Sandstorm's Speaking at DrupalCon 2026
SUMMARY
We’re excited to present four sessions at DrupalCon 2026 in Chicago. You can also find us at Booth #118 in the exhibitor hall. Stop by for our "Snackstorm", say hello, and enter our giveaway.
There are four opportunities to hear your favorite Sandstormers speak:
(1) Steal This Playbook: UX Lessons From Nonprofit Websites
(2) Designing for Depth: Information Architecture Strategies in Large Drupal Sites
(3) From Search Bots to Chatbots: Decoding User Expectations for AI Chat
(4) Accessible by Design: Building Healthcare Experiences That Work for Everyone (and AI) as part of the Healthcare Summit (pre-registration required)
Bonus round: Join Alma for Trivia Night!
Let's connect at DrupalCon 2026
Date: Wednesday, March 25, 2026
Time: 9:00 am to 9:50 am
Room: Williford C (3rd Floor)
Track: User Experience, Accessibility & Design
Great non-profit websites do more than deliver content, they create connection. They guide users, inspire engagement and donations, and make complex organizations feel human. In this session, we’ll break down real-world examples of top non-profit websites and show how their UX strategies translate into Drupal builds and performant experiences. From navigation patterns to content architecture to design choices, you’ll leave with an actionable playbook of practical ideas ready to apply to your next Drupal project.
Date: Wednesday, March 25, 2026
Time: 1:30 pm to 2:20 pm
Room: Williford C (3rd Floor)
Track: User Experience, Accessibility & Design
When your Drupal site spans thousands of pages, good content structure isn’t just helpful, it’s essential. This 30-minute session will share practical strategies for managing large-scale Drupal sites through user-centered information architecture (IA) and smart use of Drupal’s tools.
You’ll see how user research informed taxonomy design and content prioritization, how to build navigation patterns that help users explore deep content archives, and which Drupal features enable scalable, flexible, and future-friendly IA structures. Whether you’re redesigning a large site or maintaining a complex one, this session will give you actionable approaches to architect smarter, faster, and more intuitive Drupal experiences.
Date: Wednesday, March 25, 2026
Time: 3:00 pm to 3:50 pm
Room: Williford C (3rd Floor)
Track: User Experience, Accessibility & Design
Chat bubbles are everywhere, but are they actually working for users? Sandstorm® conducted usability studies with actual users to uncover what people really want when interacting with AI-driven tools. We tested transactional bots, generative AI, hybrid models, and domain-specific chat experiences to see where they succeed, where they fall short, and how they compare to traditional search.
In this session, we will share 5 key findings from our research, including where users instinctively go for support, how they react when AI is in play, and what kinds of experiences foster trust instead of frustration. Attendees will walk away with a practical decision framework for when to use search, chat, or both to create more intuitive and effective Drupal experiences.
Accessible by Design: Building Healthcare Experiences That Work for Everyone (and AI)
Date: Monday, March 23, 2025
Time: 9:00 am
Location: Salon A-2 (LL)
NOTE: This is part of the Healthcare Summit which requires an add-on ticket.
Healthcare digital experiences must serve a wide range of users, across ages, abilities, devices, and contexts, while also being discoverable in an increasingly AI-driven search landscape. In this session, we’ll explore how accessibility-first design principles improve usability for all patients.
Using older adults as a real-world stress test, we’ll show how small design and content decisions can significantly reduce friction, improve SEO performance, and increase visibility in AI-powered discovery tools. Attendees will learn practical, hands-on techniques for aligning accessibility, SEO, and Artificial Intelligence Optimization (AIO) to create healthcare experiences that are clearer, more inclusive, and easier to find.
Trivia Night
Date: Thursday, 26 March 26
Time: 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Location: Weather Mark Tavern (1503 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60605)
DrupalCon Chicago Trivia Night will be held on Thursday, March 26 from 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm at the Weather Mark Tavern. We’ll have light snacks and drink tickets available. The venue also has a full food menu and you’re welcome to order food during the event.
Teams should be up to 5 people. We expect the questions to start around 6:30 pm and go for around 2 hours, with lots of time for breaks and socializing. Thanks to our generous sponsors, we’ll have awesome prizes for the winners!
The Weather Mark is wheelchair accessible and has accessible restrooms. It’s accessible via multiple CTA busses or is about a 17 minute walk (0.7 miles) from the Hilton. Get directions to the Weather Mark.
Sandstorm is a proud Drupal Certified Partner and sponsor of DrupalCon 2026
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