Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Tuesday Writing: WPTL Web Analysis

Tuesday's writing was in support of WSBA's World Peace Through Law Section. WSBA's redoing its website - again - this time with a different Content Management System that they promise will be better, because they've done focus groups and an online survey. Yeah.

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The immediate task is to classify WPTL's webpages. That didn't take me long:


Title Notes Last update    URL
Administraton Section Leadership 2017 http://www.wsba.org/Legal-Community/Sections/World-Peace-Through-Law-Section/Exec-Committee
Annual Report 2016 Meh 2016 http://www.wsba.org/~/media/Files/Legal%20Community/Sections/Annual%20Reports/Annual%20Report%20-%20World%20Peace%20Through%20Law.ashx
Bill Referrals Not section specific 2017 http://www.wsba.org/About-WSBA/Legislative-Affairs/Section-Bill-Referrals
Budget 2016 Also Meh 2016 http://www.wsba.org/~/media/Files/Legal%20Community/Sections/Budgets/SWP.ashx
Bylaws Content is ok 2011 http://www.wsba.org/~/media/Files/Legal%20Community/Sections/WPTL/Section%20Administration/WPTL%20Bylaws.ashx
Calendar Lists a few past events, but not many. Should have past events added for the sake of history 2017 http://www.wsba.org/Legal-Community/Sections/World-Peace-Through-Law-Section/WPTL-Calendar
CLE Materials Should have later materials added 2013 http://www.wsba.org/Legal-Community/Sections/World-Peace-Through-Law-Section/Mini-CLE-and-Brown-Bag-Course-Materials
Home Meh 2017 http://www.wsba.org/Legal-Community/Sections/World-Peace-Through-Law-Section
News Not News 2013 http://www.wsba.org/Legal-Community/Sections/World-Peace-Through-Law-Section/Section-News
Newsletter Should have all later materials added 2013 http://www.wsba.org/Legal-Community/Sections/World-Peace-Through-Law-Section/Monthly-Newsletters
Powerpoint (download) 2016-10 Move to CLE Materials 2016 http://www.wsba.org/~/media/Files/Legal%20Community/Sections/WPTL/WSBA%20CLE%20Power%20Point.ashx
Program Materials 2016-10 Move to CLE Materials 2016 http://www.wsba.org/~/media/Files/Legal%20Community/Sections/WPTL/IEL%20Global%20South%20TOC%20%20Intro.ashx


The other tasks involved assigning responsibility and building an Executive Committee work flow for content updates. My comment:

"I have worked on WSBA's websites since its very first. The emphasis on content management is completely wrongheaded; you don't get utility out of a website by managing content, you get it by promoting engagement.  This is 2017 not 2004; WSBA content is simply not significant; all we have is the opportunity to network, and the culture of the WSBA opposes engagement outside of the control of the staff.

Therefore, any effort beyond posting contact information and archiving newsletters and CLE materials would be a complete waste of time. You'll notice that no-one has even noticed when newsletters stopped being updated to the website. "

That I believe. WSBA's stuck in an old command-and-control model that makes it not so much obsolete as irrelevant. No-one really cares about what WPTL is, only what it can do. If it does not enable conversation then it is of interest to almost nobody. The problem with conversation, from the POV of WSBA staff, is that it is not controlled and therefore is not permitted.

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