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Based on what we have discussed and what I have learned about visuals in relation to web content there are three things that I would change about the St Clair College website to improve/enhance the website to effectively market to potential incoming students.

Use authentic images: My first recommendation of what I would propose to St Clair College to improve/enhance the website for potential students is to use authentic images. After looking through the St Clair website I felt that it was lacking relevant images that showcase the college, the students, the programs and relevant images that reflect the experiences of what it is like going to St Clair College. Instead of using authentic images the college has used mostly low quality stock images and I find that there is just an overall lack of visuals on the website home page. 

The reason I would propose this to St Clair College is that by using authentic images they would be able to showcase the college in a positive light and use visuals that represent a fun campus and student life. A specific element of visuals that I would use to market to potential incoming students is to capture images of the campus and events such as sporting events. In one of our class discussions we talked about how students look for school spirit when choosing post-secondary and we went on to discuss how we didn’t understand why the college doesn’t highlight major events on the website and major wins like the men’s basketball team being the OCCA champions. The school spirit at the basketball games is something that I think would be very beneficial to be captured and displayed on the website that would effectively market to potential students. 

Some other forms of authentic images that I feel would effectively market to potential students are imagery provided by students to showcase the college from their perspective and images that highlight and resonate with the interests of potential students such as career-focused images or campus events.

Make the website more engaging: The second recommendation I have based on the college’s website in relation to visuals is that I would propose to the college to make the website more engaging to potential incoming students. From looking at the St Clair website it is not very visually captivating and has no visual elements that are immediately engaging to potential incoming students which is especially important because of the short attention span that people have when browsing the internet. The way that St Clair College could make its website more engaging to potential incoming students is by considering incorporating interactive elements within the website, specifically the landing page such as videos, infographics and animations. 

The main reason why I think incorporating engaging elements such as the ones I have mentioned is because based on what we have learned about visuals, viewers spend 100% more time on pages with visual content. Using engaging content on the website in the form of videos, infographics and animations is a very beneficial way of splitting up content and blocks of text to create a more visually engaging website. 

The type of content that could be shown using these elements that would appeal to potential students are things such as college campuses and facilities, student life, and activities that would give incoming students different ways to see the college other than just images. Also adding videos on the landing page will increase average page conversion rates by 86%. Overall by making the St Clair College website more engaging through the use of videos, infographics and animations they will be able to capture the attention of potential students and encourage them to take action or explore the site further. 

Add student experience: The final recommendation of what I would propose to St Clair College to improve/enhance the website for potential students is to add student experience to the website. Something that potential students are looking for especially when looking for a college is the opportunities that programs will provide for them and help them find their future careers. Showing proof of potential students and what they have accomplished is something that incoming students are likely going to be intrigued by because it helps build trust and credibility. 

Because visuals are so important to a website my recommendation would be to add different visual elements to the program page such as student success stories, testimonials and charts or graphs about the success of certain programs. By sharing these different elements on the website, incoming students are more likely to see the social proof of the college’s value and what they would be able to provide to them. 

By adding student experience to St Clair Colleges’ website they will be able to market to potential incoming students by showing them the opportunities the college can provide as well as building trust and credibility with real success stories. By using these different elements in the form of visuals such as images, infographics, statistics and video the college will be able to provide incoming students with confidence about their decision in choosing St Clair College. Overall adding student experience to the website is a great way to showcase the college’s thriving and active community that has a large network of supporters, graduates and alumni.

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Title: The Do’s and Don’ts of social media marketing 

Social media is a powerful tool for business owners to promote their brand, drive traffic to their website and establish a strong reputation. That being said there are some basic rules you should follow to ensure that you are using this tool to your business advantage. Here are a few do’s and don’ts of the social media marketing that you should keep in mind. 

1. Be authentic and transparent

• Connect with your audience in a conversational tone, and share real stories and insights about your brand to show that it is authentic and transparent.

2. Provide value to your audience

• Share content that is relevant and valuable to your target audience and your audience’s interests and needs.

3. Engage with your audience and respond to comments 

• Responding to comments and feedback is a great way to engage with your audience and it shows that you value them and their opinions.

4. Be consistent 

• Posting consistently can help increase the audience and brand awareness of your business. 

5. Format your content for each platform

• It is important to tailor your content for each platform so that they look like they belong on each separate platform and fit the size requirements. 

1. Use clickbait or misleading headlines

• Avoid using clickbait and misleading headlines so that you do not trick or mislead your audience because that can damage your brand’s reputation and break the trust of your audience.

