, information architecture planning through wireframes and sitemaps, design reviews, usability testing, launch planning, and ongoing enhancements. The overall strategy focuses on improving the user experience, content delivery, and representing the university brand online through a thoughtful, iterative process.

1. Developer & Website
Marketing Strategy
Steve Mau, NYU Stern
Chris Traganos, Evernote

2. Digital Strategy for websites
•Case study of •Forward thinking design
redeveloping NYU’s Stern and technical decisions
website
•Lessons learned
•Developer toolkit for throughout process
approaching website
strategy •Post launch strategy
•Redefine content delivery

3. Components of website digital strategy
•Goal setting & findings •User experience /
usability testing
•Team roles / agency
selection •Launch
•Information architecture •Ongoing enhancements
•Design review process

4. stern.nyu.edu

5. Dec 2009
Homepage:

6. Quick win
Jan 2010

12. Goal Setting
& Findings

13. Findings
• Improve the ease of use • Show don’t tell
• Catch audience at various • Differentiate
points in the lifecycle
• Make the whole online
presence greater than the
sum of parts
• Separate internal from
external information

14. Goal Setting & Opportunities
•Solid framework for building the site over time
•Approaching the site content with a curation focus
•Forward thinking in redesign
•Taking the online presence as an accurate representation
of your brand
•Respect for smart decisions from peers

15. Surveying Tools
•Polling your community
and audience for feedback
on form & function.
•Reviewing with your
technical resources the
state of the site
•Get concrete
understanding of where it
stands

16. Project Management Tools
Basecamp
Project Collaboration

17. Team Roles /
Agency selection

18. Team Roles
•Need skilled team to deliver quality project
•Comprised of internal and external players
•Maintain stability while leveraging creative, prototyping
tactics

19. Agency Scorecards
•Strategy
Agency
#1 Agency
#2 Agency
#3 Agency
#4 Agency
#5
•Creative Strategy 4.3 4.6 3.5 3.3 3.6
Crea.ve 3.6 4.6 2.6 3.1 3.7
Process 3.3 4.8 3.4 3.4 3.8
•Process Technology 3.5 4.3 2.9 4.0 4.3
Capabili.es 3.3 4.4 3.3 4.3 4.3
Fit
2.9 5.4 3.3 2.8 3.9
•Technology Average 3.5 4.7 3.2 3.5 3.9
•Capabilities
•Fit

20. IA
Information Architecture

21. Wireframes & Sitemaps
•Focus on interactions •Think about user
pathways
•Review with finetooth
comb •Iterate until it’s
production-ready
•Pull in technical / UX pair
of eyes •Curating your content -
thinking smart today will
•Ask questions as improve overall rebuild
feedback
•Identify areas for
expansion

22. Jason Robb: “Tools for Sketching UX Experiences”
http://bit.ly/mUG8D

23. Jason Robb: “Tools for Sketching UX Experiences”
http://bit.ly/mUG8D

24. Sitemap & Wireframe tools
Jumpchart Omnigraffle

32. Design Review Process

33. GroupThink
•Solicit honest external feedback
•GroupThink can prevent critical improvements
•Practical design and a great user interaction is the goal

35. User Experience /
Usability Testing

36. User Experience
•Create funnels and determine pathways
through the site
•Create utility for users coming to your site
•Collect and decide on addressing major
feedback items

37. Feedback Tool:
Silverback App
•Capture screen activity
•Video the tester’s face
•Record the tester’s voice
•Add chapter markers on-the-fly
•Control recording with the remote
•Export to Quicktime

46. Launch Plan

47. Build
•Keep track of code status
•Decide on deliverable dates
•Review each stage and the progress made

48. Hosted Commit logs
code repository added to project
beanstalk basecamp

49. “Tape the Edges”
•Approach launch like painting a room - prep counts
before & after
•List of redirects for .htaccess file
•Helpful 404 page
•Link checker
•Test page load

50. tools.pingdom.com

51. CDN
Content Delivery Networks

57. Make fewer HTTP requests
and spread them out.

60. S3 & Cloudfront (Backup CDN)

61. Dynamic Video Streaming

62. Ongoing maintenance
& future enhancements

63. Mindset
•Continuous improvement
•Plan out stage 2
•Address all aspects of your site - craft the experience
•Soft launches are great - take time to get it right

64. Further
Reading

67. Support Form
Date
Type of Issue
Reported by
Where
Feature Request / Problem
Severity

69. Thank you.
@stevenmau @ctraganos