At Chapter Three we do more than build websites from the ground up. We also support existing websites that require new or additional resources. The type of work we do is flexible and depends on the client’s needs. It ranges from basic maintenance and security updates to more substantial overhauls, cleanup, and feature enhancements.
One major website we support is National Nurses United (NNU). With nearly 225,000 members, NNU is the largest union and professional association for registered nurses in the United States. It is the country’s leading advocate for collective bargaining for RNs, regulatory protections for patients and nurses, and for guaranteed health care and expanded medicare.
This massive organization has a similarly massive website. A combination news site and information and resource hub, with subsections for its numerous regional affiliates, the site contains over 7,000 pages, including news articles, press releases, blog posts, campaign pages, and many PDFs and videos.
A Site in Need of Support
In mid-2020, NNU needed a new support partner and came to Chapter Three on a recommendation. Their Drupal 8 site needed to be upgraded to Drupal 9 (now 10) and they had a backlog of bug fixes and a wishlist of design and functionality enhancements.
Site Audit and Recommendations
As a first step, we performed a comprehensive site audit and generated a comprehensive report detailing how the site was working, what needed to be fixed, and our suggested enhancements. NNU’s site wasn’t in terrible shape, but there was room for improvement. There were some accessibility and SEO issues, some browser errors from third party resources, and some other minor issues that needed attention.
We started by upgrading to Drupal 9 and then making improvements like better list styling, broadened file format support, and improved image carousel and thumbnail image quality.
In early 2022, we brought in our design and developer teams to update the homepage. The original homepage was dominated by a large slider that pushed important content down the page. We redesigned the homepage to better showcase recent news stories. We also reorganized the way press releases and videos were featured on the page to reduce scrolling.
Since then, we’ve continued to update and improve various elements of the site, including sitewide style updates, cleaning up style sheets, improving the mobile layout, improving the content editor experience, enhancing security, and training content editors. We’ve also redesigned some internal pages, creating reusable views in the process, and helped create a video upload system for site users and a way for NNU staff to download the video files.
Before and After
Comparing the original site with the current one, you can see how the new homepage is an improved gateway to the site’s vast content. You’ll also notice that some of the internal pages have been enhanced. What you don’t see is all the background work around site security, SEO, formatting, and styles. If you’re reliant on a screen reader, you’ll find the new site much easier to navigate.
How We Can Support Your Website
The process we followed with NNU is a great example of the steps we usually take when supporting a new site. The site audit kicks off the process and provides a comprehensive picture of the health of your website.
We’re not looking to reinvent the wheel, but rather to listen to your needs, take a deep dive into your site, offer suggestions, and make the changes that we decide upon as a team. Working together to review and prioritize our recommendations and your requests is critical. You know what your stakeholders need; we’re there to help make it happen.
If you're looking for a new vendor to support your website, Chapter Three is here to help. We have 17 years of experience evaluating and supporting websites, and we’d be happy to look at your site and offer recommendations for improvement. Contact us today to discuss a site audit.
