The document is a presentation by Nick DeNardis on maintaining university websites. It discusses common pain points found on websites like missing content, duplicate content, and obstructed content. It provides solutions such as conducting content audits, creating personas, and implementing feedback loops. It also recommends books and tools to improve website design and content strategy.

1. The golden rule
of the web
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2. #eduGuruSummit @nickdenardis

3. Nick DeNardis
Associate Director of Web Communications
Wayne State University
http://wayne.edu/
Host of EDU Checkup
http://educheckup.com/
Writer for .eduGuru
http://doteduguru.com/
Curator of EDU Snippits
http://edusnippits.com/
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4. What we will cover
Problems Solutions Tools
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5. Maintaining a website is
like maintaining a building
A single department might look like a ranch in the suburbs
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6. But in reality it is just a floor in a
giant skyscraper.
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7. You wouldn't want to
wander around a
skyscraper
Why do we let it happen to our users?
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8. Get in & get out
Spotting pain points on other sites is easy
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11. The curse of knowledge
You are no longer an outsider
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12. Curses are myths
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13. Only YOU can stand
up for your users
Every day will be a struggle
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14. Ace the checkup test
Homepage
Degree List Requirements Next Step
• Admission • Request
• Degree Information
Program • Outcomes • Schedule a
Visit
• Faculty
• Contact
• Students Advisor
• Alumni • Find Contact
• Research Information
• Advisors
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15. Common pain points
• Missing content
• Duplicate content
• Obstructed content
• Dead ends
• PDF's
• Silos
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16. Missing content
What Why?
• Upcoming Deadlines • More important things to do
• Program Information • Assigning responsibilities
• Contact Information • Lack of time
• Coming Soon • Lack of knowledge
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17. Missing content
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18. Missing content
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19. Duplicate content
What Why?
• Inbound links
• Bulletin information
• Multiple owners
• Admission requirements
• Multiple initiatives
• Faculty profiles
• Assuming existing information
• Forms, forms, forms
isn’t findable
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22. Requirements
Confusion
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25. “I already filled out
that form”
What do you mean? Google gave me this one!
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26. Duplicate Forms
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27. Obstructed content
What Why?
• “Wow” factor
• Non user controlled
animation
• Different goals
• Slow interactions
• Laziness
• Inaccessibility
• Lack of information
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28. Slow Interactions
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29. Dead Ends
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30. Dead ends
Looking for: Why?
• Request information
• Contact an advisor • Lack of maintenance
• View course description • Oversight
• Directions to an office/event • Assumptions
• Apply!
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31. #eduGuruSummit @nickdenardis

32. PDF's
What Why?
• Over used
• Laziness
• Under used
• Lack of Knowledge
• Accessibility Issues
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33. Overused
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34. Unnecessary
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35. Silos
• “My users are different”
• “My site needs to have movement, it needs Flash”
• “We have our own IT people, they can handle it”
• “The university tools are too limiting”
• “We need close control over everything we are doing”
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36. What we will cover
Problems Solutions Tools
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37. Solutions
There is no "easy" button
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38. Content audits
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39. Do you own this?
Step #1 to running a
successful website
http://www.contentstrategy.com/
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40. Before
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41. After
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42. Personas
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45. Content ownership
• Structure of CMS Your
• IT infrastructure Users
• Lack of sharing Own
• Static pages
Your
• Trapped in MS Word
Content
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47. Feedback loops
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48. Idea
Testing Sketch
Implement
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49. Idea
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50. Sketch
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51. Implementation
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52. Testing
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53. Testing
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54. Refine
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55. Communicate
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56. Communication = Trust
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57. Blog, post often
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61. #eduGuruSummit @nickdenardis

62. What we will cover
Problems Solutions Tools
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63. Books
• Rocket Surgery Made Easy
Steve Krug
• Content Strategy for the Web
Kristina Halvorson
• Web Form Design
Luke Wroblewski
• Neuro Web Design
Susan M. Weinschenk
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64. Tools
• CrazyEgg.com
• Woopra.com
• Websort.net
• Wordpress.com
• Tumblr.com
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65. CrazyEgg
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66. Woopra
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67. Woopra
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68. Websort
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69. Questions?
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70. Thank you
http://slideshare.net/nickdenardis/
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71. Photo Credits
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenniferbrooke/4903005798/
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/lobraumeister/3719898954/
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/rowmuse/309535784/
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/traftery/4773457853/
• http://www.woopra.com/features/visitor-tracking/
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