The university website – a window of opportunity

In the digital age, it’s unlikely that any retailer would question the importance of a website. With 40 percent of internet users making purchases online, the ability for 24/7 transactions is too good an opportunity for many to miss.But more than this, websites give retailers a constant presence, providing a continually-lit shop window in a global market. Whilst this undoubtedly allows organisations to reach huge numbers of potential customers, the requirement to set out your stall in a way that’s both inviting and appealing, is paramount across many industries, and never more so has this been the case for education providers.Although the requirement for a website was never in doubt, news that over 50 percent of international students rely solely on a university’s website as a means of seeking information and applying for a course emphasises its importance, granting institutions an unambiguous instruction to reassess their window displays – does it clearly convey what’s on offer and is it sufficiently enticing? Whilst this all sounds logical and simple in theory, it’s harder to achieve in practice. UniQuest make some broad suggestions for making websites more internationally-friendly but these are unlikely to provide a wow factor on their own. In a crowded market, your shop window must stand out and be refreshingly original.