refresh.ttu.edu: A New Look At Our Web Site

January Update

As part of the web refresh project, another milestone has been completed. We have established and populated the Web Content Owners Database.

This database of web content owners, the sites maintained, and the hosting information for these sites, will help the TTU IT Division streamline communications for critical TTU web-related topics. Some of the information in this database includes:

Current contact information for the web site content owner, to serve as a primary point of contact;

Physical location of the site; and

Other information specific to each site, such as URLs, site size, usage of the TTU style sheets for required elements, etc.

We expect to use the information in this database to manage the university websites in a coordinated, integrated manner. This database will be a vehicle for us in facilitating enhanced communications with TTU website content owners.

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October Update

The original campus map was a scanned version of the traffic & parking map. Subsequently, it went thru numerous revisions, incorporating both graphics changes and actual building changes on campus as a result of the exploding growth at Texas Tech University.

During the feedback we received from you, we learned that you wanted to see a better, more useful campus map. The TTU Web Team has been hard at work on a number of initiatives, including the development of a brand new campus map from scratch.

September Update

The university’s Visual Identity Guidelines are being expanded to allow the use of the Double T with a unit’s full name.

The new Double T lockup will first appear on the Texas Tech home page and top level pages beginning on Sept. 20. Additionally, everyone who currently links to a TTU IT-created masthead graphic will see the Double T replace the Coat of Arms. The Web page footer is also changing slightly; the information is the same, but the Double T will be removed and the text moved to the left. This change should not impact the functionality of those pages currently utilizing the official Web templates. If you experience issues, please report them immediately to IT Team Web at (806) 472-1180.

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August Update

... quite a lot really.

We invited the TTU community to provide feedback in our general Web survey – 697 students, faculty, and staff responded!! Current undergraduate students were the largest group (182), followed by staff (162) and current graduate students (100).

We thank everyone who offered their opinion. We received a lot of honest feedback and we are carefully reviewing and considering all comments, feedback and suggestions as we move forward with Project Refresh.

Here are some interesting findings:

• The majority of respondents visit the Texas Tech homepage at least weekly (175) with 107 folks visiting daily and 87 coming back more than once a day.
• Most spent more than three hours a day on the Internet. The majority would use a mobile site if we created one. By the way, many use an iPhone (187).
• We asked if respondents were able to find the information they needed. Only 71 people said they found what they were looking for quickly. But 377 said it took them a while and 58 people said they just gave up. Of those who had trouble, the reason 353 people gave was that they didn’t know where to look for the information. Note: Since the survey, we have updated the A-Z site index with cross-links and terminologies used in search terms.
• On a similar note, we asked if they used the search function – 445 do. But 330 told us the search function did not give them the results they wanted. Note: As we have mentioned before, fixes for the search function are already underway. But again, it’s a slower process involving the creation of behind-the-scene tools and processes. There is a great deal of work involved in cleaning up unused and out of date pages that clutter the search.

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July Update

There is a new A-Z directory. We have heard over and over during the past few months that the A-Z directory needed a major overhaul. Take a look now. You can actually find parking under P and housing under H.

We know we still don’t have everything and work is ongoing. So, if you have a suggestion – send it along with the link the listing should go to – and we’ll get it added. Send comments to refresh@ttu.edu.

Thanks to everyone who has given us input on the site directory over the past few months. We hope this helps. And thanks to all the folks in Marketing & Communications and the Information Technology (IT) Web Team who made the many changes to the directory.

Project Refresh has been quiet for a while, but a lot has been going on behind the scenes. Working on the A-Z directory is just a small part of what’s underway.

The IT Web Team is working diligently to build a database of who is responsible for every page on the ttu.edu site. It’s vital that we have that information so that questions can be directed to the correct person without putting the person with the question through an endless loop of phone calls and referrals. This project is about 66% complete in terms of verifying current and correct contacts.

This database will also help clean up the ttu.edu site. There are many, many pages out there that are out of date and haven’t been opened in years. Some contain inaccurate information and should be removed. The IT Web Team is also close to finding an automated solution that will allow us to look for those long-unused pages.

On another positive note, the general Web survey is done and we’ll have more here in a few days on the results.

Sally and Sam

April Update

More than 500 people have taken our online Web survey. For those who have filled out the survey, thank you. If you haven’t, please do so; you’ll find it at http://www.depts.ttu.edu/itts/assessments/ttu/.

We’re still gathering data and have not done any number crunching yet, but a quick glance at the “Comments” section does show some interesting input.

Many of you hate how much red is on the site – except for those of you who like all the red. The home page has been called everything from pretty to horrendous. The Web site has been described as “easy to use” and “the worst Web site I’ve ever seen.” One participant called it “very 18th century.” Curious – but we got the point.

What this tells us is that we’ll never be able to please everyone :).

While we are still a ways away from a new look, this survey, plus about 20 face-to-face meetings with deans and other key stakeholders have revealed some things that we can begin to work on right now.

