Responsive Web Template Overview

Tarleton responsive design website on multiple pages

What is the responsive web template?

It's a better way to design and build websites. Web Services researched, planned, and designed the new responsive web template all departments are being converted to in order to achieve multiple goals.

It's a flexible layout, that responds to the devices of the visitor. Ensuring that every visitor has a productive experience, no matter what they're using be it a mobile phone or desktop computer.

Our responsive template was designed with the following functionality in mind:

Cross-compatibility

The new template reacts or responds to the screen size of your device, hence the template's name "responsive." It is essentially a single page that changes from one look to the next by determining what device you are using. It does this by shifting your content around and resizing it to fit the screen's dimensions. In some cases, like the right hand navigation seen on a desktop monitor, it shifts the navigation into a hamburger menu on the top right corner of webpages on smaller devices, like mobile phones. This helps to control the use of the screen real estate, given your content priority and a larger presence on each screen.

This template allows us to give your users the same content whether they are using a TV screen, desktop monitor, tablet, or mobile phone. As technology considers new forms of displays, the template should be able to adapt to those screen sizes without you having to create additional versions of any single webpage. One and done.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) or Searchability

The template was built to improve upon the SEO strategies that increase your ranking in search engines, displaying your content higher in search results. To do so, it operates on the understanding that following web standards and appropriate use of webpage code, known as HTML, will improve your presence on the Internet as well as create a professional image for your program and Tarleton State University as a whole.

Legitimacy and authority are major foundations of SEO, so understanding who is the owner of any content allows us to improve the flow of communication to the correct and desired location. Standards and guidelines Web Services provides will assist in the organization of content, whether directing to your webpages or others in authority, in order to improve the experience for your users and bring them back frequently to engage with your products and services.

User Experience

Web Services utilizes content strategy, which plays a major part in improving the user experience on your website, whether navigating through your website or understanding concepts you explain on any given page. Using appropriate strategies decreases the need to "teach the user" how to use your website and reduces front line contact with users regarding where information is located and other clarification questions.

Wayfinding components like the header and footer menus, site search, breadcrumbs, and right hand navigation were researched and tested to increase the focus on the main content of the template: your content. Each of the content modules was designed to give your content as much real estate as possible on the screen while making the module easy to use on any device, by any user. As the adage goes, Content is King.

Accessibility

Whether your users are in a slow Internet service area or have a disability or impairment that requires them to view the information differently, Web Services has designed components to meet the needs of all our users in order to increase your audience and improve their experience. When you follow proper web standards and accessibility guidelines, some of which are built into Cascade CMS and the responsive template, you are able to give each user a similar experience and fair opportunity to engage with your products and services.

Cascade provides some basic testing tools to review each page or content block, while the template informs you while you are editing content or previewing your webpage where you can improve your content.

User-centered

It's not enough that our goals are achieved. Web Services also wants you to improve on your set goals. While we consult and advise on best practices for achieving your goals, we've also placed special tracking code on the web template in order to assess how well your website or each webpage is doing, so we can strategically make adjustments and measure your successes along the way.

Measurements are based on user actions, so each page collects information on the activities of your users to see if you've met their needs and if they've successfully met your requirements.