New Site, High Costs

Notice anything different? Complete with slideshow and new links, as of Feb. 14, Sam Houston launched its newly redesigned website to appeal to prospective students and make the site more accessible.

"The redesign was necessary to update the design and utility of our website, especially with regard to its appeal to prospective students and their parents," Frank Holmes, vice president for University Advancement said. "The site has approximately 1 million visitors annually; therefore, in many respects, it is often the first thing people see regarding our university. We want their first impressions to be so positive that they visit again and become more engaged with our university."

According to Today @ Sam, improvements to the website include relocation of the fastlinks, e-mail, SHSUOnline, SamWeb, and Blackboard icons, among many other things.

This new design is not new news to the university, but it has been in the works for years. "The subject of web redesign first came up more than three years ago with our former marketing director, Kris Ruiz, and it continued with the appointment of Ann O'Meara to the position."

Director of Information Resources-- Client Support, Nancy Leavell, said that it's important to update the website because it is the front door to our campus. "Since September 2009, SHSU has had over [75 percent] of a million unique visitors to the site."

Leavell also said that the site is routinely changed every one to two years. "Creating a fresh feel is always appealing, and with more sophisticated browsers, the ability to provide a vibrant site has become more possible."

The new design will cost the university approximately $140,000. "Stamats, a national leader in marketing and web designs for colleges and universities, conducted the project," said Holmes. "Their process included visits to the campus to meet with constituent groups to ascertain their wants, needs, and ideas." Stamats was one of eight bidders for the project, and significantly below the highest bid (approximately $270,000).

Stamats developed several designs for the new website which were then shown to various university groups for discussion and input. After a design was chosen, it was presented at the annual faculty and staff meeting at the beginning of the Fall Semester for approval. "From that point, our university's computer services team has been working with university colleges and departments on implementation," said Holmes.