We have made several improvements to Sitecore recently and have expanded services available for your web editing needs.
New Website Guidelines
Development and External Affairs (DEA) and the Office of Information Technology (OIT) have published new website guidelines for the University. These cover search-engine optimization (SEO), accessibility, and information on how to craft the more recent Cornerstone 2.0 sites. By using these guidelines, you help assure that your site:
- Supports the University’s marketing goals.
- Meets University brand standards.
- Expedites visitors’ access to the content they need.
- Complies with SMU’s web-accessibility policy.
- Maximizes the supportability of your website and editors.
You can review the new website guidelines at smu.edu/brand-web-guidelines.
DubBot: Automated Website Scanning Tool
We now offer DubBot, an automated website scanning tool, to help you monitor broken links, spelling errors, web-accessibility issues, and selected areas of compliance with SMU’s Editorial Guide on websites built with Sitecore. DubBot is available to all web editors, but we recommend attending a DubBot and web accessibility training session before requesting access.
New Feature: Share Your Sitecore Page
OIT’s Web Team updated Sitecore to help you get and share links to content. In the new “Page URLs” section of the Publish tab in the Content Editor, you can open a sharable link to the content being edited. If the page has been published, you can use the production link to open the live version of the page. The stage link will open the most recent staged version of the page, but remember, the reviewer must be on campus or connected to SMU’s VPN to view the content. For a complete overview, please review the Get or share a link to Sitecore pages knowledge base entry on Wiki.SMU.
Also, in the Publish Tab, the “Item Information” section displays key details about the status of your page, including if the item is live or staged, when the item was last modified, and more.
Open Graph and Cards Meta Tags
Editors can now add metadata for Open Graph and Cards, allowing you to control how your content appears when shared on social media platforms by specifying a title, description, and even a featured image. This addition will help increase engagement, drive traffic to us, and improve the appearance of shared content. Learn more about using Open Graph and Twitter Cards in the Sitecore Knowledge Base.
Questions? Need Help Using Sitecore?
Have you taken the Sitecore Basics course and still have a question about how to achieve a content goal? Our Individual Instruction Service is for you! We can meet in person or online.
Sign up for an appointment with a web specialist today.
