Understanding Microsites

Extending Picturepark access to websites and apps.

A Picturepark Microsite is a portable and embeddable website page element or mobile app component that pulls content from the Picturepark Content Platform. The primary purpose of a Microsite is to make content managed in one system available in other systems, without having to be manually copied between systems.

Picturepark Microsites can be static or dynamic. A static Microsite is one for which the creating user selects specific content that is being the Microsite. The content of a dynamic Microsite comes from Filters rather than a specific selection. This means that the content of the Microsite could change regularly, perhaps each time the page is loaded.

Dynamic Microsites can also be interactive, enabling users to change the contents within, based on search and filter operations that are available where the Microsite is displayed.

The capabilities of a Microsite are part of the site's architecture and design. Like websites and mobile apps, not all Microsites look or behave the same, or provide the same functionality.

Microsite Examples

The use cases for Microsites are diverse. Many departments across the organization can benefit from publishing their data sources, while the enterprise as a whole benefits from having all that data released through a single system.

Below are a few examples of Microsites that could benefit many different types of organizations:

Purpose	Department	Notes
Documentation portals	Technical Publications	Provide a searchable directory of current and historical documentation, a knowledge base, or a tips and tricks archive.
Campaign landing pages	Marketing	Centrally control the content of all landing pages from within Picturepark. Let permitted marketers messaging and calls-to-action, or update hero and other imagery, without having to involve the web team.
Press kits	Marketing	Build as many press kits as you have markets, each with the contents you need. Update messaging or materials at any time, without editing websites or having to FTP files back and forth.
Job listings	Human Resources	Publish active job listings, add new listings, and remove old ones at any time. Update titles, descriptions, or requirements to improve performance and responses, all without involving the web team.
Partner network listings	Business Development	Publish a complete global listing of partners, separated by region, specialty, or any criteria that are needed. Include partner logos and update, add or delete a listing at any time without involving the web team.
Office locations	Facilities	Including a listing of office locations that are easy to maintain and update as needed. Include one or more photos of each facility, and optionally provide directions, maps, or more.
Contact numbers	Corporate Communications	Publish an enterprise extensive phone directory to the website and an intranet. Make some listings and information available on the site, while other information is available only on the intranet.
Product galleries	Product Management	Publish a searchable directory of products. Include as many images as you need, and provide links to associated content, such as documentation, service manuals, and more. Segment content by region or other attributes.
Parts databases	Product Management	Provide a globally searchable database of parts. Include images, installation guides, links to service locations or partners, and more.

Most medium- to large-sized organizations have multiple data-based content sources they need publishing via websites or mobile apps. Picturepark can serve as a central hub that connects those upstream business systems with output channels, so that data doesn't need to be manually copied or updated.

Microsite Basics

There are two primary components to a Microsite:

Back-end content creation or content selection
Front-end content formatting and presentation

Picturepark is the back end content creation or content selection. The front end is based on standard HTML and CSS that is built by a website or app developer.

Each Microsite may be a Virtual Content Item that acts as a template for the content structure of the Microsite or the summary of Virtual Content Items, taking the structure form the underlying Virtual Type. An example structure might be a headline, an abstract, some descriptive text, the selection of a "hero" image to serve as a banner, and a variety of related content available for download from the Microsite.

Picturepark users edit the Content item for the Microsite to provide the static text values that will serve as headlines and descriptive text, and to select content to be included on the Microsite, either by direct selection or by editing a Filter that determines dynamic content selection. A MicrositeContent item can be edited at any time by any permitted user.

Once a Microsite's Content item is complete, there are two options:

Picturepark generates code that can be manually copied and embedded into a front end.
The Microsite can be accessed directly via the Picturepark API.

In either case, each time the Microsite is loaded via website or mobile app, the content comes from Picturepark on the fly. So any changes made to the Microsite Content item are reflected immediately. If a content distribution network (CDN) is in use, the time required for Microsite changes to be propagated are dependent on the CDN.

Content Routing between Systems

Picturepark Microsites can serve as an intermediary between upstream systems in which master data is managed, and output channels through which that data must be published.

System requirements

The microsites (examples) are all .net Core compatible, so they run on any platform which support .net Core.

OS: Windows / Linux / MacOS

Frameworks: NET Core 2.2

CPU depending on the load on the Microsite (min 2 CPU Cores, 4GB RAM)