Self Service Portal

📍 The Project

We needed a self service portal for obituaries, classifieds, business services, and religious directories. I stepped in as project manager right before our kickoff call with iPublish, and we had no copy, pricing, structure, or documentation in place. Over 9 months, I led the design, content development, and page building while coordinating with both iPublish and Legacy to bring the platform to life.

🧠 The Strategy

I created all graphics for the four portal landing pages and built the supporting Pricing, Deadlines, FAQs, and Contact Us pages using HTML, CSS, and our BLOX CMS. I supplied iPublish with every asset they needed to build the e commerce section on their side. This included visual direction, messaging, templates, and all the content that shaped the user flow.

📋 The Content Challenge

Obituaries and legals already had established pricing and workflows, but classifieds did not. The pricing was scattered, inconsistent, and undocumented. I stepped in and built the full pricing structure for classifieds when it became clear the details were unclear and not documented anywhere. I used our media kit’s column inch rates as the foundation and created clear, scalable packages that fit our revenue goals and were easy for customers to understand. I also wrote all FAQs, deadlines, and instructions from scratch, based on industry research and our internal processes.

🎨 The Build

 iPublish handled the shopping cart mechanics. My role focused on everything the user sees before they enter the e commerce system. I designed and built the four portal landing pages and all supporting menu pages inside BLOX CMS, including Pricing, Deadlines, FAQs, and Contact Us. I created the layout, visuals, and structure for these pages and made sure each one connected cleanly to the iPublish platform. I also set up Facebook obituary pages for Legacy integration, configured new ad accounts and partner permissions, and tested each path into the portal. When I needed quick technical clarity, I used AI to help refine small HTML or CSS pieces and troubleshoot BLOX limitations.

🚀 The Result

The portal launched through a phased rollout over 9 months. We introduced each product section in stages, starting with legals, then obituaries, and finishing with classifieds. Each phase required new pricing structures, new content, and new internal workflows, and I adapted the design and support pages as the project evolved. The final system gives customers a clear, intuitive way to place notices and ads, and it now serves as a reliable revenue channel that continues to grow.