MOAD’s Microsites

The Museum of Australian Democracy (MoAD), a renowned institution dedicated to fostering public understanding and engagement with Australia’s democratic history, engaged OSKY to assist with a major website consolidation project. With over 20 microsites to be integrated, MoAD sought a partner with the expertise and strategic vision to create a scalable framework for consolidation. OSKY’s proven capability and thorough approach made it the ideal choice. The project begins with the integration of two key microsites, setting the foundation for the consolidation of the remaining sites over the next 12 months.

Challenge

MOAD’s existing website was designed to provide visitors with a rich, cohesive experience. However, with multiple microsites serving different purposes, MOAD needed a way to integrate these sites into their main site without sacrificing their distinct navigation, design, and functionality. This required custom development to ensure each microsite retained its unique characteristics, while still seamlessly operating within MOAD’s main site and branding.

Solution

To address these needs, OSKY developed a series of custom blocks specifically for MOAD’s website, allowing for smooth integration of the microsites. Key features of the solution included:

• Secondary Navigation Block: We created a customisable secondary navigation block that can be used across different microsites as required. This navigation system is set up on the landing page for the microsite and is automatically applied to child pages, reducing work for MOAD staff. This allows users to easily explore each microsite’s content, and it can be tailored for each individual site’s structure and purpose.
• Custom Block Behaviours: In response to MOAD’s need for flexibility, we designed blocks with specific behaviours, including a no-image-crop feature. This ensures that cartoon images displayed under Behind the Lines appear as the cartoonist intended.

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Results & Benefits

The new custom blocks enabled MOAD to integrate their microsites within their main website, creating a unified digital presence that still respects the individuality of each microsite. The improvements have delivered several key benefits:

• Enhanced User Experience: Visitors can now navigate seamlessly between the main site and microsites, with secondary navigation making it easy to explore specific content without confusion.
• Consistent Brand Identity: By bringing all microsites onto the primary domain, MOAD reinforces its brand, while the custom blocks ensure each microsite maintains its unique functional style.
• Streamlined Content Management: With all microsites hosted within a single platform, MOAD’s team can manage updates and make adjustments more efficiently, all from within the same CMS.

Conclusion

The collaboration between OSKY and MOAD has strengthened the museum’s online presence, allowing them to integrate diverse microsites into a single, cohesive platform while retaining the unique identity of each section. OSKY is proud to support MOAD in creating an engaging, user-friendly digital experience that honours Australia’s democratic history.