Building a Responsive Website That Prioritized Easy Navigation for Mobile Users

Overview

The Board of Pharmacy Specialties (BPS) is the premier post-licensure pharmacist certification agency that was established in 1976. It is an autonomous division of the American Pharmacists Association (APA) and aims to improve patient care by advocating for specialized training to help members achieve advanced certifications. It also works to certify and recertify pharmacists around the world. This organization recognizes over 62,000 pharmacist certifications and 15 specialties worldwide.

The Challenge

BPS approached Black Digital requesting a website restructure and redesign. The original website posed several issues for the organization. First, with 150 pages and 170 content pieces, the site needed a navigation overhaul that was streamlined to improve the browsing experience. Additionally, with 40% of users accessing their website via mobile devices, the client requested a mobile-first design that would mirror the desktop version.

BPS wanted to improve site discoverability, which meant that an SEO strategy was needed that leveraged core optimization principles including Google Analytics, along with an ADA compliant user interface. Finally, the organization had recently updated their branding with a new logo and color palette before approaching Black Digital, and wanted the new website to reflect this.

Our Approach and Solution

Black Digital approached this project with BPS by first meeting with key stakeholders to identify and prioritize the project scope. This was important because the client needed the site to remain live even during the redesign phase. By leveraging a triage methodology, we were able to tackle the workload in tranches, ensuring that the website remained operational and stable from start to finish. We focused on creating a responsive website that was mirrored between the mobile and desktop versions so that the experience was seamless for BPS’ end users.

Another major issue was the sheer size of the website. Having over 150 pages meant that a cohesive and thoughtful navigation was critical so that the new website would be truly user-friendly. To achieve this, we built modules to house the certifications and specialties. BPS already relied on a WordPress CMS and we maintained that, but focused on UX and UI improvements as well as making adjustments to ensure that it was ADA compliant.

Meanwhile, BPS’ exhaustive resource catalog needed to be searchable. This meant Black Digital needed to update the existing literature library that relied on key searchable terms such as document tags, specialties, publish date, and even the associated author to yield accurate results when browsers initiated a search request. Finally, we ensured that the UI was cohesive with BPS’ new branding.

During the course of the project, we produced two major design revisions, always working closely with key members from the organization to ensure it met their needs. For SEO, Black Digital worked to not just integrate Google Analytics, but boost discoverability and (search engine results page) SERP outcomes by implementing meta data, and optimizing the website for mobile navigation, which is a core requirement for organically improving SEO.