Name: Neil Golightly, Head of Marketing and Communications
Item: The Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh
Author: Neil Golightly, Head of Marketing and Communications

At a glance

Client: The Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh
Industry / Sector: Education & Charity
Timeline: April 2024–November 2024
Platform / Tech: Umbraco
Key result: +50% Reduction in page load

Getting appointed

As part of the pitch process we soon understood RCSED's requirements and also how they would wish to work throughout the project and collaborate with the dotcraft team. There was a clear need to control the current content on the site, whilst also making information accessible and presentable to visitors of the site.

With dotcrafts experience of building websites within Umbraco, we were able to Scope out requirements for the new website and make sure that the CMS controls would match the needs of the college users. Making sure the website CMS was current and easily manageable was a key factor in meeting deliverables.

By the end of the process I think we were both excited to get the website project up and running.

Part of a brand refresh

Part of our RCSED's journey was to update their branding. This involved a new set of brand guidelines which would be incorporated into the new website and subsequent assets. The Royal College leaned into updating the colour palette, fonts, logos and iconography; which helped to inject a fresh new feel to the website. The design process consisted of complimenting the new branding and how to utilize the styling to match the development look and feel of the site.

The design and build approach of the new website means the branding can continue to flourish across multiple departments of the college and be updated as and when needed with minimal fuss.

Outcomes

Shiny new website has reduced the noise and confusion for users visiting the website.
A host of components at RCSEd's for content to be kept fresh and relevant.
Powerful and easy-to-use CMS for the RCSEd's Marketing teams.
Increase in accessibility and performance scores of the websites efficiency.

Our Approach

1.
The Initial Pitch

From the initial pitch process we like to get an understanding of who are clients are what they do and what's important to them. We also like to get a feel for how we would work together and expectations from the different team members, we were quick to agree on what felt like a good chemistry and understanding of the direction the project needed to go. As we looked to keep things off, we proceeded with the discovery period in which we like to map out the requirements for the website, key dates, key information, and how the project cycle would run. Once we had all the elements of the project and its delivery on the table, we were able to start to piece together our approach and begin the initial steps.
2.
Design & Development

Throughout the project we overlapped the design and development process as we feel this is imperative to make sure everyone is on the same page and understanding what we are trying to achieve with each task. We also incorporated a couple of user testing milestones which allowed us to adapt and pivot where needed inside areas of the website build.
3.
Content Migration

A portion of the project involved a content migration piece which required a detailed understanding of where the information would be sent to and from and how this would be managed what's into the new website. The previous website was using older versions of Umbraco, so part of the steps was to elevate the content to the new platform and allow the user to have more manageable fields in the CMS, providing flexible updates at fingertips.
4.
Collaboration

Collaboration throughout the project between the dotcraft and the RCSED team has been constant and we have worked to our ethos of being an extension to our client's teams. Close collaboration has allowed us to manage expectations, adapt throughout the project, and reduce any risks.
5.
Launch

Ahead of launch we carried out a thorough launch plan and accountability of tasks to ensure that there was a smooth go-live day and everyone understood their roles.

Solution Highlights

Visual refresh

Delivering a modern and engaging new look
Accessible & High performing

Ensuring the site is fully accessible and optimised for high performance
Umbraco CMS & Cloud

Implementing a scalable, cloud-based Umbraco CMS
Content Migration & 3rd Party integrations

Migrating content and connecting with essential third-party services

Results & Impact

30%

Average Increase in Accessibility
40%

Average Increase in performance
50%

Reduction in page load

A note from The Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh

This project has been a fantastic collaboration across several teams within the College. Together with our partner, dotcraft we’ve developed a modern, user-friendly site that enhances the experience for our members and visitors.

Neil Golightly, Head of Marketing and Communications