Welcome and Agenda

Guy Stephens, Director of Web Development

Overview and Analytics PDF - 114MB

Guy Stephens, Director of Web Development, and Zachary Friedman, Web Designer

What audiences do our web products serve? Do you know how many visitors viewed Chesapeake Bay Program web pages last year? Do you know what percentage of our users are visiting our sites on tablets and mobile phones? Do you know how long does the average user stay on our various sites? What content are users most interested in viewing? These questions and more will be answered in this session - learn who, what, where and when users are using our web products.

Content Success PDF - 3MB

Stephanie Smith, Web Content Manager

With our blog, newsletters, and social media, the Bay Program's web presence is reaching more people than ever. But what type of content are people coming to see? And how can we keep our current audience coming back for more? In this presentation, you'll learn about how we track our most popular content, what that content is, and how we're using this data to inform our work.

Responsible Responsive Design PDF - 4MB

Zachary Friedman, Web Designer

From mobile devices to netbooks and tablets, users are visiting websites through an increasing array of devices and browsers. Responsive design, or mobile-first design, has fundamentally changed the Web for the better, but it has also exposed some ugly truths about design processes and the ways that people access information. New models for collaborative decisions that support good responsive design are now critical. But there’s more to creating a great experience for everyone than just “making it responsive.” There’s much, much more.

Break

Better Websites Through User Testing PDF - 209MB

Guy Stephens, Director of Web Development

Building a great website starts with understanding your audience and their needs. We can learn what users need through the process of discovery. Discovery is a process that involves asking lots of questions and performing user research. How though do we determine if the products we create actually meet real user needs? How do we ascertain if the products that we build are user friendly and effective? We can in fact assess the websites we build through user testing. User testing is a simple yet effective tool for making successful products. In this session we will discuss user testing and demonstrate how it helps our team to make great websites.

ChesapeakeStat: Accountability Past, Present and Future PDF - 3MB

Doreen Vetter, ChesapeakeStat Project Manager

ChesapeakeStat was re-launched as a framework that describes the history of accountability in the Chesapeake Bay Program and will direct audience groups to one of three web products that will be designed to meet their specific needs. This session will discuss the “what’s past is prologue” nature of ChesapeakeStat and forecast how we are evolving to meet the needs of the partnership in achieving the goals and outcomes of the Chesapeake Bay Agreement.

Lunch

Registration

A ‘make-your-own’ sandwich buffet will be available for $12 per person. It will include a healthy assortment of Whole Foods sandwich fixins’ for omnivores and vegetarians alike, as well as a side salad, cookie and drink.

RSVP to Margaret Enloe (410-267-5740) by Monday, March 16 if you plan to purchase lunch!

You may pay by cash or check.

Social Media - You Ask, We Deliver! PDF - 2MB

Jenna Valente, Communications Office Staffer

In this session, participants will gain an understanding of how to harness the power of social media to engage and interact with their audience. The presentation will be designed around answering participants' burning questions about social media and giving them proper tools to go forth and use web-based communication tools to conquer the internet.

Telling Our Story With Instagram PDF - 17MB

Will Parson, Multimedia Specialist

With over 300 million active monthly users, Instagram is a leading image-sharing social media platform and a valuable tool for directly engaging users. This session will start with the basics: how Instagram works, how to post photos and videos, and how to explore image feeds. We will also discuss how to build a following, techniques for making the most compelling posts, and the different ways organizations can put Instagram to good use.

Building a Better Brand: Increasing Brand Awareness & Recognition PDF - 4MB

Stephanie Smith, Web Content Manager

A brand is more than just a logo: it’s the personality of an organization. Brand identity influences how people perceive you, tells them what they can expect from your work, and helps you stand out from the pack. This session will explore the basics behind a successful brand and how to use that brand identity to build a dedicated and engaged audience.

JS Revolution PDF - 8MB

Bill Whorton, Web Developer

Twenty years ago, most people accessed the web using a dial-up modem, Yahoo! was a brand-new search tool, and JavaScript was a novelty. Today, it’s being referred to as “the most important programming language on earth” and “the assembly language of the web”. Once considered a “toy” language for amateurs, JavaScript is now a robust, full-featured language used for everything from responsive, dynamic websites, server applications, and even embedded systems found in machinery and robotics. Learn how this fundamental technology has revolutionized the Internet and redefined the very nature of the web.

Break

We are All Web Teamers Now: How We Work and How You Can be Part of the Process PDF - 6MB

Catherine Krikstan, Web Content Specialist

The Web Team works hard to build great products. But is there a method to our madness? Yes! This presentation will explore our goals, our strategies and the rules that guide us. It will also explain how we incorporate new ideas into our work and how you can offer feedback on the things we do.

Communications Science: Tying Our Work Together PDF - 3MB

Margaret Enloe, Communications Director

Effectively communicating CBP’s messages and work means being timely, relevant and consistent in all that we do – from printed publications and news releases to our websites, images and social media communications. Above all, success in all these areas comes from a unified approach that puts readers and users interests first. Collectively, all the topics presented at WebStock 2015 are integral parts of CBP communications and web team’s work to understand our various audience’s needs and meet them in the best way possible. We are continually monitoring cultural and technological trends and learning about what each specific reader or user group thinks and wants (user testing, analytics review), what they expect (branding), what they will use and hear (responsive design, solid content), and how to best reach them (web language, social media). This session explores some of the science behind effective communications and helps illustrate how everything you’ve learned at WebStock ties together.s

Panel Q&A

Wrap Up

Guy Stephens, Director of Web Development