Case Study
A Mobile-First Platform for Deeper Engagement Across Higher Education
Many large universities rely on a central news platform to showcase research breakthroughs, campus achievements, faculty expertise, and student stories. But even the most respected institutions face challenges when legacy systems and outdated designs begin to limit their reach and impact.
This project focused on modernizing a leading university’s primary news hub, an essential resource for students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the media. The goal was to transform the site into a more engaging, accessible, and mobile-first communication platform suited for today’s digital expectations.
Standing Out in a Crowded Digital Landscape
The university’s previous news site featured a dated visual design that no longer reflected the vibrancy of campus life. Content organization was inconsistent, and the editorial experience made it difficult for teams to highlight the stories that mattered most.
The institution partnered with Reaktiv to rebuild the platform from the ground up. The primary objective was to create a bolder, more modern experience that enables the university to communicate with clarity, authority, and impact. This would not only enhance user engagement but also set a new standard for how higher ed news sites can serve their communities.
Beyond Informing – Inspiring and Engaging the University Community
The reimagined platform needed to do more than publish updates. It needed to elevate the university’s mission of teaching, research, and service, by spotlighting achievements and stories that spark pride and connection across the institution’s diverse audiences.
The new storytelling approach intentionally brings forward this sense of identity, ensuring students, faculty, alumni, and external partners can quickly find stories that resonate with them.
Innovative Storytelling for a Digital Age
To support more dynamic and flexible storytelling, we prioritized:
- A broader media palette, enabling editors to incorporate audio, video, and image galleries
- Custom WordPress blocks, offering granular control over layout and presentation
- Modern, visually rich story templates, designed to increase engagement and time on page
These enhancements empower editors to craft immersive narratives that better reflect the depth and variety of the university’s work.
Optimized Information Architecture
A comprehensive information architecture (IA) audit clarified category structures, refined tagging systems, and streamlined navigation. The result is a more intuitive user experience that improves:
- Content discoverability
- SEO performance
- Editorial consistency across topics and departments
Better IA means visitors can find the stories they care about faster and with less friction.
Empowering Editorial Workflows
Editorial teams needed a workflow that supported coordination, oversight, and quality control. We implemented:
- PublishPress, configured with custom user roles and permissions
- A tailored workflow for content creation, review, scheduling, and publishing
- Multicollab, enabling Google Docs–style collaborative editing directly within WordPress
These enhancements created a more efficient, team-friendly publishing environment, ensuring flexibility and editorial control.
Revamped Faculty Profiles
Media engagement is a strategic priority for many universities. To help strengthen expert visibility, we redesigned faculty profiles to highlight key details journalists and researchers look for, making it easier to quickly identify and connect with relevant faculty experts across disciplines.
Elevating Content Through Search
We improved the discoverability of content on the frontend by introducing an advanced search template. The new user-friendly interface allows users to easily find content through multiple pathways, including keyword, date, or specific category. This significantly improves information retrieval, particularly for prospective students, researchers, and external media outlets, ensuring users can quickly find the content they seek.
Always Mobile-First Design
With a substantial portion of traffic coming from mobile devices, especially among students, a mobile-first design approach was essential. The redesign seamlessly adapts across all screen sizes, ensuring accessibility, usability, and consistency whether viewed on a phone, tablet, or desktop.
Fostering Engagement and Amplifying Reach
To strengthen user engagement and visibility, we introduced:
- Recommended posts, increasing content consumption and time on site
- Improved social sharing, making it easier for users to distribute stories across platforms
These features help broaden the reach of university news and strengthen connections within the campus community.
The Result – A Modern, Flexible, High-Performing News Platform
The redesigned site now serves as an empowering communications hub, providing the ability to tell more dynamic stories, while fostering editorial efficiency, and driving deeper engagement:
- Intuitive User Experience: Highlighted by improved navigation and mobile performance
- Increased Content Consumption: With more engaging layouts and streamlined storytelling
- Stronger Brand Presentation: Through a modern, media-rich design
- Empowered Editorial Teams: Accomplished by a workflow that supports speed, clarity, and collaboration
- Enhanced Community Engagement: Led by features that encourage sharing, return visits, and deeper involvement
A Testament to Strategic Design
This project demonstrates how thoughtful, strategic design can transform a university news platform into a powerful storytelling engine. By prioritizing user experience, mobile-first functionality, and media-rich storytelling, the platform has transformed into a dynamic and engaging communication hub. With improved editorial efficiency, and flexible content creation tools, the institution is now better equipped to amplify its voice, celebrate its achievements, and communicate its mission across every corner of campus and beyond.