ANA revamps website to improve member online experience
- Published: Jun 19, 2014, 7 AM
Members of the American Numismatic Association are only a few short weeks away from a new website that will soon offer members a much-improved online experience.
The new Money.org is currently in beta testing and on schedule to launch to the public the first part of July. Some improvements from the old site include:
??A brand-new design that emphasizes large, detailed images and an intuitive user experience.
??A shopping-cart style registration system. This will allow the ANA to offer full online registration for events like Summer Seminar, the National Money Show and the World’s Fair of Money.
??A mobile-friendly look and feel. Just imagine being able to register for Summer Seminar while waiting at the doctor’s office, or browsing The Numismatist on your tablet with no app to download.
And then there are the new features. When Dr. George Heath first founded the ANA in 1891, he said: “There is nothing like the alliance of kindred pursuits to stimulate growth and interest.” If you’ve ever attended the World’s Fair of Money, Summer Seminar or any other ANA event, you’ll see that “alliance” alive and well. In keeping with the spirit of Dr. Heath’s famous quote, the new website will also be a place for safe, secure connections.
The site will feature blogs, forums and collector photo galleries, so that members can share information and images about their educational pursuits. Members can “friend” other collectors and get notifications of what their friends are posting about. Members will be able to choose their own username and avatar, and there are privacy controls that allow the member to choose who sees what content. As a further security measure, the website will automatically strip all photos of any locational metadata.
The community will be instrumental in helping the ANA fulfill its educational mission as well. The Ask A Member feature on the front page of the new Money.org is designed to connect knowledgeable members with other members and nonmembers who have questions, whether it’s about collecting, what to do with an inheritance, or anything else related to numismatics.
When members post blogs, share photos, participate in the forums, or otherwise interact with the ANA, they’ll receive points and earn badges. These points and badges will be displayed on members’ profiles and leaderboards.
One of the best things about the new website is that it provides a powerful base from which to build even more features. For instance, members who didn’t get a chance to see the “A House Divided: Money of the Civil War” exhibit at the Money Museum will soon be able to take a virtual tour of the exact exhibit. The museum’s latest exhibit, “Treasures of the Deep,” will be digitized in the coming months as well.
Other digitization projects in the works include The Numismatist archive, the Money Talks radio series that aired on NPR in the 1990s, and the Money Museum collection. Some of these archives will be available at launch, with further archives to come.
Thanks to a generous donation from the George Walton Family Heirs, the Numismatic Diploma program is being revamped as both a traditional correspondence course and as an online curriculum.
The new Money.org wouldn’t be possible without the leadership of the Technology Advisory Committee, a group of ANA members with experience in numismatics and information technology. Committee members include James Reinders, Scott Barman, Paul Hybert, Cole Schenewerk and Greg Lyon.
Come check out the new website when it’s open for business next month. Let us know what you like and what features you’d like to see added. Post your ideas in the new forums, or email us at feedback@money.org.
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