The WSU Website Platform Strategy sets forth the guiding principles for information architecture, content development, visual design, and site optimization. This is to ensure that the university website serves as an effective communication tool in accordance with the Integrated Content Strategy and Message Hierarchy. 

The following web strategy applies to the public-facing website: www.winona.edu.  

The purpose of the WSU website is to: 

1. Market University programs and services
2. Connect people to University resources and personnel
3. Provide public information in accordance with laws, regulations, and accreditation standards

The website is a top marketing tool for prospective students and a primary method of communication for external audiences. All information published on the WSU website is appropriate and intended for a public audience. 

The University Marketing & Communications team (MarComm) adheres to industry best practices for site quality, accessibility, readability, and search engine optimization in addition to our own Web Platform Standards and other Brand Standards. 

MarComm reserves the right to modify or make exceptions to this strategy at any time and without prior notice.

Table of Contents

• Decision-Making Authority in a Partnership Model
• Site Architecture
• Page Architecture
• Template Design

Integrated Digital Platform Strategy

The public facing website is one of many digital properties that our target audiences rely on for information about WSU and use to interact with the institution as well as with individual faculty and staff on behalf of the institution.

Other digital platforms have different communication purposes, serve more nuanced target audiences, and offer additional functionality than the public website. Thus, the website cannot be considered in isolation as it intersects with other platforms to provide an overall user experience.

The MarComm team defines these points of intersection in terms of the following functions:    

• Complement: provide content in parallel to another property to reinforce messaging goals and ensure easy access to high-level information across multiple platforms
• Leverage: pull in content from another property to achieve a messaging goal and enhance the user experience on the public website
• Route: direct to another property that is designed to fulfills users’ information needs and provide a desired user experience different from the public website

The public website integrates with the following digital platforms in these facets:

• Complements Ask WSU (Salesforce KnowledgeBase) for ease-of-access to high-level information
• Complements the WSU Directory to provide contact information for departments and individuals
• Leverages WSU Blog content (WordPress) to further strategic messaging goals
• Leverages video content (YouTube) to further strategic messaging goals
• Leverages event content (Event Calendar) to further strategic messaging goals
• Routes to Ask WSU topics and/or articles (Salesforce Knowledgebase) for FAQ-styled information and detailed descriptions of processes
• Routes to student portals (Salesforce Experience Cloud) for audience-driven content that guides personalized actions and offers opportunities to initiate support cases
• Routes to WSU Catalog for course descriptions and academic program requirements