Sector(s)
Team Members
Project Team
Nik Roberts - CEO
Nick Rhymes - Senior Developer
Roger Mathew - Senior Developer
Tom Law - Developer
Jasper Mole - Project Manager
Long-standing relations with MST
Prior to this project, the MS Trust and our team had established a robust partnership. In late 2019, we collaborated with them to develop their Ecommerce site, effectively showcasing our ability to deliver projects within budget and time constraints while assisting the charity in achieving its objectives.
Since the launch of the new online shop, the MS Trust has witnessed remarkable improvements in various aspects.The revamped site now boasts enhanced search engine optimisation (SEO), improved user experience, and a contemporary design. Consequently, the MS Trust has experienced a consistent increase in the sale of charity cards year after year, furthering their mission and impact.
It is these strong foundations we value establishing with our clients that meant when the MS Trust needed to migrate their website to Drupal 9 before Drupal 7 sunsetted, that they came to us for support.
Back to topTick tock, tick tock...
The primary goal of the project was to migrate mstrust.org.uk, its content and interactive tools, from Drupal 7 to Drupal 9 by October 2022 before Drupal 7 came to an end. The current site’s interactive tools (such as symptoms and treatments tool) whilst popular, were outdated and didn’t function optimally on the older Drupal 7 website while, moving to Drupal 9 the opportunity was taken to enhance the UX of these components.
Secondary goals were to ensure their website can be used by all, regardless of ability and must at least achieve grade AA on the accessibility scale. In addition, the new website needed to be built with high performance in mind paying close attention to:
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP); a metric for measuring perceived load speed.
- First Input Delay (FID); measurement for load responsiveness
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS); measures visual stability
The MS Trust wanted to vastly improve their primary and secondary site navigation; the current site navigation was complex, lacking access to key services (such as the ecommerce site). They also wanted seamless navigation across devices such as (mobile and tablet devices) which had historically been bringing in around 60% of their traffic.
Back to topProject goals and requirements
The project's primary goal was to smoothly migrate mstrust.org.uk from Drupal 7 to Drupal 9 before the end-of-life deadline, with a focus on improving site functionality and user experience. This involved enhancing interactive tools, achieving Grade AA accessibility, optimising performance metrics, and streamlining site navigation, especially across various devices. Requirements included user persona surveys, accessibility testing, a thorough discovery phase, implementation on Drupal 9, and an upgrade to a new hosting infrastructure.
Back to topTimeline and milestones
The timeline was centered around the urgency of migrating from Drupal 7 before its end-of-life in October 2022. Major milestones included conducting user persona surveys and accessibility testing during the discovery phase, implementing improvements based on these findings, building the new site on Drupal 9, and migrating to a new hosting infrastructure. The timeline prioritised meeting the Drupal 7 deadline while ensuring all enhancements were thoroughly implemented.
Back to topAgile project management
The project employed a systematic approach with a focus on collaboration and iterative development. The initial discovery phase involved user surveys and accessibility testing to inform the project scope. Agile methodologies were like employed during the implementation phase, allowing for flexibility in responding to evolving requirements. Regular communication and feedback loops between the project team and MS Trust would have been crucial to ensure alignment with expectations.
Back to topOutcome of the project
The project resulted in a successful migration to Drupal 9, meeting the primary goal. The MS Trust now has a website that not only supports user needs more effectively but also passes Google Core Web Vitals tests, indicating improved performance. The team gained greater flexibility and control over content creation, contributing to increased user satisfaction and achieving the Grade AA accessibility target.
Back to topAchieving longevity and reliability
The migration addressed the critical business problem of an outdated CMS (Drupal 7) reaching its end-of-life, ensuring continued reliability, security, and usability. Additionally, improvements in accessibility, navigation, and overall user experience helped resolve issues that could negatively affect user engagement and satisfaction.
Back to topThe results
The project's success is reflected with the increase in organic traffic, user engagement and improved search visibility. The website's better performance and passing of Google Core Web Vitals tests contributed to a positive user experience. The MS Trust is now better positioned to fulfill its mission efficiently, providing support to individuals affected by multiple sclerosis. The use of Drupal not only ensured a seamless transition but also empowered the organisation with a scalable and flexible platform for future growth and innovation.
Back to topMigrating from Drupal 7 to Drupal 9/10
MS Trust's original content management system (CMS) was based on Drupal 7. Migrating the website from Drupal 7 to Drupal 9 emerged as the most strategic choice, primarily aimed at providing MS Trust with enhanced reliability, security, and usability while ensuring a seamless transition before the end of life for Drupal 7.
Drupal 9 presented a natural and smooth upgrade path, ensuring compatibility and minimising disruptions throughout the migration process. Our past successful collaborations underscored the reliability and effectiveness of Drupal's ecosystem. This familiarity helped influence our decision to stick with Drupal, highlighting its capacity to act as a scalable, flexible, and forward-looking solution for our web presence.
This decision to continue with Drupal aligns with our commitment to utilising proven technologies that can adapt to the evolving needs of MS Trust, ensuring a trouble-free and successful migration experience.
Technical Specifications
Drupal version:
