Web Strategy
School of Medicine and Public Health

Objectives

While website improvement that sets the stage for the upcoming LCME re-accreditation cycle is one factor driving the relaunch of med.wisc.edu, the project will add value that goes well beyond the accreditation process. The website will be reimagined using the SMPH’s strategic goals, mission, vision, values as a guide. The relaunch process will include a commitment to digital accessibility and usability, the alignment of content with key audiences and strategic objectives, and facilitation of more dynamic content.

Since approximately 2016, the med.wisc.edu website has been in a content management system called Terminalfour that is licensed and operated by UW Health. The complexity and licensing structure of Terminalfour places limitations on staffing for web editing, and anticipated technology shifts in the next 12-18 months make it likely that the organization as a whole will shift away from Terminalfour. Switching the med.wisc.edu site to WordPress, which is the predominant open source content management system used at UW–Madison, will increase efficiencies and will enable SMPH to benefit from and contribute to the campus WordPress community. Additionally, using WordPress will allow the SMPH Office of Strategic Communications team to assume direct responsibility for site operations and facilitate a strategic vision for the site while continuing strong collaboration with UW Health’s communications, web and digital marketing teams.

To expedite the relaunch, SMPH will partner with a web development vendor and a brand strategy firm. The Office of Strategic Communications will also engage with department chairs, leadership, content experts, and target audience users throughout the design process.

analytics and mobile illustraiton

Updates

Overall Goals

  • Competitively recruit highly qualified, diverse learners, leadership, faculty and staff
  • Advance the schools’ reputation in research (including clinical research/clinical trials), health professions education, basic science graduate training, and health/public health service
  • Ensure equitable access by optimizing the site for speed and ensuring digital accessibility requirements are met
  • Provide an improved user experience including more intuitive navigation
  • Meet web requirements related to accreditation standards for the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) as well as the Accreditation Council for Genetic Counseling (ACGC), Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH), Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), and Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA).

Content Goals

  • Move content to WordPress from current content management system, Terminalfour, to allow for ease of maintenance and leverage the knowledge of the WordPress community of practice UW–Madison campus
  • Audit and update content to align with target audiences as well as SMPH’s mission, vision, values and strategic goals
  • Improve search engine placement with keyword-rich content, best practices and data-driven decision making
  • Highlight what differentiates SMPH from other schools and institutions
  • Ensure that pages are dynamic, visually engaging and easy to scan
  • Improve news with keyword search and filters, increase use of images and multimedia content
  • Present a consistent, professional and inclusive tone across the site
  • Seamlessly refer patients to uwhealth.org as the source of patient and health consumer information

Branding Goals

  • Continue alignment with UW–Madison brand, web, and editorial style guidelines
  • Advance the SMPH brand
  • Present updated, modern and cohesive visual branding across all assets including photos, icons, illustrations, and video

Technical Requirements

  • Fully responsive design that works seamlessly across desktop (PC, Mac) and mobile devices (Android and iOS mobile)
  • WCAG 2.1 AA and 508 accessibility standards are met to enable equitable access to content
  • Pages pass Google Page Speed Insights Core Web Vitals Assessment testing for mobile and desktop
  • Pages score 90-100 on Google Page Speed Insights Performance testing for both mobile and desktop
  • Pages perform well for prioritized SEO keywords
  • Code is validated – HTML, CSS are W3C validated, JavaScript is validated and pages are free of console errors
  • Cross-browser compatibility with latest versions of Edge, Chrome, Firefox and Safari
  • Required text/links for GDPR, UW Privacy Policy, copyright Board of Regents, email link for feedback or accessibility issues, link to wisc.edu, report mistreatement
  • Accurate and comprehensive in-site search