IAPS Conference 2015
We’ve worked with a large number of schools over the years, and though the education sector represents a relatively small niche in terms of our clients, it’s a great sector to work in! We were lucky enough to be invited to exhibit at this year’s IAPS Annual Conference. This is an event attended by in excess of over 400 heads and senior leaders, who come together to share ideas and attend a series of presentations and workshops. The event is supported by exhibitors who sponsor the function – and that’s where we got the chance to get involved!
We had many fascinating conversations over the course of the three day conference, and Doug, James and I all really enjoyed meeting so many heads. The schools represented were very diverse in their character, but, interestingly, there were a number of key themes that became clear.
Issues with updating – many of the people we spoke to were having issues with keeping their sites up-to-date. It seems even with the proliferation of easy content management systems, there are still sites that are really tricky to work with. And, worse than that, many schools remarked on a lack of support when they were experiencing issues.
Site not reflecting the school – it’s always amazed me that web agencies will undertake projects for schools they haven’t even visited. I’ve been to a huge number of schools, and no school is the same. Only by visiting and seeing for yourself can you truly grasp what makes a school different – in order to convey that to potential parents.
The challenges of many audiences – a couple of interesting issues arose around audiences, which is always an interesting one in the education sector. It’s often far more complex than the corporate world, as not only are you having to market your school to potential parents, you’re also needing to continue to please and provide information to current parents. Another interesting challenge was that of junior schools tied to senior schools, where the senior school drove the marketing and website initiatives. In many cases, the objectives of the two units were very different, but they were attempting to service them with a single website. Tricky, no?
Quality or quantity – finally, a key theme was that of quality over quantity. Many people commented on that fact that they’d enjoyed success in paring down the amount of content on their sites, focussing on delivering key messages and encouraging prospective parents to visit, rather than answering every question possible via the website. An interesting idea, I think, and one that I believe is becoming increasingly popular.
So – I think that gives a flavour of the conference and the sort of conversations we had. What do you think? Are these issues common across sectors? And how have you sought to address them in what you’re doing online? I’d love to hear your thoughts – Tweet us @larrytechuk or drop us a comment on Facebook.
Refreshing your school’s website?
If you’re looking to refresh and update your school’s website, we would be delighted to come and visit you to see what your school’s all about and discuss ideas. Just visit larrytech.com/schools to find out more.