2. Over-promote your products or services

• Social media should be a tool to build your brand awareness and create relationships with your audience by providing value. 

3. Ignore negative feedback or comments

• Use negative feedback that you receive as an opportunity to learn and improve and make things right. 

4. Buy followers or engagement

• When you buy followers you are essentially buying bots or fake accounts that will not engage with any of the content you post.

5. Don’t spam your followers 

• Limit and regulate the number of posts you share per day on each platform to avoid your audience being overwhelmed or bombarded with content.

• Why did you choose the specific image(s)? (3 Marks)

For my blog post, I chose 3 images that specifically go with my topic and what my blog post is about. For the first image, I chose a picture of someone using their mobile device with multiple social media apps displayed. The main reason I chose this image is that it is the first thing people see when they look at my blog and it paints a clear picture of what my blog is going to be about. 

The image itself reinforces the idea that social media is mostly a mobile platform that people use to connect with each other. Because this image reinforces the idea that social media is mostly a mobile platform it relates to the do’s and don’ts of the blog post and the idea of using social media as a way to not only promote your business but build relationships, connect with your audience and provide them with value. By using this image it draws the attention of the reader because when you use visuals it keeps the reader on your site longer than if it were only text. 

The other two images or infographics that I chose were thumbs up and thumbs down which go with the do’s and don’ts section of my blog. The reason I chose these two images is that they visually represent the do’s and don’ts of social media marketing in a simple easy to understand way. The green thumbs up clearly represents the do’s of social media marketing and the red thumbs down clearly represents the don’ts. Along with the thumbs up and thumbs down people also instinctively associate green with good and red with bad which is another visual element of my images that helps convey a message with minimal text.

• Explain in detail why the image(s) was beneficial for the post. (3 Marks)

The images that I used for this post were beneficial because they all catch the attention of the reader and provide them with a visual representation of what this blog is about while using minimal text. The image of the person holding a phone with social media apps open was beneficial for my post because it is relevant to the topic of my post and conveys the idea that this post is about social media and how to use it to connect with other people in a beneficial way. Because as I mentioned before this image of a person holding a phone with social media apps on it represents building relationships and connecting with your audience I feel that it was an effective way to visually support my message and make my blog post more engaging.   

The other images that I used that I felt were beneficial for my post were the thumbs up and thumbs down visuals or infographics. By using the thumbs up and thumbs down to separate the sections of content I feel that it is very beneficial for my post because it makes the post easier to read while also following the f pattern for readers. It also provides the readers with a visual representation of the do’s and don’ts because most people know and understand that thumbs up is good and thumbs down is red. Overall by using the thumbs up and thumbs down in my blog it was beneficial because I was able to visually communicate what my blog content was about and I was able to make my post more visually appealing and accessible which can help create an impact on my readers.  

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1. As discussed in class, please provide three reasons why visuals are important to web content. Please ensure you go into detail for each item. (6 Marks)

As we have discussed in class about visuals, the three reasons that I have chosen as why visuals are important to web content are: Visuals stick in long-term memory, transmit messages faster and they Improve comprehension.

1. Visuals stick in long-term memory: One of the reasons visuals are important to web content is because they stick in your long term memory. The human brain processes images easier than it does text which is why visuals are important to include in our content. As we discussed in class the use of visuals can help to make sense out of the content which increases the chances of making your content more memorable and also helps your audience remember certain elements that you want them to remember. The chances of visuals sticking in your long-term memory also increase over time, people are more likely to remember 65% of the visual content they see over the written content 3 days later. The reason for Visuals sticking in your long-term memory is because visual information is stored in your long-term memory whereas text is more often stored in the short-term memory part of your brain. Using visuals in web content makes it easier for users to understand and retrieve information from a website which enhances the overall website experience of the user. 

2. Transmit messages faster: Another reason why visuals are important to the web is that they transmit images faster than text. Based on what we learned in class images are processed 60,000x faster than text is in your brain. It has been proven time and time again that we process visual information better than text which is why visuals are so important to web content. Along with us processing images better than text, they can be used to effectively and quickly communicate important information to our audience that may be harder to understand in text form or that may not be seen because of people’s short attention spans.  For example, when writing web content it would be beneficial for us to determine if the information would be better understood in the form of text or a visual like a graph or chart. Overall using images is a great way to transmit your message quicker and also catch the attention of your audience because people prefer websites with more images. 

