Introduction
Introductory Statements
This is a report that seeks to make recommendation relating to a website. The report will consider Purdue University. In this light, Purdue University Student Association has designed a website. The website has been designed to meet the demands of student organization.
However, the present website is unsatisfactory. Therefore, the student body has approached the InterMedia Company for a recommendation report. I will analyze the current website like a research analyst. Also, I will provide the recommendations based on this analysis.
Deficiencies
The analysis shows that the website meets the basic requirements. It provides the necessary information about the association. However, the information is insufficient when delivering the messages. The website is, therefore, simple according to this analysis. It suggests that the website lacks essential component. First, the navigation structure is poor.
It does not have graphics portraying the essential activities of the student’s organization. In fact, a visitor cannot understand the primary concerns of the website at a glance. This implies that users have to read through all available information. As a result, users are discouraged to leave the website.
For example, the website could have included a picture of graduating students. As a result, the user will relate the website with a learning institution. This eliminates the need of reading other descriptions.
Secondly, the analysis show that the website is time consuming. In this website, a user is needed to log in before using the site. As a result, the designer has on provided a link for log in the site. In this case, the user must sign up to the site in order to obtain the log in details.
However, the site does not provide a link for signing up in the account. Instead, they have provided a registration email. This implies that the user must register using the email before using the site. As a result, the process becomes tiresome and time consuming.
In addition, the site does not capture the attention of users. This is because of the cold and unattractive colors used. They have combined the yellow and black colors that are not catchy In fact, they cannot deviate the interest of a user. On the contrary, a combined deep purple and red colors would be better than this combination. For example, the Multimedia University of Kenya has used the purple and red colors.
This makes the website capture the interest of users. Therefore, visitors are motivated to enjoy browsing through this website. It encourages them to visit the website severally. This analysis concludes that the main challenge for the website is not the content. Instead, design is the most challenging aspect that requires attention.
Importance of Redesign
This analysis shows that the organization should consider redesigning their website. The rationale is based on the deficiencies and inconveniences on the current website. First, redesigning will ensure that the website is self-descriptive. It will ensure that the user can understand the concern of the website at a glance. Also, this will capture the interest of the users and encourage them to learn.
It will improve the navigation structure of the website (Richter 453). Also, it will ensure that the user does not struggle while reading the written descriptions. As a result, the users can gather a lot of information comfortably. Designation of the website will ensure that the users save time. Consequently, the new design will ensure that the website does not rely on other processes.
For example, the new design will include the link for signing up into the site. This ensures that the user does not have to sign up using the email address. As a result, it makes the website friendlier than the current site. The new design will aim at revising the combination of colors.
The new website will include colors that attract the users and maintain their interest. As a result, the website will be attractive and presentable to the visitor. In addition, the users will be visiting the website periodically. This will ensure that the website advertises the university in a satisfactorily manner.
Benefits of a Good Website
A website should be designed with diligence and creativity. This is because it plays essential roles in the company. First, a website is referred to as a virtual noticeboard. This implies that a website provides necessary information for the users. Therefore, a well-designed website provides all information to the users. Therefore, a website enables the company to run smoothly and efficiently (Brock 576).
The users are updated on the current issues revolving around the institution. This depicts their work in accordance to the company’s requirements. For example, learning institutions announce their exam timetables and policies through website. They update their students about the fee policy through the websites. Therefore, the students comply in time and reduce inconveniences.
Secondly, a well-designed website advertise the institution in the market. It attracts the attention of the users and develops their curiosity. Consequently, they understand the institution (Boot 236). This increases popularity of the institution in the market. For example, Purdue University Student Organization needs a website to encourage students in joining their university.
Lastly, a website is a figure of accountability. It enables the management to announce their procurement procedures and jobs. This ensures that the management is not condemned of corruption. In fact, a modern website allows applicant to apply for jobs online. This makes the process efficient and accountable owing to transparency.
Alternatives
New Website Outlook
The outlook of the current website will change in various ways. In this case, the name of the university will be written at the top. It will be written in purple color. The logo will be attached on the left side of the name. The school motto should be located below the name. The mission and vision of the university will be appearing in form of slideshow. On the top right corner, the designer will include the links for logging into the account.
A link for registration will be included to the links section. The entire right side will be filled with photos. These photos will include the students’ governing council. One of the pictures will show students graduating for degree courses. This photo will enable the users to understand the primary concern of the website. The third photo will include clubs and sports. This will show the activities of the students in the organization.
