The web design and user experience of a website are of extreme importance in consolidating digital marketing strategies.
Watch how someone moves around your school's site, and you can lift your visibility in the digital universe, as well as attracting more visitors and, so, capturing more leads for the increased conversions.
In today's article we talk about why web design and the user experience matter so much on a higher education site.
What is user experience?
It is a phrase you hear a lot now, above all among the people who do digital marketing and web design.
To contextualize, in the 90s, Donald Norman, at the time, vice president of Apple's advanced technology division, made the term “UX” famous. Word for word, it means user experience.
In other words, the experience given to the customer when using a brand's product, service or system. Currently, she represents the real brand experience with a consumer.
If you want to delve deeper into the topic, Don Norman explained what he thinks about the term “UX” at a conference on the topic in the United States.
In 2024, Don Norman launched the Don Norman Design Award and Summit (DNDA), an international program that promotes the development of humanity-centered design projects.
The event put weight on a way of designing that weighs more than what a user goes through. It weighs what an answer does to people and to the planet.
This plan reinforces the evolution of the UX concept towards a more comprehensive approach, known as "humanity-centered design."
The importance of web design
Fundamental part of extreme importance in educational marketing strategies, Web Design goes beyond making it easy to navigate a website, whether on a smartphone, tablet or desktop. The web design gives solutions linked to conversion of users into leads and so, into new registrations.
It is through him that the communication with consumers of the educational institution will be more objective, friendly and easily accessible. Anyone who thinks that web design involves just selecting fonts, colors and a beautiful layout is wrong.
In addition to the harmony of graphic elements that give good brand perception, web design is capable of bringing more leads thanks to good usability and conversion practices.
The ideal web design harmonizes creativity, intelligence and technology, considering that ranking, usability and visual identity are connected to reach the best results.
Caption: planning and design for a school site, built around what the visitor goes through.
How to build a successful website for your educational institution
Why do some schools keep putting work into the user experience? The reason is plain: increased conversions and better perception of the product or service offered.
Whether you are building a site or judging one you have, ask a few plain things. Is it worth the visit? Can you find what you came for? Is it simple to move around? And does it fit any screen?
In the year 2004, Peter Morville, who knows information architecture inside out, put out the main things that shape UX. Here is the well-known “User Experience hive”:
Legenda: the seven pillars of user experience. For a screen to be truly worth something it has to be useful, usable, wanted, easy to reach, worth trusting, easy to find, and worth the visit. Image source: semanticstudios.com
He found a way to put the many aims of usability and web design into one picture. Here it is in short, so your school can be sure its site works:
- UTILITY: find creative and innovative solutions that are useful to the user; a website with purpose;
- USABILITY: Usability goes beyond the ease of navigating an interface.
- DESIRE: efficiency and branding must be in balance.
- FINDABILITY: the distribution planning of the website's content in each section must be strategic so that the user can easily find the information;
- ACCESSIBILITY: ensure that users with vision, hearing or learning problems have the same navigation as others;
- CREDIBILITY: give real information suitable for the purpose of the service or product;
- VALUE: add value to the user, satisfying their needs.
Since its introduction in 2004, Peter Morville’s UX Honeycomb model has remained a go-to reference for design and user experience professionals.
Recently, the framework has been adapted by several institutions for specific contexts, such as online learning.
or example, the University of Waterloo built the UXDL Honeycomb, a version of the model applied to online course design, emphasizing the creation of valuable, student-centered learning experiences.
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How to transform your institution’s website with strategic UX and web design
What is UX and why does it matter for educational institutions?
UX (user experience) reflects how users interact with your site. When well set up, it enhances navigation, strengthens brand perception, and increases the likelihood of turning visitors into students.
How does web design help attract and convert students?
Good web design puts the content in order, makes the site easy to use, and marks it as yours. It walks a visitor through without a snag, which brings more leads and drives enrollment.
What pillars support a strong user experience on education websites?
The seven UX pillars: useful, usable, wanted, easy to find, easy to reach, worth trusting, and worth the visit. They guide the building of screens made for people, tuned to perform and to convert.
How can a site be made more accessible for diverse audiences?
Use enough contrast, put alt text on your images, keep the paths simple, and build parts a screen reader can follow. That way nobody is shut out, whatever their sight, hearing, or mind.
What current practices improve digital experience in education websites?
The key trends: a site that fits any screen, reads on how people behave, and things a visitor can play with. Each one makes the site easier to move around, pulls people in, and converts more of them.
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