Rebrand of the Benedict College web site. Click the images below to see a full size preview of the rebranded site along with the existing site.

After

Design One
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Design Two
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Our Approach

The Benedict College website is very informative and rich with content. In our experience, we find that such web sites must adequately manage its white space while maintaining a consistent look and feel. Below we have listed those items we think can be improved along with our approach for addressing those items.

Current Site

Canvas

The canvas for the existing web site is too small which makes it difficult to organize the content effectively. In addition, we believe that the Benedict College brand can be better represented so that it truly reflects the school's mission and the eduction programs offered.

Header

The testimonial provided in the header is hard to read and therfore ineffective.

Main content

The layout for the home page is a little unbalanced. For this reason, it is difficult to optimize the user experience. Furthermore, there are three items that immediately stand out. First, the slide show on the home page is too small to properly give prospective students a true idea of the campus and student experiences. Second, search is provided simply as the last link on the left side which makes it almost unnoticeable. Search should be much more prominent as the goal ought to be for visitors to easily find information and spend as much time on the site as possible. And third, the main navigation should be more meaningful and more effectively direct the visitor through the website.

Footer

The purpose of a footer is to signal to the user that they have reached the bottom of the page's content. The existing footer ought to be improved in order fulfill this purpose.

Design One

Canvas

We widened the canvas and centered the content. We also improved the visibility of the site by using a white background with light shades of color.

Header

Made the header much more pronounced by adding color, the school's logo and navigational links. We also added search to the header so users are more easily able to find information.

Banner

We included a banner in order to provide a visual presentation of the college. This will entice prospective students to find out more about the school.

Main content

We modified the structure of the main content in order to better display information. We revised the left menu and navigation so that information is more accessible. In addition, we added a rollover effect in the left sidebar to highlight links and selected sections.

Footer

The new footer is more visually appealing and can be used to display more information and/or navigational links.

Design Two

Canvas

We widened the canvas and incorporated a textured background to make the site stand out even more. This design is much different from the existing site and represents a more drastic rebrand of the site.

Header

Header utilizes the school's logo with a different color scheme that makes the logo stand out. This header also includes a search bar that makes finding information easier as well as a very clearly defined site navigation.

Banner

We included an even larger banner that can be used to cycle through images that showcase the college.

Main content

The structure of the content on this design is divided into more usable sections. In addition, a secondary navigation is provided that would allow the college to group main areas and tailor information more specifically. Another image viewer is provided along with more clearly marked sections that describe the many facets of the school.

Footer

The footer simply follows the new theme and allows for more navigational links and/or site map to be added.

This is just the beginning

These are just a couple concepts that we created without the benefit of the school's input. It is our hope that what we have presented reflects our attention to detail and willingness to provide an optimum user experience. If we were working directly with you, this would be the first iteration and we would be seeking your feedback so that we could be sure that the site adequately represents the school's values and ideas.

We look forward to continuing this project soon.