Case Studies

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• MNCAR

MNCAR

SERVICES PROVIDED:

• Website Design
• Website Development

Background
When they came to us, MNCAR had an outdated website and an even more outdated administrative tool with which to update it. The system had been developed a decade earlier on a platform that didn’t allow for the flexibility and sophistication MNCAR needed to satisfy its growing offerings.

For instance, the existing website allowed them to offer events for members of the association as well as the general public online, but they wanted the ability to offer different types of events that would only be available for certain subsets of members. Because their existing system could not keep up, MNCAR staffers were using time-consuming workarounds that were taking time away from new initiatives that would support the association’s growth. Enough was enough! A whole new website and back end were in order.

The Opportunity
Scrapping their existing website for a brand new one with a new database behind it gave MNCAR a chance to think about all the different parts of their association and how they could improve them. They had the unique opportunity to not just improve the look-and-feel of their site, but streamline internal systems and create a better user experience as a result. The website project grew to encompass reorganizing all the association’s components: membership, events, sponsorships, and the MNCAR Exchange, the powerful took used by MNCAR members to search and list commercial property.

Goals

•    Design a website that was attractive, user-friendly and engaging – a site MNCAR members could take pride in.
•    Create a dedicated “My Account” area where members could log in to access tools that would help them with their business.
•    Provide new website features that would fulfill MNCAR’s goals to increase members’ visibility and offer new revenue streams.
•    Build a site that was intuitive, efficient and easy for the staff to use.

Redevelopment
To achieve the goals outlined above, we created new sections for the homepage where the most important information could be featured. This included event information and industry news. For each of these sections MNCAR staff could write an article, include images or add video, engaging their members every step of the way. We added a members-only login area to the header of the site. Once logged in, a “My Account” page served up a dashboard of tools that members use daily. New features like banner ads, sponsor logos, and “Featured Property” allowed MNCAR to expand their visibility offerings for members and the business public.

As sleek as the public website looked and behaved, the back-end database, the “brains” behind it all, was what MNCAR staffers appreciated most. A new membership area allowed MNCAR staff to categorize members by membership types and control what was available to them in their My Account area. A new event area included event categories and a way to manage attendance for events the association offered for continuing education (CE) credit. Best yet, the new administrative tool tracked activity on specific parts of the site. Now MNCAR could report to sponsors how many clicks their logo received on the MNCAR website, for example. They could also see members’ event history and how frequently the members were using their accounts.

All in all, the website could now facilitate MNCAR’s growth rather than limit it. This is what MNCAR needed and appreciated most.

Results

•    New website features that introduced new revenue streams
•    Comprehensive administrative tool that streamlined systems
•    “Find a Broker” search that became so highly trafficked, it's known as the industry's “online rolodex”
•    A flexible platform that can easily handle future growth