New NASBP.ORG Is Here!

You may have noticed by now that NASBP has a completely new, state-of-the-art main website at www.nasbp.org. The soft launch of the new website occurred on February 20th. This replaces a website that was outdated and well past due for replacement, as the COVID pandemic delayed the commencement of the project considerably. The new website is a project years in the making, involving the expertise, energy, and skills of many parties, including the NASBP staff, a website developer, other supporting consultants, NASBP volunteers, and the cooperation of many existing vendors, and the work is not done yet, as we continue to refine features for optimal visitor and member experiences.

The task of developing the new website was considerable, as the old website contained content spread over more than 1,000 web pages. All that content had to be reviewed to ascertain its currency and relevancy and its suitability for the new website design. The new website also needed to work seamlessly with other existing NASBP web properties, such as NASBP’s learning management system (SuretyLearn), Be Guaranteed to Succeed, Let’s Get Surety podcast, and Surety Bond Quarterly magazine websites.

NASBP received very helpful insights from volunteer reviewers during the design phase, placing emphasis on the ease of user experience, especially regarding website navigation and the organization of content and resources. A clean, attractive, graphically-oriented design that promotes readability and engagement also was a principal objective. Other objectives included incorporation of clear calls to action so users can go easily toward desired actions; strong visual hierarchies to guide user’s eyes and to highlight important features; search engine optimization, including mobile friendly design; and accessibility. The new website also employs a more powerful, federated search tool, so relevant content can be found more easily, including search results from other NASBP web properties.

Although the new website primarily focuses on serving the NASBP member community, surety stakeholders and other visitors looking for information on surety bonding and surety practices can access a tremendous number of explanatory resources, everything from videos to FAQ documents. The new website includes a Resource Library, a content hub, which permits all users to find information on a broad variety of surety-related subjects.

I hope you find the new website of great benefit to you and your colleagues. Please feel free to share your experiences regarding the new website with me. I can be reached at mmccallum@nasbp.org.