When it’s time to overhaul your website, the task at hand can feel overwhelming. Where do you start? Content, functionality, and design are all vying for first place, and everyone in your organization probably has a different idea of what’s top priority. At Raised Eyebrow, we’ve managed hundreds of website redesigns, for organizations large and small - and we can help! (We solemnly pledge this session is not a sales pitch - although we'd love to work with you on a redesign, this webinar will be helpful regardless of who you choose to work with.) In this webinar, we share tips for how to corral your team, clarify your needs, and set the stage for a successful redesign project. Our specialty is working with nonprofits and public sector organizations, so we will bring that focus to this session. You’ll learn: - Key questions to ask yourself & your team - Who within your organization to involve in the process - How to write a better RFP

1. Redesigning
Your Website?
What You Need to
Know
Lauren Bacon + Emira Mears
Thursday, September 22, 2011

2. Q&A
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

3. Q&A
Type question here
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

4. Your Hosts:
Emira Mears Lauren Bacon
Partner Partner
Raised Eyebrow Web Studio Raised Eyebrow Web Studio
Twitter: @emiramears Twitter: @laurenbacon
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

5. Recipe for a
successful redesign:
1. What do you already know is NOT working?
2. Think like your audience
3. Audit your website content
4. Know your numbers
5. Assemble your team
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

6. What’s Not Working Now?
• Identify your pain points.
• Write them down.
• Voilà! Measures of success.
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

7. Quick Poll
What’s the biggest problem on your current
website?
• People can’t find the info they’re looking for.
• The visual design needs an overhaul.
• We can’t make it do what we need from a
technical perspective.
• Everything about it needs changing!
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

8. Think Like Your Audience.
Who do you want to connect
with?
Image credit: paul goyette on Flickr. Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

9. Think Like Your Audience.
Do your homework.
• Audience research
• If you don’t already have this, ask your vendor
for help.
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

10. Think Like Your Audience.
Grouping & Ranking
• Does your community fall into natural
groupings - by type, interest, or
demographics?
• Are some groups higher-priority (for your
website, anyway) than others?
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

11. Audit Your Content.
What have you got?
And what’s missing?
Image credit: honzasterba on Flickr. Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

12. Audit Your Content.
What an audit looks like:
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

13. Know Your Numbers.
Site analytics as a snapshot
Image credit: Paul Jacobson on Flickr. Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

14. Know Your Numbers.
Site analytics as a snapshot
• What do you notice?
• What's working well?
• What's surprising?
• What's not working well, or missing?
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

15. Assemble Your Team.
Identify & include key
stakeholders
Image credit: cubemate on Flickr. Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

16. Assemble Your Team.
When & how?
• Convene a meeting to define goals & priorities
• Share observations & metrics beforehand
• Reiterate them in person
• Review comparable organizations’ websites
• Gather input & prioritize
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

17. Assemble Your Team.
Decide on roles
• Who will be on the project team?
• Who has sign-off authority?
• Important: sign-off must be unequivocal!
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

18. Assemble Your Team.
Inclusivity vs Design
by Committee
• When surveys are helpful
• Tie your redesign goals to organizational
objectives
• Who’s accountable to whom?
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

19. Assemble Your Team.
Sharing Progress vs Inviting Input
• Some people will simply want status reports at
key milestones, such as:
• Priority setting before project begins
• Just before design sign-off
• 1 week before launch
• Immediately after launch
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

20. What Your Vendor Needs
Communicating with designers &
developers
Image credit: duda C. on Flickr. Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

21. What Your Vendor Needs
We want to know:
• Your challenges • Key metrics
(what's not working).
• Who's on your team
• Your audience
• What your top
definitions
priorities are for the
• Where your existing redesign
website content
stands
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

22. Recap:
1. What do you already know is NOT working?
2. Think like your audience
3. Audit your website content
4. Know your numbers
5. Assemble your team
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

23. Need more help?
Raised Eyebrow offers:
• Online Communications • Usability Consulting
Strategy Consulting
• Email Newsletter design,
• Information Architecture and development and management
Interaction Design
• Accessibility and Search
• Website Design & Engine Optimization
Development Consulting
• Web 2.0 and Social Media • Custom workshops for your
Consulting organization
www.raisedeyebrow.com
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

24. Questions?
Please use the “raise
hand” feature, or type
a question into the
Q&A box.
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

25. Questions?
Please use the “raise
hand” feature, or type
a question into the
Q&A box.
Type question here
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011

26. Thank you.
Lauren Bacon Emira Mears
@laurenbacon @emiramears
raisedeyebrow.com
Twitter: #raisedeyebrow
Thursday, September 22, 2011