During the November 2025 content and design finalization session, the VCEDC team decided to simplify their website's content structure by merging two previously separate pages — Success Stories and Business Minute — into a single consolidated Success Stories page. This decision was paired with a deliberate effort to diversify the video content to represent all of Vilas County, not just Eagle River.
See also: [1] | [2]
The site had accumulated redundant content across two pages that served essentially the same purpose: showcasing local business stories through short-form video. Additionally, the existing video lineup was geographically skewed — nearly every featured business was from Eagle River, failing to represent the broader Vilas County region that VCEDC serves.
"Every single one of those is Eagle River, except Conover Gardens on the bottom right. And I need to make sure I've got videos from throughout the county."
— Kathy Schmitz
What was decided: The Business Minute page will be removed. All content — existing and new — will live under a single Success Stories page.
Rationale:
- Reduces navigation complexity for site visitors
- Eliminates duplicate content that served the same audience goal
- Creates a single, authoritative destination for business showcase content
The consolidated page should feature videos representing businesses from across Vilas County — not concentrated in any single municipality. The target is 6 videos on the homepage success stories section, selected to reflect geographic and business-type diversity.
Kathy will provide the final list of 6 selected videos with YouTube links.
All embedded videos are sourced from YouTube. The developer (Aki) must:
- Hide the YouTube logo/branding on all embedded video players
- Remove black bars (letterboxing) from video embeds
- Ensure consistent visual treatment across all video cards
The Success Stories page needs a new hero/header photo. Isalia Ramirez is tasked with directing developer Aki to source an appropriate replacement image.
| Owner | Task |
|---|---|
| Kathy Schmitz | Send final list of 6 success story videos with YouTube links |
| Melissa Cusumano | Update Success Stories page: swap Advanced Welding → Amanda Cowart, add 6 new videos |
| Isalia Ramirez | Task Aki with finding a new Success Stories page photo |
| Aki (developer) | Hide YouTube branding and black bars on all embedded video players |
| Melissa Cusumano | Remove Business Minute page from site navigation and structure |
When a client site has two content sections serving the same audience goal (showcasing community stories), consolidation into a single page reduces cognitive load for visitors and simplifies content maintenance. Pairing consolidation with a content audit — in this case, geographic diversity of featured businesses — turns a structural cleanup into a strategic content improvement.