ManitowocLibrary.org
Manitowoc Public Library is the center of information for Manitowoc County, both within the library walls and their online presence. Because of the amount of data stored at the library and on their servers, a majority of the information was not accessible both online and off. The initial project brief entailed a complete overhaul of their online web presence and internal intranet system. The end goal… to have a more user-friendly and organized website that houses the enormous amount of content made assessable to every demographic.
An enormous CMS system was designed and implemented as MPL needed the ability to enter many items, in many places, quickly with zero downtime. As the website is “link intensive”, creating a link repository was needed where one link and information is deployed to multiple areas of the website at one time by simply clicking button. Additionally, the new links are automatically validated as “live” links eliminating the need for an intra-site live-link search through each section of the website to make changes and then re-upload the data to the servers.
In addition, MPL wanted a friendly, accessible environment where library patrons of varying ages: adults, teens and kids, could find suggested material, related information, and events happening in and around the library.
Working directly with their internal marketing department, the Balance team created “fun and relevant” landing pages for these individual sections to attract, engage and retain visitors.
In addition to the custom Content Management System, Balance Studios also concepted, designed, and developed an intricate intranet system, housing a robust document storage application to allow library staff to access internal events and documents anywhere the internet is available.
Manitowoc Public Library
Visual Brand, Custom Website Design, Custom Website Development, Custom Content Management System, Information Capture, Share Widget Integration, User Submitted Content, Multi-Level User Administration, Google Map API,
.NET, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, AJAX, MSSQL Database, Google Map API, Share Widget Integration
www.ManitowocLibrary.org
Less than a year ago we began our search for a website developer who could provide us with a workable content management system within an attractive and efficient design. We spoke with a number of companies who had the means to create a site, but all left us with a feeling that, though workable, the result would be a cookie cutter design that would not reflect Manitowoc Public Library.
After speaking with Tina Lutz and Heidi Katchkey, we felt we found a company that understood our goals and our vision for the end result. When we met the rest of the Balance Studios team we were sure of it! Balance Studios presented a clear, comprehensive plan, broken down into workable tasks. Our former website was huge; it was far too obviously the result of successive committees and had grown exponentially and chaotically over the years. Our goal was to bring it down to a reasonable size, increase its effectiveness, integrate a user-friendly CMS, an intranet, make it far more attractive and organized, and automate as much as possible.
As we move into Beta Testing, we have achieved just that. Additionally, the way the site works will save us time, enable a number of people to populate the site, and keep its growth under control. Heidi Katchkey has been especially helpful guiding us through the process and keeping us on task. She has also been gracious about explaining technical issues to our non-technical staff (that would be me) in easy to understand English. We are pleased we chose Balance Studios for this project and look forward to our continuing our relationship with them.
Rachel Muchin Young, Outreach & Development Manager, Manitowoc Public Library