VCEDC Past Programs Page Strategy

Overview

During the October 2025 staging review, the team identified a gap in the events architecture: the main Events page was not designed to surface recorded past programming, and the existing SiteCast video landing page was being discontinued. The solution was to create a dedicated Past Programs page to house all recorded events, linked from the main Events page.

This decision also resolved a broader question about video hosting strategy — all recordings will be embedded from the official VCEDC YouTube channel rather than hosted directly on the site.

See also: ^[1] | ^[2]

The Problem

The main Events page is designed to show upcoming events only. Once an event passes, there was no clear place for visitors to find recordings. The previous approach (SiteCast) was a separate licensed landing page unconnected to the new website, and it is being discontinued at end of year.

Key user need identified in the meeting:

"If I missed the Women in Business event and wanted to see the recording, where would I find it?"

The answer was: nowhere obvious. That gap needed to be closed before launch.

Decision: Dedicated Past Programs Page

Rather than mixing past and upcoming events on a single page (which would clutter the primary call-to-action of event registration), the team agreed to:

1. Keep the main Events page focused on upcoming events only.
2. Create a new "Past Programs" page to house all recorded programming.
3. Add a link on the Events page directing visitors to Past Programs — a single sentence or CTA, e.g., "To watch previous VCEDC virtual programming, click here."

This structure means:
- The Events page stays clean and action-oriented (register, attend).
- Past Programs can grow indefinitely without requiring deletions or archiving.
- Recorded content remains discoverable without cluttering the primary events flow.

Video Embedding: YouTube as the Source

All videos on the Past Programs page will be embedded from the official VCEDC YouTube channel, not hosted directly on the WordPress site.

Rationale:
- Vilas County has areas with slow internet connectivity. Direct video hosting would cause buffering or failed loads for many users.
- YouTube handles delivery, compression, and bandwidth — improving performance for all visitors.
- AAG now has access to the VCEDC YouTube channel to manage uploads and embeds.

YouTube channel hygiene:
- Outdated or off-brand videos can be set to "Unlisted" — they disappear from the public YouTube feed but existing embedded links continue to work.
- The channel banner should be updated to reflect the current VCEDC brand.

Relationship to SiteCast

SiteCast was a separate, licensed landing page (created by a prior vendor) that pulled VCEDC YouTube playlists into a branded page. It is not connected to the new website and never has been. It will be discontinued at end of year.

• No content migration is needed — the videos already live on YouTube.
• The SiteCast URL will eventually return a 404; no links from the new site point to it.
• The new Past Programs page effectively replaces SiteCast's function in a way that is integrated with the actual website.

Implementation Tasks

Content Notes

• The Past Programs page should focus on recorded virtual programming (Lunch & Learns, training sessions, etc.). Live in-person events that were not recorded do not need to appear here.
• Do not label events as "recorded" on the registration/upcoming listing — this reduces live attendance. Announce recordings after the fact.
• Page copy and structure should be included in the Word document content workflow: Melissa will provide a draft doc; Kathy will write to the layout.

Related

• ^[1]
• ^[2]
• ^[3]