On the top side of the pictures, the designer will provide a description of each picture. This description will include the main features of the picture. For example, the first description will describe the titles of various student leaders. The second description might include the courses offered in the university.
Lastly, the interface of the website will have slideshows. These slides will contain photos of various activities that took place previously. In addition, they will include various facilities that are found in the university. This will ensure that the users understand much about the organization without clicking on the links.
Web Utilization
The website should be utilized to the maximum. In this light, the new website will have a section of news. This section will include the current events of the student. The updates will be removed after their deadlines pass. This ensures that all information in this section is not outdated. Therefore, the users will not scroll over big columns of irrelevant information.
Secondly, the website will be used for advertisement. In this case, the website will have a section explaining about the university. This section will contain the history, contact information and academic services. Therefore, the users can get all information about the services that are offered by the organization. In addition, it will contain the description of finances involved in the organization.
This includes fees, contributions and scholarship awards. The website will allow incorporation of comments and feedback. In this case, the students will be allowed to comments on the news and policies of the organization. In addition, they will be allowed to give their contributions.
In this case, the website will be interactive. It will be used to allow sharing of ideas and encourage improvement of the organization. Therefore, the site will not serve as a mere flyer instead of a crucial facility.
Integration of Social Media
Social media has been used widely. The sites of social media include Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Google Plus among others. The company can choose to integrate their current website with the social media. However, there are various steps involved in the integration. First, the university will choose the sites to consider for integration. In this case, the analysis suggests that they should not consider a single site.
Instead, they should integrate Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Google Plus. This will ensure that they capture a large number of users to their websites (Qualman 113). Otherwise, considering a single site will capture a few people. Secondly, they should open accounts with the social media to sponsor their websites. This sponsorship allows developers to advertise the accounts on the social media.
As a result, the users will have access to the website. For example, they can open a page on Facebook and sponsor its advertisement. This will ensure that the developers allow a page to appear on the users’ accounts. When a person likes the page, it will appear on his friends account.
This process continues and attracts a lot of Facebook users into the website (Dunay and Krueger 143). As a result, there is a high possibility of advertising the organization. In this light, people interact and share on that page conveniently.
Benefit of Social Media
The social media are very efficient in the modern world. In this case, the young people have been addicted to the social media. Consequently, they preserve time to visit social sites severally. In fact, some students keep their accounts online for a whole day.
As a result, the organization can capture a large number of users. In addition, the social media is interactive. In this case, they allow users to share ideas. This allows users to raise complains and complements. In addition, they can give relevant contributions to the involved parties. As a result, the organization will have efficient and effective system owing to the social media.
Cost Breakdown
Social Media
This report has recommended that the university should integrate Facebook, Twitter, You Tube and Google Plus. As a result, it will meet the costs of the four social media sites. This will include the initial cost involving the setup. Also, they will incur the advertisement setup. The setup will ensure that the developers advertise their accounts and pages. Lastly, they have to pay the caretakers and developers as shown in the following list.
Website Redesign Cost
There is a cost that covers the owners of the website. In this case, the owner must pay for web design and webhosting. Therefore, the webhosts will replace the account managers. The webhosts charge little funds to cater for their participation. In fact, some webhosts do no charge anything. However, the charged host is more credible than the free webhosting.
Conclusion
Advertisement should be cost effective. Institutions and companies should adopt the systems that are pointed out in this report. However, they should ensure that the costs of the advertisements are not high. In this light, a costly system will prevent profit making. It will bring loss to the company (Molich 456). As a result, it will become a liability rather than an asset.
In this light, it will not fulfill its collective role. Therefore, this report seeks to focus on the cost of the two choices. The analysis shows that the cost of implementing the social media is high when compared to redesigning the website.
Therefore, it recommends Purdue University student organization to consider redesigning their website. This will facilitate saving of the resources. In addition, it will have the same impact as the social media.
Works Cited
Boot, Joke van. Webdesign. Soest: Sybex, 2000. Print.
Brock, Chris. Inspiring creative Webdesign: past, present, future. Switzerland: AVA: 2002. Print.
Dunay, Paul, and Richard Krueger. Facebook advertising for dummies. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley Pub. , 2011. Print.
Molich, R. Brugervenligt webdesign. Kbh: Ingeniaren Bager, 2003. Print.
Qualman, Erik. Socialnomics: how social media transforms the way we live and do business. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley, 2009. Print.
Richter, Marion. Webdesign. Düsseldorf: Data-Becker, 2003. Print.