In the last several months we’ve been methodically working on some significant redesign and user interface changes to ConcealedCarry.com. We’ve crossed the threshold of basically done with the project and now I’ve been considering how I can get the word out; especially to those who have been long time supporters and customers.
Though I considered recording a video walkthrough, I’ve ultimately decided against it because nobody wants to watch that video. Instead this article will serve to highlight the core changes we’ve implemented and how they are intended to better support the efforts of armed citizens in America.
Below I’ll walk you through the high level changes we’ve made and you can take a closer look at the elements that interest you specifically.
Core Menu Navigation Changes
One of the biggest challenges we’ve always had as a company is that we are all things to concealed carriers. We have content, news, legal reference material, shop, in person classes, events, mobile apps, podcasts, permit maps, business directories, and more. This traditionally led to a website with a complex navigation.
The old menu / site header:
The new menu / site header:
We hope taking all of the business of the old navigation and putting it into 6 core navigation “Hubs” will not only be easier on the eyes but make it easier to find whatever you are looking for. This should be especially true on a mobile device where previously navigating two different header menus many with sub-menus was a nightmare. More on these “Hubs” later on.
In addition to the general clean up and consolidation, we’ve also made serious upgrades to the search tool. Better and faster results and a toggle if you want to only search for specific types of content or products.
User Dashboard
Our customers have a lot of things they want to have access to on their account/dashboard page. The new user dashboard is a much easier to navigate page and right from that “home” dashboard page you can quickly see most of the information you were looking for anyway including info about your carry permits, your courses in progress, recent orders, payment methods, badges earned, and biz directory listings.
Additionally the pages to manage your Guardian Nation subscription have been modernized and cleaned up as well as the Guardian University related assets (more on that below). You can still manage your email subscriptions, permit expiration date tracker, gun contacts, and more.
The Hubs
Part of consolidating the hairy menu into a more concise list of options meant also finding an easier way for people to find and experience content and tools on the site. For example, previously you had to visit a different page on the site to see articles vs videos vs podcast episodes. Similarly, legal tools were spread out on the site. The new navigation basically establishes 6 core “hubs” which serve to support you and what you are looking to do.
The Shop Hub is is really just our online store. The least exciting, though look for new ways to filter and search for products including filters based on firearm caliber, optic footprint, and lumens and candelas.
The Learn Hub combines all our articles, videos, and podcasts into a single experience where you can browse all of those things together or you can filter just the type of content you are looking for. You can also browse by topic or category if you are looking to learn more about gear, medical, law, court decisions, DGUs, safety or whatever fits your needs.
Additionally effort and energy has been put into a Train Hub, Laws Hub, Resources Hub, and Help Hub. I’m sure over time each will continue to be tweaked or added to but we’re proud of these new destination pages on our site that will make it easier for concealed carriers to progress in their journey!
It is worth noting that each of those hubs does display a sub-menu specific to that hub that can further assist in navigating what you are looking for.
Guardian University
Perhaps the biggest change to our website is the new Guardian University experience. Historically the video experience on our website was… well not optimal. Part of the issue is in the existence of several different types of videos:
- Videos that are part of video courses
- Standalone public videos (anyone can watch)
- Standalone member-only videos
Considering how to make all that come together in a place where you can find a video on the topic you are studying and to make that modern, fast, and easy was a big wall to climb.
You can navigate to Guardian University from the Learn Hub or by going directly to ConcealedCarry.com/videos
The Guardian University experience feels almost like you have left our website and that is intentional in order to optimize the experience. Features include:
- Optimized for mobile phones
- Easy to scroll and view available videos by topic
- If logged in any user can “bookmark” a video, adding it to their own list
- Courses are included at the top for easy access
- The top menu will also make it easy to find courses, shows & topics, member-only videos, and “my list”
And here is a big hidden value… we’ve made agreements with some other trusted content creators to start adding their content to Guardian University in addition to our own. Click that “Shows & Topics” link and take a look 🙂
Legal Summaries & Reciprocity Map
One of the most popular parts of our website is the legal section. While I already mentioned the new and updated “Law Hub” I want to call out two specific tools within that hub that have been upgraded.
First, is our updated permit map. We were among the first websites on the internet to provide a permit map generator tool and now I’m glad to say there are a lot of other sites that have also provided similar tools. We’ve updated ours as well to add the dimension of Constitutional Carry to the map. The below map for example, which is for a Colorado resident permit reflects 3 colors instead of our traditional 2.
Green still represents states that honor your permit, red for states that don’t, and now yellow which shows states that do NOT honor your permit but do have permitless carry laws.
Next are the new State Legal Summaries. Easier to read, with a few critical highlights called out, a new map, and news stories relevant to that state. All in all a great place to stay up to date on what is going on in your state or a state you are traveling to.
Business Directory
From the Resources Hub you can find our business directory which has been helping gun owners since 2015. The new and updated business directory makes it easier to filter for the type of business you are looking for: Firearm Stores, Shooting Ranges, Firearm Trainers, Gunsmiths, etc.
Additionally, you can rate and review gun-related businesses in your area and if you are in the industry you can list/claim your business at no cost.
Don’t forget you can also toggle in the directory to find/search for gun free zones near you.
Any businesses you add will be visible on your user dashboard for easy future reference.
In Summary
Hopefully this was easier and less painful than watching a video and I hope you will take advantage of the various tools that we spend time and money making available to support your concealed carry lifestyle. We welcome your feedback in the comments below or via our contact form which you can find in the Help Hub!
