On Monday, Feb. 16 anyone who visited the Seton Hill University (SHU) website would have not been able to ignore the completely different site. Some may be wondering what is behind the newly designed website and we have the answers. The initiative for the new site started in March of 2015 according to Becky Bulebosh, director of marketing at SHU.
“We needed to create a site that would focus on enrollment and allowing prospective students to have the opportunity to explore what our campus and community are about,” Bulebosh said.
“Based on research with prospective students, current students, parents and more, we found that showing and telling students what the outcomes of their education will be is very important,” Bulebosh said.
For this reason, the site offers more stories and news about what graduates are up to in their careers and communities, reflecting how Seton Hill has helped to guide them in that direction. The site also consists of more photos, photo galleries, stories, fast facts and overall information about the school.
Bulebosh explained that the site needed an overall content and process change for various reasons. “The new website features a new, fully responsive design, user experience and content strategy focused on student enrollment and the identity pillars of Seton Hill,” she said.
“Our Google analytics statistics were showing that 50-60% of our site visits were happening on mobile and other device, other than a laptop or desktop,” Bulebosh said. The new site is more responsive to mobile devices.
Bulebosh explained that in the past the content management system (CMS), which is a computer application that allows publishing, editing, modifying, organizing, deleting and maintaining content from a central interface, was not “very reliable,” and “made simple site edits a complicated process.” The new CMS offers a more approachable system.
Bulebosh also added, “our site was not ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliant, so we needed to ensure that we have a site that was equally usable to everyone.”
The site has also become more “search” friendly, in which Bulebosh said, “all of the pages in the site need to present the most relevant information first and a path and options as to where you would like them to go next as part of their experience on the site.”
Bulebosh referred to something Elizabeth Ann Seton once said; “I would wish to fit you for that world in which you are destined to live.”
This strongly reflects the goal of the website. “The objective of the site is to show prospective students and families a balance of before and after and where their college education and experience can take them,” said Bulebosh.
Aside from all of the fancy words and technicalities, the new website offers a fresh and transformed experience for every user. Visit www.setonhill.edu and check it out for yourself.
Published By: Laramie Cowan