Anna,
Our state park has a friends group maintains our website (www.fallsoftheohio.org) that enables us to do a lot of customized pages. A website that is rarely updated will not get a high ranking in search engines.
Since "Press" is an antiquated term for "newspaper," we decided to go with "News Desk" where we post media releases. We make high-res photos available upon request.
For our program calendar, we use www.localendar.com. It is easy to update and has flexibility depending on how much you want to pay.
With regards to links to other web pages, since I wear a lot of hats (including webmaster), I have been selective with links. We focus on those that connect thematically and geographically (i.e. local tourism). It is necessary to check them at least once a year to minimize the dead links that are so common on links pages. We don't demand reciprocal links.
Our web page was developed in 1998 after researching many other museum and park websites, was improved dramatically in 2009 when I obtained a website maintenance program. It is too easy to forget to make changes, deleting a past event or program unless you have a dedicated webmaster. Simplicity has its advantages, but it must contain essential elements to make people want to return to it often. If they don't, it is not effective.Visiting websites of museums similar in size and scope to yours is the best way to see what works and what doesn't. We link our webpage to our Facebook page.
I get inquiries from around the world, so I know our site is frequently visited without even consulting the metrics. It is imperative that you respond to inquiries and don't make your web contact information impossible to find.
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Alan Goldstein
Interpretive Naturalist
Falls of The Ohio State Park Interpretive Center
Clarksville IN
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-14-2015 03:13 PM
From: Anna Koster
Subject: Website examples for news room, press images, etc.
I would like your help. We are finally redesigning our antiquated website, and I am looking for good examples for:
Press room
Sharing hi-res images with the media
Press list signup
Calendar (public)
We plan to keep the new website basic, as an intermediate, transition stage. I would love URLs you can recommend from your museum's website from others you admire.
I would appreciate any good examples you can send. I can gather and share the responses if desired.
Thanks!
Anna Koster
650-725-4657 Email: akoster@stanford.edu
museum.stanford.edu
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Anna Koster
Head of Communications
Iris & B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts at Stanford University
Stanford CA
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