7 Critical Features a Website Must Have to Attract Students

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Understanding your target audience is one of the fundamentals when it comes to business success. This applies to product design, services, marketing, and online presence. As more people are trying to limit their screen time, it becomes harder to attract new visitors to companies and individuals.

In this article, you’ll find the essential website features for those who have students as their target audience.

Internet Search Behavior of Students

According to the 2020 study called “How Do University Students’ Web Search Behavior, Website Characteristics, and the Interaction of Both Influence Students’ Critical Online Reasoning?”, there are several trends in students’ internet behavior, namely:

● The most common path to a website is through a search engine;
● Students assess information on the page right away;
● Two main factors of evaluation are the website itself (how it looks) and the content;
● The credibility of sources for content is also essential.

Also, the behavior online depends on the particular needs and search intent. Those will differ for a student that searches for “budget-friendly power banks” and for students that looks for “credible write my research papers service.” The first one looks for product reviews and recommendations, and the second one looks for professional academic writing services.

In this case, students expect to find a credible provider with experienced writers that can help with any type of college paper. So the main page layout and content should be designed accordingly. A professional service might feature testimonials, reviews, credentials, and exact services. This helps establish the reliability of the service and make a decision to order it. That’s why convenient feedback and contact functions are critical as well.

In terms of evaluation of the quality and credibility of a website, students often look for:

● Extensive coverage of the topic;
● Decent amount of references sources;
● Style and narration of the content;
● An objective point of view;
● The intuitive design of the page.

Depending on the type of website, different features might have more or less importance when it comes to attracting students. However, there are some fundamentals that every successful platform should have.

Critical Website Features

Navigation

According to Clutch.co study, easy navigation is the most useful website feature. If the page is easy to navigate, people can easily find what they are looking for and waste no time. This includes a clear structure and comprehensive page layout.

For example, Amazon is considered one of the best when it comes to easy navigation. One of the effective features is the sidebar menu. When it is open, the rest of the page is darkened. So a user can focus on the menu categories.

Navigation is a crucial part of designing a website with smooth UI/UX. It needs to be intuitive and user-friendly.

Attractive Appearance

The next essential factor is how the site looks. 83% of Clutch.co’s respondents claim that beautiful websites are useful. This shows that users make the connection between how the page looks and what it offers.

If the design is outdated or dull, people might not find it appealing. Students might close the page pretty fast. The logical connection is that if the site’s appearance hasn’t been updated in years, the content is probably irrelevant too.

However, it is important to manage updates wisely and in correspondence with user experience. Do not go for changes for the sake of changes. Make sure the updates are usable and comfortable.

7 Critical Features a Website Must Have to Attract Students

Credible Content

The look of the page is the first thing a person sees. But after that, a user evaluates the content. 50% of people said that if the content is irrelevant, they will leave the page immediately. This means that to be successful, any website needs to have a great content strategy. This includes:

● Regular posts. Blogs are still popular with a focus on long-form content;
● Relevant articles to the search intent and the main keywords;
● Smart usage of keywords – the long-tail ones are often easier to rank higher for;
● Quality over quantity approach might be the way to go for students as they are looking for comprehensive and full topic coverage;
● Credibility with references, sources, and factual data;
● Incorporation of different types of media – video, audio, and images.

With the use of modern technologies and digital marketing software, businesses can figure out what their audience is looking for in terms of topics and keywords.

Product Pictures and Descriptions

The studies show that visuals and descriptions are equally important. So if your site focuses on selling products, they need to be presented in both ways.

High-quality images need to show the product from all sides and perspectives. The description should include all the measures and essential information.

Also, a good design means enough white space. If the page is overcrowded, it looks bad and may overwhelm the user. The pictures should be large and aesthetically pleasing.

Mobile Interface

The majority of web searches come from mobile devices. So having a responsive design for smaller screens is a must-have.

UI/UX for mobile users should be as comfortable as the desktop one. This covers navigation, visuals, and speed performance.

For example, a mobile version of a site might use one image in a column instead of several. This offers smooth scrolling and a great look. The desktop version of the interface can use several rows or columns.

Another example is the placement of contact forms. It is better to have one for the mobile version, while the desktop interface can have several of them.

Social Media References

Another useful feature is social media extension. 67% of users find sites with such functionality useful. Also, users can repost and share content, which increases brand awareness and visibility, and serves as free promotion.

These links can be given on the main page or in the “About Us” section. If your platform has a blog, it is a great idea to place buttons for social media sharing at the end of the articles.

This boosts engagement and offers the opportunity to grow the audience on other platforms as well.

Overall, it gives users more choices when it comes to communication with a business or service provider. For many students, social media is one of the preferred ways to reach out.

Interaction

There are many ways an audience can interact with a site. The goal is for them to stay here longer and contact the business. This includes calls to action and an internal linking system. Also, one might add a feature to rate the article, leave a comment, or reach out via chatbot.

Ecommerce platforms might offer similar or relevant products for a user. Or they can showcase reviews and testimonials to prove credibility and quality.

The exact interaction methods depend on the goal of the site. But all of them are important to building a loyal audience.

In Summary

When it comes to building a successful website for students, one needs to consider both the website’s performance and content. The design, layout, and presentation are crucial for one to stay on the page. And the relevant content endorses the audience to interact with the page or reach out.

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