We’ve been evolving the look, feel and functionality of the ECB website for over ten years now: with the most recent version launching in May 2008.
Introducing the ECB
The ECB is the single national governing body for all cricket played in England and Wales. They are responsible for everything from grass roots cricket development to the England squad: overseeing county and international cricket in all its forms.
The challenge
The main objective of the ECB redesign was to bring the look and feel of the site up-to-date; allowing it to stand up against other large sporting sites like the NFL. The ECB wanted to engage its audiences more fully with content like live scores and video; encouraging longer dwell times and greater repeat visits. We were also asked to grow revenue by effectively promoting ECBtv subscriptions; Twelfthman memberships and the purchase of images via Pictopia.
What we did
Like other large sporting bodies, the ECB has to present a huge amount of content to its diverse audience base (including men and women; players and fans): all within a small amount of on-page real estate. To solve this problem, we used YUI and AJAX which allows more content to be shown via tabbing. Live scores, one of the biggest draws of the site, are integrated into every page via XML feeds from the Press Association (PA).
We also assisted user journeys by implementing clearer sign posting and linking across the site. The search tool has been refined and a user-friendly sitemap is within easy reach wherever you browse. To engage users we have improved the video functionality with a customised player; there are also more special features for England fans; including photo stories and interviews with England players.
The results
The new ECB website is based on a sound, future-proof structure; with the mass of content now having a logical flow. It’s too early to measure the affect of the redesign on traffic and engagement, but internally the site has provided a solid platform for new content development and a flexible CMS for immediacy.
We have recently launched an iPhone application for the ECB. Find out more by clicking on the link.
