A New Look!
A post by Elena Rosemond-Hoerr, Education and Program Coordinator.
Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, today we have a very special announcement. After a very long process, much head and heartache, and many rounds of edits and revisions, the JMM web presence has a brand new look!
Starting this summer, the JMM began working with Red Thinking, a talented group of web designers and Skeevis Art, a web development company. As anyone who has ever worked on a large design project can attest, the process is grueling. The JMM staff is diverse and opinionated and it took a lot of intensive discussion to find a design that worked visually and functionally for everyone. I am happy to say, however, that we were finally successful. And in the middle of the night on Monday the new website (and the new blog) went public.
Drumroll, PLEASE….
The main visual feature of the new site are the large circles parading across the top. We loved these because they’re fun, colorful, inviting, and (we think) appealing to all audiences. Plus, as soon as we saw the very first mockup we instantly wanted to play with the site! That, my friends, is the sign of a great design.
One of the things we wanted most out of this redesign was a place where everyone’s interests and pet projects could be celebrated on the front page. As you readers may know, starting in September all JMM staff were required to blog monthly. Each staff member, from Dr. Barry Lever to Ilene Dackman-Alon has different goals and a different mission at the JMM. Their blog posts represent their interests and all their hardwork. This little space on the front page highlights the most recent blog post (and the next upcoming event) allows the diverse interests of the staff.
Another thing we were really hoping to do was better utilize the sidebar that shows up on each page of the website. Instead of getting rid of it, we customized each section to show a different thing, something specific to the section. For instance, in the Visiting section we will be highlighting a different neighboring museum (like the Carroll Mansion, shown above). In the Events section we have a poll asking visitors what types of programming they’re interested in. In Collections & Research we have the top items that we are currently searching for. Get the picture?
The point is, we’re pleased. So pleased. Red Thinking & Skeevis Art did a wonderful job, and we can’t wait to see what they come up with for our next website- the Chosen Food site!
See the website at http:///jewishmuseummd.org.
2 replies on “A New Look!”
Hi there, just became alert to your blog through Google, and found that it is really informative. I am gonna watch out for brussels. I
Thank you Elena!
We enjoy working with you and your team. While diverse and opinionated they may be, you are all very passionate about what you do. Which is what we love most! We are thrilled that project number one is completed. Now its on to number two… I can’t wait! 🙂