On the main site<\/a> alone, there are 90,000 pages, which are being constantly edited by more than 1,000 editors across the whole of the University.<\/p>\n 90% of the site gets less than 1 page view per day. And that\u2019s not including the content in 100s of marketing emails that get sent out to our prospective and current students, as well as all the other audiences. It also doesn\u2019t include all the content that sits within our apps and other digital products and platforms.<\/p>\n And that content doesn\u2019t come without its challenges.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s the big deal?!\u201d you might be thinking. Well, the way we do things has a huge effect on our reputation as a credible, high quality institution, which in turn affects how well we perform as an organisation. It\u2019s also no longer fit for purpose to carry on behaving in the way we have, because our users have higher expectations than ever for how we serve them online. In a more progressive digital era, we have to change the way we do things – the times are calling for a digital transformation.<\/p>\n Our analysis tells us that online channels and platforms are the prime places where users get in touch with us, find information they need from us and apply or register for various activities with us.<\/p>\n We\u2019ll start focusing on the context behind the content – thinking about what, when, where and why we’re publishing it. To do this, we have put a new\u00a0workflow process in place<\/a>\u00a0to handle content requests and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)<\/a>.<\/p>\n We will be using the same form for that. We’ll be looking to understand what the website is trying to achieve, how that aligns with our wider content strategy, and if another new website is the best approach. Perhaps another solution would be a better use of the resources.<\/p>\n We are using best practice Content Design methodology. It\u2019s not just about writing in Plain English. It is about user research and creating smart content that gives our users what they need. And the way to do it is with data and user stories to guide our thinking, which we will then validate through user research, and iterate where appropriate.<\/p>\n SitePublisher training will now be restricted. Initially this will be just for faculty and corporate sites, as we\u2019re building new products directly related to our education content. We are communicating this to all editors.<\/p>\n As part of the OneWeb journey, we\u2019re also embedding new best practice principles. Our role, as the programme team, is to work with people across the University, encouraging co-creation and empowerment. We will be writing more about best practice as we roll out more elements of our work.<\/p>\n Our first priority as part of the OneWeb programme will be to develop the \u2018Becoming an Undergraduate student\u2019 journey, and the phase 1 Content Management System (CMS) to provide a new home for our content.<\/p>\n As part of our planning and \u2018getting ready\u2019 mode, we are working on:<\/p>\n We will provide more details on all of these areas in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n Finally: people change, so our content needs to change with them. The iteration stage shouldn\u2019t just come at the end. OneWeb marks a change in our approach. It will be a significant change, but implementing it doesn\u2019t need to be complicated. It will take some time, but the improvements to our users’ experience of the University will be worth it.<\/p>\nSo how do we tackle those challenges and find out what content our users actually care about? – Enter OneWeb<\/h3>\n
We need to change how we do things and this calls for digital transformation<\/h4>\n
The data don\u2019t lie.<\/h4>\n
Okay, so what are we changing?<\/h3>\n
We are changing the way content is commissioned and written.<\/h4>\n
In the same vein, we are also making changes to how websites are being requested.<\/h4>\n
Content creation is another key element.<\/h4>\n
Training on SitePublisher is also changing.<\/h4>\n
New best practices<\/h4>\n
Getting ready<\/h3>\n
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Getting ready for OneWeb<\/span><\/p>\n\n
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