Revitalizing SaLIS Journal’s Digital Presence: A Journey of Integration, Empowerment, and Strategic Foresight
In the fall of 2014, the Surveying and Land Information Science (SaLIS) Journal approached our team with a clear objective: to build a centralized, user-friendly website that would serve as both a digital hub and subscription portal for their academic publication. This new platform needed to cater to the journal’s diverse audience—existing members, potential subscribers, and contributors—while supporting a paid membership model for accessing exclusive content.
Published 4/24/2015
From Disjointed to Unified: Creating a Single Source of Truth
At the time, information related to the SaLIS Journal was fragmented across three separate websites. This disjointed structure caused confusion among users, made routine updates cumbersome, and diluted the journal’s digital identity. Subscription rates, publication archives, and contact information were inconsistently maintained, leading to inefficiencies that impacted both the journal’s audience and its administrators.
Our first priority was to eliminate this fragmentation. Working in close collaboration with the SaLIS team, we conducted a comprehensive content audit to locate and unify all critical assets. We then organized the material into a cohesive structure, redesigning the user experience from the ground up to ensure easy navigation, logical content flow, and quick access to key information for both new and returning users.
Designing for Autonomy: Laying the Groundwork for Self-Publishing
While the immediate goal was consolidation, we took the opportunity to plan for SaLIS’s long-term digital independence. Historically, the journal had relied on Sheridan Press for its publishing needs. However, anticipating potential shifts in publishing strategy, we proactively developed a system that would allow the SaLIS editorial team to manage content in-house if and when they chose to transition away from traditional print services.
The site was built to be more than just a digital archive; it was designed as a future-ready platform that could evolve into a fully self-sustaining publishing environment. This strategic foresight offered SaLIS not just a new website, but a flexible foundation for growth and editorial freedom.
Why WordPress: A Powerful Platform for Scalability and Control
To bring this vision to life, we selected WordPress as the content management system. Its combination of flexibility, scalability, and ease of use made it the ideal choice for a membership-based publication with a need for both structure and adaptability.
The resulting website empowers SaLIS with an intuitive back-end interface for managing subscribers, uploading journal issues, and publishing new content without relying on external support. Built-in SEO tools and search functionality help improve content discoverability, while WordPress’s robust ecosystem ensures long-term sustainability.
In short, WordPress gave SaLIS the tools to streamline operations today, and the capabilities to grow, adapt, and publish independently in the future.
Through thoughtful strategy, technical expertise, and a deep understanding of SaLIS Journal’s evolving needs, Colburn Strategic Partners delivered more than just a website, we provided a foundation for long-term digital empowerment. By unifying scattered content, implementing a clean user experience, and building a flexible publishing infrastructure, we helped SaLIS reclaim control over their online presence and communications.
Their final website design at https://aagsmo.org/salis-journal/ is a seamless, professional, and future-proof membership website that not only enhances accessibility for subscribers but also supports editorial independence and operational efficiency. SaLIS is now better positioned to grow its readership, streamline content management, and adapt to the changing landscape of academic publishing with confidence.
Rhode Island web design company Colburn Strategic Partners takes pride in helping mission-driven organizations like SaLIS bridge the gap between legacy systems and modern digital solutions. Our collaboration with SaLIS exemplifies our commitment to building websites that aren’t just visually strong—but strategically built to grow with the people who rely on them.