15 April 2010
We're very happy and proud to announce the release of the new EWI of Richmond Chapter website! We encourage you to take a look around at ewirichmond.org.

Why the Change?

Our primary reason for the update was simple. Like all EWI chapters, we needed to bring our site into compliance with the new Chapter Brand standards that were recently released by EWI Corporate. Once we realized we had to do that, we wanted to take the opportunity to address some of the other website needs and 'nice-to-haves' that had been slowly building up. One of the main needs was to improve the site's use as a tool to expand our membership, particularly among younger executive women. This new generation of prospective members is increasingly web-savvy. They expect the websites they use to provide current and engaging information, and to serve as a 'hub' for their efforts to network with other professionals. We found, that over time, the information on our site was becoming stale and outdated, and felt that we were missing an opportunity to 'grab' prospective members and draw them in to our community.

What Were Our Objectives?

In preparing for the project, we identified a serious of priorities that we wanted to see reflected in the new website. All of these were based on our experiences with the limitations of the previous site.

We wanted:
  • Engaging Content (current news, articles, and announcements)
  • Integration with Social Networking Tools (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.)
  • "Members Only" Resources (a portal for members)
  • A Sense of Online Community (photo galleries, videos, maps)
  • A 'Green Routine' (tools that move closer to 'paperless' processes)
  • Easy Updating & Administration (user-friendly tools for site maintenance)
  • Low Cost of Ownership
  • Reliability and Security
  • Compliance with Chapter Brand Standards

What Were the Results?

We couldn't be happier:

New EWI Website

Not only does it reflect the EWI Chapter Brand standards, but it also includes a lot of exciting new or improved features:
  • Dynamic Main Page: The content on our Home Page is driven by the most recent updates to the site.
  • Map of Chapter Locations: Now everyone can see just how big our community as an organization really is!
  • 'News Feed' for Chapter News: The site now includes an area for current events and other announcements.
  • Event Calendar: A one-stop view of all Chapter events, along with times, venues, directions and maps!
  • Photo Gallery: We can now share with our members and prospective members a look at who we are and how much we all enjoy our events.
  • Newsletter Downloads: We can now create and store each PULSE newsletter in a central location for easy access.
  • Full Site Search: A built-in search function makes finding information easier.
  • Video players: A way to post video content, like the EWI '70 Years' video.
  • Board and Committee Profiles: Publically available 'bios' of our board and committee members.
  • Online Member Directory: A secure, online directory of member contact information. Reduces the costs of printing paper directories!
  • Many Others: The list of great new features goes on and on!
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