Your website is usually the place where a customer encounters your offer for the first time. Students go there to check prices of courses, the teachers, and subconsciously … your credibility. What a modern website of a language school should be like – one that not only looks good but also makes everyone feel welcome?

You probably want the customers visiting the website of your language school to perceive it as a professional, stable and trustworthy one. So to begin with, you should reflect on:

  • What is the purpose of the website? (is it supposed to generate new students, improve brand awareness)
  • Who is our recipient? (a website of a language school for children will look differently than a page of a school offering corporate courses)
  • What is your school’s visual identification? (think about what the website should be coherent with)
  • What do we offer? (what makes us stand out against competition – it is worthwhile to stress your own teaching methods)
  • What values does our school stand for? (what are its characteristic features)
  • What is our marketing/communication strategy? (uniform communication is crucial)

After an analysis of the above questions and creation of website’s concept, the time has come for the elements that will help you involve each customer.

1.Long page

Modern websites of language schools are presently designed as one-page. This means that entire content is placed on a single, long page, with subdivision into most important sections, e.g. offer, about us, methods, contact. A characteristic feature is absence of a scroll bar on the right side of the screen – navigation is done by scrolling the screen down or going to a selected block with the use of a menu.

Useful tips: Try to lend concise structure to your website and to divide the content into proper sections. Forego unnecessary tabs and links. Focus on helping customers to find their way through the page easily; otherwise they will feel you guide them all the time.

2.Big photos

Modern websites presently take advantage of the fact that graphics attract attention definitely much better than a long text. Interesting graphics extending across the entire screen, make a powerful visual impact (see the following example: Modern School), and an intriguing catchphrase encourages one to scroll down to learn more about the offer. Remember to choose a photo consistent with visual identification of your school.

Useful tips: More and more users view websites on various devices, so you have to take care of the responsiveness of images (meaning: they are displayed correctly). Also pay attention to resolution of photos – quality must not deteriorate depending on screen resolution.

3.Video as a background

Videos that are played back automatically are even more involving than big photos. You can easily tell the story of your school, boast of your offer or show the surroundings without posting redundant text. This is an excellent format to keep a customer for longer time, and consequently extending the time of interaction with your school. Because this solutions is rarely used by schools, it is worthwhile to think about it – video footage may help you stand out against the competition. See the following example of a Czech language school: CA Institute of Languages.

Useful tips: When choosing a video for your website, remember it should be matched to your target group (sex, age), be of good quality and not bore viewers by being too long. If you opt for a video available at YouTube, watch out for copyrights.

4.Flat design

Minimalism and simplicity rule In current trends. This is possible owing to so-called flat design. What does it mean? Graphic designers gave up on all elements that might distract the user: shading, reflections, mirror images, large number of colours and gradients. Your school’s website should be transparent and the content included on it should be legible for customers.

Useful tip: Whether you totally resigned from decorative elements or you added shading – make sure everything on your website is coherent and users understand what they are watching.

5.Gentle animations

Simple and light animations correspond to flat design of the entire page. Use them exclusively to highlight the most interesting pieces of information, e.g. the number of students, of class hours or an attractive course prise. Remember that animation should be a value added and not the main focus. Definitely keep moderation. See the for example:  YES Your English Start.

Useful tip: Try to avoid Flash animations because they are not supported by most browsers. Avoid heavyweight JavaScript for the benefit of animations in HTML5 and CSS3.

6.Unique typography

Most language schools use similar fonts, so this is one of the methods to stand out against the competition (a different font is used e.g. by Tete-a-Tete Language School). Additionally, by using various letter sizes you may lead visitors to proper parts of the page. But text’s legibility is paramount. Remember that font reflects the character of your language school; it can be funny or serious.

Useful tips: Regardless of which font you select, check if it is legitimate – whether you do not have to buy a licence for it. It is also important to choose a font supported by various browsers and computers.

Additionally, it is interesting to post a newsletter subscription form for those who want to receive information about promotions or new courses from you. It is worthwhile to think about short videos about your school or about posting recordings of classes, e.g. with children. Besides aforementioned elements, your language school’s website must include the indispensable ones.

The most important tip: Remember that just having a website is not enough. You need to measure its effectiveness (mainly with the use of Google Analytics).

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