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Organizations Involved

WSB Merito is Poland's biggest network of private universities known for its modern, business skills-oriented attitude. It leads institutions in 11 Polish cities, educating over 100,000 students. As Smartbees, we were responsible for developing new websites for all WSB Merito units based on Drupal multisite.

About the project

Goals

We aim to create easy-to-edit and intuitive websites for all WSB Merito branches, including a top-notch user experience. The main objectives include:

  • Responsiveness - previously, WSB Merito had two separate website versions for desktop and mobile devices. Thus, the highest priority was designing and implementing the website according to RWD guidelines.
  • Improving website management - facilitating content creation and edition process.
  • Unifying functions availability - key functionalities should be available for all websites within multisite, not for chosen instances.
  • Visual identification consistency - new website meant new design. It was crucial to implement refreshed visual identification on all universities' websites.

Solutions

We developed the website based on multisite. All universities' websites can be managed and updated within one admin panel. However, it also provides vast flexibility thanks to separate databases. Each website can have different content, educational offers, etc.

We also put a strain on the following:

  • Facilitating content creation by implementing paragraphs. You can drag and drop those content blocks on any subpage. It provides high flexibility in terms of content arrangement. You can use each paragraph on all WSB Merito websites.
  • Improving UI - we implemented various solutions to make the website more UX-friendly, e.g., CAS login enabling users to log in to all websites using one account; dynamic listings (on educational offer) where content loads in the background; advanced search engine using Elasticsearch.
  • Multidimensional integration with CRM - we integrated the website with client CRM. It included prices, listings, registration forms, and others. The integration greatly simplified data management with all university group units.

Effects

We vastly facilitated the management of all WSB Merito websites—moreover, new design and website architecture improved user experience, making the university candidate-friendly.

Here are the most important effects of our work:

  • 11 websites managed within one admin panel.
  • Easy updates process.
  • Personalization thanks to separate databases.
  • New publishing options.
  • Visual consistency within all group's websites.
  • Improved UI for editors and users.
  • Vast development possibilities in the future (e.g. adding new websites with multisite).

Why Drupal was chosen

  • Previous experience - the previous website was based on Drupal 7, so migration to a higher version was a natural choice.
  • Multisite - the university wanted to manage and update all websites within one admin panel. Thus, Drupal multisite is a perfect solution thanks to one source code for all instances.
  • Efficiency - WSB Merito deals with vast traffic boosts during winter and summer recruitments. That is why high efficiency, regardless of traffic increases, was necessary.

Technical Specifications

Drupal version: