Web Steering Committee Meeting Minutes
9 a.m., Wednesday, February 5, 2003
314 Bowen-Thompson Student Union

1.  Attending team members: Bill Arnold, Jill Carr, Fred Connor, Nancy Footer, Rosalind Hammond, Paul Krebs, Kim McBroom, Jim Smith, Gary Swegan, Kim Turner-Young and Amy West

2.  Positive Feedback

• The entire committee expressed comments from their respective groups that this new website is an incredible improvement over the current website.
• Numerous comments were made on the convenience of having My BGSU and the login on the homepage.
• The similar appearance of the website and advertising pieces used by the university enhances the BGSU identity.
• The navigation of the new website is quicker and easier.
  

3.  Negative Feedback

• Students pointed out that the website diffuses the brand image by having "The Big Difference" followed by "The Big Deal".
• Several people mentioned that there is too much text or clutter on the home page as well as a dislike of the color purple.
• The search feature is too far down on the page and is not easily recognized.
• People are tired of the guy on the bike.
• Disappointment in the lack of communication was expressed regarding the training, implementation and timeline of this project. George explained that the process is fairly simple and can be done by transferring the current content to the new format and updating as time allows. Fred Connor informed the group that Percussion had been purchased and would be starting in March with a five-week implementation process.
  

4.  Suggestions/Comments

• It was suggested that the committee should map out the navigation of the website before designing it. It was pointed out that the mapping process comes from Percussion and not the Carson Group. The product was intentionally designed to be flexible in order to allow continual improvement to the content. The main goal of the design was to have a BGSU identity throughout the website. The committee cannot control everything that goes into the website but can control this aspect through the design. The variations of the 2nd page of the website represent the flexibility available to the operations group.
• The content management system will allow for future improvements and changes in mapping and navigation as we move forward.
• The suggestion of using breadcrumbs was discussed. George Carson stated that he is a big fan of breadcrumbs, but they may not be practical in this situation. There are too many people using the website that may or may not use breadcrumbs; therefore, the website will lack consistency. George informed the group that Percussion may be able to provide breadcrumbs automatically; and in this case, he would suggest using them. George also pointed out that it is more important to design the architecture so that people do not get lost in the website.
• The faculty who viewed the presentation were very concerned about the website being appropriate for people with disabilities. The committee agreed that this was important. Faculty were concerned with the use of the color purple and the crowded appearance of the website for people with visual impairments. George suggested using a mirror site that is designed specifically for people with disabilities. It was pointed out that the current website is not designed for people with disabilities either; therefore, the committee should move ahead with the project and deal with ADA issues after the website is launched. It was also mentioned that ADA compliance should be the responsibility of the Operations Group and not the Web Steering Committee.
• Discussion took place regarding having My BGSU geared toward the internal audience and the homepage geared towards the external audience. Someone asked where the university was going with My BGSU as the answer to this question could assist the web steering committee with a lot of the decisions in the future.
  

5.  Closing

• George summarized the meeting by saying that a great deal of valuable information had been provided by the group. He felt that the most significant comments included those regarding content, navigation, and ADA.
• A timeline/schedule will be sent out so that the committee has a better understanding of what is occurring over the next couple of months.
• The next meeting will be on Wednesday, March 5, at 9 a.m. in 309 Bowen-Thompson Student Union.