December 19, 2019 — There are countless examples of how simple changes have made a dramatic improvement in website performance. Website owners have found that changing the wording on their “add to cart” buttons can increase sales by 30% or even more. Simply changing the imagery or messaging in your hero area has increased online leads by over 100%. You’ll never “guess” your way into a high performing website, you need to run tests and see what performs better. This may sound hard, but it’s really not. In this talk I’ll show you how to start your first and second A/B test. An A/B test is where you test two different variations of the same page. While this may sound complicated it can be done in minutes and without any custom programming through a free tool called Google Optimize.

December 1, 2016 — Sure, you could do a lot of guesswork at the beginning of a website design project. Let’s build a template and throw in some placeholders, and see what becomes of it! Only to discover when the text and media come rolling in from your content creators that half the template needs to be rebuilt, and the menu structure you had in mind was way off-base.

This happens a lot, costing everyone involved valuable time and energy — especially you. Learn how to put content first in the sequence of design steps.

This talk will cover:

Defining your audience and goals
How to convince your client to provide content in a timely fashion
Understanding, organizing, and prioritizing content
Brainstorming ideas for optimal site and page structure

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November 2, 2016 — In this talk, seasoned creative director Sara Cannon will dive into the intersection of strategy and creativity through discussing how knowledge can inform design decisions. She will be looking at how different methods of research, data-collection, and strategical thinking can play into the creativity behind designs. And how at the end of the design process, you can measure success.

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August 6, 2016 — WordPress has increasingly become the communication tool of choice for educational institutions large and small. From primary web properties and publications to course catalogs and digital signage, institutions need to create cohesive, integrated experiences regardless of the channel.

Designing for integrated experiences involves unique considerations for UX, UI, and accessibility across campus. In this session, Travis will cover important questions to ask during the design process, how design elements impact cohesiveness and branding between stakeholder groups, and challenges you may face on campus throughout the project.

December 11, 2015 — Style Tiles are a simple and effective way to help clients separate design decisions from content, so you can make sweeping changes before they become time-consuming and expensive. If you design websites, or work with people that do, this presentation will explain how Style Tiles can promote buy-in and a sense of ownership from the client, helping them feel like the final design was their idea all along. You will learn how Style Tiles fit into the design process and development process. And to get you started, a Style Tile template and some basic survey questions will be available for download.

Presentation Slides »