Many have asked about improving the A-Z directory so it is easier to use. For example, parking should be found under P rather than (or in addition to) U for University Parking Services. We are working through these types of issues and hope to have some fixes by summer. If you have suggestions, send them on.

Almost everyone would like to see the search function improved, and we can assure you that work is already underway that will be a vast improvement. But, as with all good things, it will take some time. Part of the work involves cleaning up many old pages and taking advantage of enhanced capabilities provided by our updated Google search engine.

Some folks have asked for a better Events calendar. A new calendar solution has been selected and should be launched in the next few months.

You have shared some great higher education and commercial Web site examples for us to look at. Thank you for the suggestions. We are always looking for best practices.

More soon as things continue to happen with Project Refresh.

Sally Logue Post and Sam Segran

We Need Your Help!

Project Refresh is underway and we are receiving a lot of good feedback. Thank you for that.

Sam and I will wrap up meetings with every dean and several key stakeholders next week. In all, we will have talked to about 20 groups and briefed the faculty, staff and student senates. Once we have a chance to compile all of that data – and it is a lot of data, we’ll give you some highlights.

Right now, the big push is to get folks to take our online survey and to sign up for usability testing.

Here’s how:

Take the short online survey http://www.depts.ttu.edu/itts/assessments/ttu/

Register for one of the usability sessions we have set up for current faculty, staff and students at the Technology Support Web site (eRaider authentication required).

There will be more research to come focusing on other groups such as prospective students. All of the listening we’re doing right now is to set the stage for a new look. That is still down the road a bit, but we’ll come back for your input there as well.

Also know that there is a lot of working going on behind the scenes to improve our search function, but that too is a large project that will take some time.

Thanks for your help and your comments.

Sally

Refresh Project Launch

It has been five years since the Texas Tech Web pages were redone. In that time the needs and expectations of our many audiences have changed. The university also is changing as we strive to achieve National Research University status.

With those things in mind, we are launching not a redesign, but a redevelopment of the Web pages. A redesign implies simply new look. A redevelopment will focus not only on the look of the site, but also on defining who our audiences are, how they use the Web site and what they expect to achieve while on our pages. To do that we will look not only at the design, but also at our content and how our branding is conveyed. A process we’ve decided to call “refresh.ttu.edu.” The verb “refresh” perfectly describes the process we are undertaking:

–verb (used with object)

1. to provide new vigor and energy
2. to stimulate to make fresh again; reinvigorate or cheer
3. to freshen in appearance, color, etc.
4. Computers.
   • to display (an image) repeatedly, as on a CRT, in order to prevent fading.
   • to read and write (the contents of dynamic storage) at intervals in order to avoid loss of data.

This redevelopment process will take time and it will not be done in a vacuum; you will be included. We want to know what you expect of the Texas Tech Web site and what you find important. Our current Web site is not bad, but as one newcomer to campus put it, “the Web site is not broken. It’s usable, but it sure could be a lot better.”

Our goal for this blog is to provide a forum to update the campus community on our progress and gather your input as we work toward making Texas Tech’s Web site one of the best and most effective university sites in the country.

The process is already underway. President Guy Bailey has appointed a Web Executive Committee to look at the many issues involved in the Web redevelopment project. The committee is co-chaired by Provost Bob Smith and Associate Vice President for External Relations Mary Larson Diaz. On the committee are Sam Segran, chief information officer; Taylor Eighmy, vice president for research; Michael Shonrock, senior vice president for student affairs and enrollment management; Jerry Hudson, dean of the College of Mass Communications and Sally Logue Post, director of communications and marketing.

The committee will, with the input from every corner of the campus, create a Web policy that will ensure that our Web pages present a consistent brand, quality content and adhere to legal requirements.

The first step in our process is two-fold, consisting of research and listening. The research will involve a Web-based general survey with questions about the functionality and look of the pages. We will also conduct usability tests with the help of the experts in the College of Mass Communications and in the Information Technology Division. We’ll let you know what we find.

The listening piece will include visits to deans and other key stakeholders on campus, as well as meetings with those charged with Web and communications duties throughout campus.

The redevelopment of our Web pages is important because our Web site is the first impression most people have of our university and for some, the only interaction they will have with us.

The Web pages serve a multitude of audiences including: the general public who are looking for information on sports, campus events and news; prospective undergraduate, transfer and graduate students; parents; alumni; current faculty, staff and students; prospective faculty and staff members; decision makers in business, industry and government; and many others.

Our Web site must present a consistent look and message with other materials produced by the university and its units. That is why we must present Web pages that reflect a consistent brand identity in terms of the institution's colors and logo. To that end, the Visual Identity System also is being re-evaluated to make sure that the university is making the best use of our most recognizable marks and messages.

The redevelopment process will not be quick. We expect that there will be much conversation on this blog, in meetings and in personal conversations across campus. Your opinion is valued. We know everyone won’t always agree, but the only way for us to succeed is to have an open and productive conversation about our needs.

Sally Logue Post and Sam Segran