The Brief
The existing LYIT site was not attracting prospective students and in no way showcased the facilities and broad range of academic and social opportunities available at LYIT. The site did not reflect the modernity and size of the campus, instead giving the impression of a small town, second rate facility.
The site also completely lacked a marketing message, vital in today’s market where many 3rd level institutions are competing for Irish and international student attendance. It was uninspiring, wordy and dated. There were no clear channels of communication and neither students nor staff were using or updating the content.
There was also a real lack of support information on extracurricular activities, facilities, information on Letterkenny itself and the potential for career opportunities after graduation.
The Process
We held a series of discussions with various representative groups from LYIT to identify the main issues with their existing site.
From this we established that all of the user groups found the site confusing to use and as such were not utilising or updating the content.
Through intensive research of Irish and international competitors, we discovered that the level of site provided in general was sub-par and that the LYIT site fell into the lower levels of this scale in regards to information provision, sales and marketing focus, clarity and responsiveness.
The Result
We defined the user groups into distinct categories and tailored the content provision directly to their requirements. Now any user visiting the LYIT site has a clear path to the appropriate content.
We also developed sections for Prospective Parents as it became clear that they were a huge influence on deciding which 3rd level institution their children would attend. We also suggested the inclusiveness of the Alumni and Business partners to further establish the benefits of selecting LYIT and the possibilities for employment, internships and career development following graduation.
The site design reflects the modernity of the campus and despite hosting a vast amount of information, manages to clearly display the information without seeming cluttered or overwhelming. The sectioning of the content into the various user groups ensures that there is no confusion as to where the user is to find their required information.
We also introduced a marketing element through tone and use of imagery and utilised student stories and experiences to further promote LYIT as a first rate 3rd level choice for Irish and international students.
