Our Work

American Academy of Physician Assistants

Goal

The American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) was faced with a number of issues with its website: members were complaining about its design and structure; departments were unhappy that key content was not easily accessible; content was not designed for web consumption;and the CMS in place (Joomla) was difficult to use from an administrative perspective and could not easily integrate with other back-end systems.

Solution

To build a plan to move forward, AAPA requested that eCore perform a comprehensive analysis of the site and provide a strategic roadmap for improvement. Our analysis included evaluations of the visual design, information architecture, technology architecture, code (from a 508c3 perspective), and content. We also conducted two focus group sessions with representatives from both the member and non-member communities. On the basis of this usability evaluation, we developed a clear strategy roadmap and built consensus on the roadmap among key organization stakeholders, allowing AAPA to move forward in a new direction.

eCore then began the task of implementing a total redesign of the website and implementation of a new CMS, Ektron. This included: Requirements Gathering, during which we defined and documented audiences, site objectives, desired site functionality, processes and system integration needs; Information Architecture that transformed the site from one focused on department silos to one focused on how users seek content; and Visual Design development that presented a clean interface that reflected the member base and their interests.

Simultaneously, eCore focused on Content Restructuring that included:

  • Performing a complete content audit and determining which content to retain or archive, which content was web-ready and which was not, and aligning all retained content with the new information architecture
  • Working with subject matter experts to re-write non-Web ready content and write new content where gaps had been identified
  • Developing and implementing a tiered content structure that delivered targeted content based on role (e.g., general public, members, fellow-members).

With the design and content in place, the we then moved forward wth CMS Implementation, integration with back-end systems, content migration, and administrator and content author training.

The end result was a successful launch of the redesigned site: one that engages the identified audiences, is structured to allow easy access to critical content, and is built to allow ease of administration by AAPA staff. eCore continues to work with AAPA to further refine the site and site administration and to provide strategic guidance on further improvements.

Featured Services

  • Performed Usability Analysis for website
  • Restructured site to user-centric navigation
  • Created a visual design that reflected site audience
  • Coordinated total review of all content; worked with SMEs to re-write content for the web
  • Implemented a new CMS

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