Build a way to search most, if not all, of the content on a website, to find the particular content you're looking for.
I think, this is an absolute 'must'. Site is complex, and the ability to find info speedily is just not there. Hey, the most successful applications out there are search based (Google, Oracle engine).
YES! One of my most frequent suggestions for improvement is a website-wide search capability. Our menu is complex as we have around 50 activity leaders and a lot of info on our website. A general website-wide search option would be very welcomed! L
As an Admin I had search on our Legacy HOA Website and used it often. I really miss the function.
#2 on my wish list. Our community site is gaining momentum and we are getting content contributions from the community, including the forum's. If a topic is mentioned in a forum, it's easy to find there. But if the same topic is addressed elsewhere on the site (e.g. news or events), there is no way to find both all of the mentions of the same topic.
Search would be especially useful in Documents. Think about providing filters too, such as a date range, document type (ex. pdf, xls), or category.
If we implemented a feature of this nature, we'd most likely design it as a "global" search feature that was capable of searching most, if not all, of the content on a website. As such, I'll be updating this post's title and description to better align with our vision of this feature request.
By the way, it's worth mentioning that we currently don't offer this feature now because we've found it's much better if the website is organized in such a way that it's easy to find the content you're seeking without looking too hard. It's usually faster to skim a menu and reach your desired content in a click or two, rather than making multiple searches until you find the right search terms that yield the content you're looking for.
This can be achieved by being thoughtful of what information is included on your community website, using clear and concise naming, and organizing pages using folders. We touch on this topic in more detail in this blog article: https://blog.hoa-express.com/tips-for-tidying-up-your-website/.
@Wes Cossick: I get organization and I've worked at it. But lets say you have months of meeting minutes and you wish to find the month when a certain motion was passed. Without a search feature, you'd have to review every entry in hopes of locating what you're looking for.
joe
@Joe Weber: That makes sense. This means the search feature would be especially beneficial if it had the capability to search the content of files, in addition to their titles and other info.
@Wes Cossick: I too use the organization feature - however, sometimes that means creating, and re-creating pages and specific content for one topic (i.e. parking or trash if you look on my website). Both are significant concerns which would be helped by people being able to not just search for the rule (i.e. in a document folder), but also to search the forums for residents and board members discussing it, to search the documents, and to search the site itself for a dedicated page I created to that topic. Its something I emailed you about August 18.
Would like to be able to search all of the content on your website or just specifically documents?
@Meredith Owens: Specific documents.
@Meredith Owens: Specific document areas AND total website.
So for example a search limited to just rules and regs documents for the hoa.
In addition to having The ability to search our entire site
@Meredith Owens: Hello,
Much like other websites, having the function of searching for a particular document(s) or context within a particular document from the home home page would be a nice feature.
Our website will see the addition of more documents over time as well as an archive document folder
@Meredith Owens: It would be nice to search all content (and specific documents). Often there is a topic (i.e. parking or trash) that has history, a reason behind it, and why something is as it is... It would be nice not to only find the rule (i.e. in the specific documents) but also to find out the previously considered options, why something is, and if the board responded to concerns.
@Meredith Owens: I'd like both Global as a default mode, but also be able to search a specific document or section. Maybe highlight part all of a document and have the search confined to that section or document.
Excellent idea. Not only would it help Admins locate information quickly, it would reduce inquiries from residents like "I can't fine" or "where is X located".