A tailored measurement plan and GA4 tracking were set up for both Apteekkariliitto.fi and the online magazine Apteekkari.fi to support the analysis of web traffic. The measurement plan ensures that the tracking for both websites is aligned, while also allowing for site-specific measurement needs to be addressed. The analytics were installed with visitor privacy and cookie preferences in mind, adhering to the Association’s strict data security standards.
The Finnish Pharmacists’ Association’s web service renewal
The Finnish Pharmacists’ Association was established in 1897. It is responsible for advocating for the interests of its pharmacist members and developing the pharmacy sector as part of the healthcare system. In practice, almost all pharmacies in Finland are members of the Association. The Association has over 600 members and 26 employees.
The core mission of the Finnish Pharmacists’ Association is to develop the pharmacy sector from the perspective of healthcare — viewing pharmacies as an essential part of the healthcare system. The Association creates the conditions for high-quality and profitable pharmacy operations, ensuring the safe distribution of medicines and supporting the operational conditions of pharmacies, whether they are large or small, or located in urban or rural areas. Additionally, the Association takes care of its members’ advocacy and provides value-added member services.
We completely revamped both the Association’s main website and advocacy communication platform Apteekkariliitto.fi and their stakeholder and member magazine Apteekkari.fi.
Starting point
Apteekkariliitto.fi is the main website of the Association, providing information for those wishing to join as members, but with a strong focus on advocacy communications. Apteekkari.fi is the Association’s stakeholder and member magazine. The magazine supports the strategic objectives of the Association but operates independently with journalistic principles.
The Finnish Pharmacists’ Association’s previous website was somewhat outdated and no longer represented the desired image. The site did not serve the Association’s communication goals effectively for the target audiences. Technically, the website was outdated, and its design lagged behind the Association’s other materials. Furthermore, the user journeys were lacking, and the main website did not guide users toward the next logical sections. The technical foundation of the website needed a refresh, and administrators wanted more flexible content management options. Additionally, the content needed to be developed with a focus on up-to-date communication and search engine optimization.
Apteekkari.fi magazine’s content is of high quality and considered a trusted source of information in the pharmacy sector, but its online functions were inadequate. Essential digital media features, such as logical content categories, were missing from the site.
Vision and objectives
The main purpose of the Finnish Pharmacists’ Association’s website is to serve as an advocacy communication channel where the Association’s positions are clearly and persuasively presented, based on factual information. It needed to be visually appealing, providing information for both busy journalists and governmental officials.
The website primarily focuses on advocacy work, making the work of the Association and pharmacies visible, and supporting the development of pharmacies. The website and Apteekkari.fi provide up-to-date information on the pressing topics in the sector, strengthening the target audiences’ knowledge and reinforcing the Association’s position as a trusted expert organization. The site also includes campaign pages addressing current issues for specific target groups, such as supporting the Association’s political goals.
The new website needed to strengthen the success of the Association’s core mission and advocacy communications, track the development of employment conditions in pharmacies, enhance the attractiveness of pharmacies as workplaces, and support the continued development and use of the Association’s digital channels, both now and in the future.
”Evermade understood our needs very well, and their experts helped create a functional and clear content concept and design. The project was completed on schedule, and the end result has been exactly what it was supposed to be.”
Hanna Hyvärinen
Editor-in-Chief, The Finnish Pharmacists’ Association
Technical implementation
The websites were built using WordPress, a powerful platform for content management. The Evermade Studio enables versatile content management, further development, and optimization of the website with minimal development work. The goal was to create a sustainable service that will meet the Finnish Pharmacists’ Association’s evolving needs for years to come. Content creators can build pages with a highly flexible structure, eliminating the need for significant development costs.
The project utilized WordPress Multisite, which allows the management of both the main site and the online magazine on the same server space and through the same control panel. This setup streamlines management, as the two sites share most plugins and Gutenberg blocks, which can be enabled or disabled as needed. Content creators, within their user roles, can create and update pages on both sites or just one. The Multisite setup also allows for the easy addition of new sites to the network in the future.
With a consistent website structure and semantics, the goal was to improve both accessibility and search engine visibility. Internal testing was carried out agilely throughout the project.
Web analytics and search engine optimization
During the website renewal, both website tracking and search engine visibility were considered from design to launch. At the time of the website launch, the site’s indexing in search engines was validated, and redirects for large amounts of content were implemented to ensure that the visibility already gained would also transfer to the updated sites.
