Proposition

LocalGov Drupal Microsites has been created to extend the range of different solutions for the content produced by councils. There are now four different possible homes for content, three of which are served by LocalGov Drupal:

1. Pages within the main Council website (LocalGov Drupal distribution)
2. A Subsite within the main Council website (LocalGov Drupal distribution)
3. A Microsite (LocalGov Drupal Microsite distribution)
4. A separate website

The aim of this Proposition is to help you develop the right content and put it in the right place, so that it will have maximum appropriate impact for its audience. You can use this step-by-step guide in order to ensure that you are getting best results, and as part of conversations with your council.

The step-by-step guide
-	Question	How to answer the question
01	Which users are we designing this content for?	List the primary and secondary user groups.
02	What user research has been conducted?	If you have any questions about what the primary user groups want or need then directly ask 5-7 individuals from that group.
03	What are the specific user needs that the content will address?	Record the specific needs of the users in the form of “user stories”. These take the form of: “As [a user group], I want [to do a specific task], in order to [fulfil a broader goal].” For example: “As You may have 5-20 of these user stories. You should now go through them with your team in order to prioritise the needs.
04	How will we measure the success of the project?	Identify Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for the content you will create to meet the user needs. These may be related to visitor numbers, completed interaction journeys or qualitative impact (eg positive feedback in surveys).
05	What content do we need to create?	Work with your team to identify the content and functionality that your users need. Consider: What is the key message? Create a short statement that describes the function of the content. What are the key actions? What pages are required, and why? What structure is required for the content? What language will be most appropriate? What imagery will be most appropriate? Remember that people are distracted and interrupted when reading content on screens. Keep your content as short and as focused as it can be while still answering user needs.
06	What identity does the content require?	In most cases, users will expect to find council content branded consistently. However there will be circumstances in which users will benefit from a different look and feel. For instance: To appeal to a specific audience, eg children, for whom the council branding is off-putting. When content is co-owned with a third-party. When advertising a tourist attraction. To compete directly with commercial services. To distance the site from the public sector. You should consider generating the following: Brand name Slogan/tagline Logo Typography Colours Visual design assets, such as illustrations. Social media assets (eg Twitter logo)
07	How will the content be created, edited and maintained?	Who will edit the site? How often will the content be edited? Is there a style guide? How will we ensure that the content meets accessibility, readability and Will non-Council staff need to be able to edit? What is the content review process? (eg every six months)
08	Which tool should we use for content delivery?	The Council website. You can harness the design, content structure and search functionality of the main site. A Subsite within the main Council website. You can create your own navigation structure and apply some limited branding. A Microsite. This is a separate site but maintained by the Council. You can make a wide range of different types of content at a low cost. It is suitable for a site that requires its own branding, a look and feel substantially separate from the Council, or editorial access by non-Council staff. A microsite can be further extended by council or external development agencies. A separate website. Suitable where the using the functionality available in LocalGov Drupal will take too long to satisfy the user stories and where a very high Return on Investment (RoI) justifies an additional expenditure. Very large tourist attractions might fall into this category.