McMurry University in Abilene, Texas, serves more than 4,000 students, many of whom choose the school because it offers an affordable, accessible path to higher education. But their 3,000-page website told a different accessibility story.
Web Manager Abe Salazar knew things needed improvement, but without a clear picture of what was broken, he was essentially managing in the dark.
Silktide changed that. And in the process, tripled their content quality score.
About McMurry University
McMurry is the smallest of three universities in Abilene, with 4,136 enrolled students and roughly 400 employees. Their mission focuses on students who want a college education but may not have the financial means for higher-priced institutions.
Abe manages the entire main website plus their digital alumni magazine, The Messenger, which transitioned from print to online three years ago.
The Challenge
Before Silktide, Abe was essentially winging it.
He had Yoast for SEO, but no way to see the bigger picture: no visibility into broken links, accessibility issues, spelling errors, or oversized images. And with multiple contributors publishing content, problems could pile up fast.
One of the biggest surprises? Image sizes.
“Some of them were like 20 megs and I had no clue,” Abe said. His CMS didn’t show file sizes, so enormous images were slowing the site down without anyone realizing it.
And the issues didn’t stop there:
- Broken links scattered across thousands of pages
- Spelling errors in copy-pasted content
- ADA compliance requirements leadership was now asking about
- No practical way to review 3,000+ pages manually
Abe needed visibility, guidance, and a way to fix issues efficiently – without more staff.
The Solution
When Silktide reached out, McMurry was initially searching for ADA support, but quickly realized the platform did far more.
The turning point was the trial. “In those 300 pages we were allowed to view, it was just eye-opening,” Abe said.
Silktide gave him, for the first time, a complete, actionable picture of what needed to be fixed. And the CMS integration meant he could jump directly to the problem—no manual hunting required.
The pricing worked with McMurry’s budget, too – something that mattered for a university focused on accessibility in every sense. Silktide’s sales team worked with them to make it possible.
Abe started with content quality, which had scored a 33 out of 100.
He focused on the things students and families would notice:
- Spellings
- Broken links
- Grammar
- Oversized images (which Silktide not only flagged but automatically compressed)
Silktide checks the site every five days, so Abe now logs in about three times a week to catch issues as they appear.
“I’m not going to be able to go through 3,000 pages and try and find a broken link,” he said. “Silktide is there to have your back.”
The Outcome
McMurry’s content score jumped from 33 to 90 – a massive improvement without adding staff, budget, or complexity.
But the bigger win was the shift from reactive chaos to proactive control.
Abe didn’t need to be a technical expert. “I know enough to be dangerous, but I don’t know everything,” he said. “With Silktide, it does that for me. It makes it easy for the person managing the website to go in there and fix problems.”
He now has:
- Full visibility into issues across thousands of pages
- A faster, simpler workflow
- Confidence that new issues won’t slip through the cracks
- Leadership support to explore more of Silktide’s functionality, including marketing analytics
What’s Next?
McMurry plans to expand their monitored page count over time as budget allows. For now, Abe’s focused on maintaining quality, continuing accessibility improvements, and using Silktide to stay ahead of issues rather than reacting to them months too late.
The difference is simple: He finally knows exactly what needs fixing and has a straightforward way to fix it.