School Webmasters

Creating a professional school Web site is a big step in the right direction for school districts in today’s day and age. However, if you spend the time, effort, and budget to create a great site, you need to use it frequently to get the most bang for your buck.

School Webmasters will work with you to ensure your site is up-to-date and professional in appearance, which will help create an image that your customers (parents, students, potential and current employees, and community members) will return to often. But you must get the word out about your site to ensure they visit in the first place.

You see one of your most powerful and technologically-savvy consumers every day—the students in your schools! Include information that is interesting and student-friendly and you’ll guarantee repeat visitors. Plus, if your students see themselves and events they are excited about on your school’s Web site, they are sure to tell their parents.

To promote your site to parents and community members, they must first be aware that the site is available to them. Many schools are moving to online grade books and report cards. Let parents know that this information is available to them and how to access their child’s grades. Include your Web address on all information students take home and require that teachers keep current class Web sites.

Be sure to add information about upcoming events and important dates to your calendar and news pages, in addition to any other promotional sources you use. The information is timelier on your Web site so eventually, that is where parents and community members will go first.

Make sure the department of education in your state has your Web address on file. Sites are often linked to from the state department’s school lists and are included in school and district report cards. For more information, visit the U.S. Department of Education , then choose your state from the State Information  link.

Several sites provide profiles of schools from all over the country, which consumers often use when considering relocation. GreatSchools (www.greatschools.net ) and School Match  are two such sites. By including your Web site on your school’s profile, you can tout your neighborhood as one to move to.

Most importantly, keep your school or district Web site up-to-date with useful information and make it easy to navigate. Once your consumer visits your site, you want to encourage repeat visitors. Do this by updating information often and taking out-of-date information off the site quickly. School Webmasters will help you with this difficult task, but you are the expert in your school or district. Keep us posted on what your school or district is doing and we can work together to make the most of your Web resources.