3. Improve comprehension: The final reason why visuals are important to web content that we discussed in class is that visuals improve comprehension. Visuals can help improve comprehension by making web content easier to understand and making it more accessible to viewers.  Based on what we learned in class, visuals have been found to improve learning by up to 400%. They also affect people on a cognitive level and simulate imagination which enables people to process information more quickly. What makes visuals able to improve comprehension for the reader is visuals can be used to improve written content by breaking up long passages of text, highlighting key ideas, and adding context or explanation when needed. Visuals can be very helpful for improving comprehension, especially on topics that may be more complex which will make your content more accessible for everyone. Overall visuals improve comprehension for the reader by breaking up long passages of text, making information more memorable and engaging for the reader. 

Ultimately using visuals is important to web content because visuals can drastically improve the user’s experience and make your content more memorable and accessible by transmitting messages faster and improving comprehension.

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Headline: “7 Essential Tips for Passing Your Second-Year Digital Classes”

The headline I created for 1st-year students is “7 Essential Tips for Passing Your Second-Year Digital Classes”. I decided to create this headline because when I was thinking back to my first year if I saw a headline with tips on how to pass any classes it would immediately get my attention and I would want to find out more. Based on what we learned from class content is the main job of a headline is to attract. This headline is attention-grabbing and guaranteed to attract 1st-year students because they are likely to be interested in tips on how they can pass their second-year digital classes. The next aspect of my headline is that it is specific. When the reader looks at my headline they are going to be able to immediately know what it is about. My headline specifically tells 1st years students that the article is going to be about “7 tips for passing your second-year classes”. By ensuring your headlines are relevant and related to your article readers won’t feel like they were misled or disappointed with your content. Another key aspect of my headline is it is encouraging my audience of 1st-year students to take action and learn more. By including the word “tips” in my headline it shows the reader that by clicking on the article they will find the “tips” and information promised in the headline that they may need to reach their goals. Finally, the last element of the headline that I created is that it invokes a sense of urgency. The word “essential” that I used implies that the tips I am providing are crucial to the reader. Using that word it can create a sense of urgency, especially for students looking to improve their grades as a last resort. Overall I believe that the headline I created is engaging and able to catch my audience of 1st years attention. This is a good headline for 1st-year students because it directly appeals to them and is relevant to what they may be looking for and the answers that they may want.

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Headline: “Launch Your Digital Advertising Career with Our Up-to-Date Marketing Program: The Gateway to Your Dream Job!”

Because the only information I had when creating this headline was it needed to be about our program and needed to target graduating high school students, I decided to create it based on what a graduating student would be looking for when thinking about post-secondary programs. To create this headline I started by reading our program overview on the St Clair website and highlighting any important information that I believe should be included in the headline. I specifically wanted to highlight that this is the most “up-to-date” program with the best curriculum of any Ontario advertising program. That is a very appealing aspect of our program that I believe would catch the reader’s attention. Once I came up with the content that I wanted in my headline I started putting it into Chatgbt to see what headlines it came up with. Once I had a list of headlines I couldn’t find one that I thought was perfect so I ended up incorporating 3 headlines into one which gave me the headline I chose. To specifically target graduating high school students there were a few elements I had to consider. When I was choosing a program it was important to me to find a program that I knew would set me up for my future career which is why I used “Launch your Digital Advertising Career” in the headline. Another aspect of this headline that I chose to appeal to graduating high school students was I incorporated the word “digital” in my headline as it may get the attention of a teenager more than other forms of traditional advertising vocabulary. When students hear the word digital they are included to think of digital elements such as social media marketing which is a major part of our program. Teenagers may not know what the traditional forms of advertising are so by using the word digital it effectively catches the attention of that generation because of the digital world we live in. Another element of this headline based on what we have talked about in class is it includes “action-oriented” language which is encouraging high school students to take action and ultimately “Launch Your Advertising Career”. Also by using the fact that our program is “up-to-date” it creates a sense of excitement and shows high school students that they are going to be learning about the latest trends and content in marketing. Finally by using “The Gateway to Your Dream Job” it can help show high school students who may not have a clear idea of what they want to do that this program can motivate the students and be exactly what they need to help them find their dream career.

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Headline #1: Love at First Lopsided Smile: Family Drives 2500 Miles to Rescue Uniquely Adorable Dog

My reasoning and explanations for the headline “Love at First Lopsided Smile: Family Drives 2500 Miles to Rescue Uniquely Adorable Dog” consist of a few different elements. To begin with, this headline is on the longer side because I feel that a slightly longer headline can keep the reader’s attention longer. It is not too long that it is boring but long enough that I was able to include all of the key elements of the story that I wanted to include within this headline. With the story, I chose a common theme for my headlines is that they use emotional words to evoke a sense of emotion in the reader. Using emotional words such as “rescue” it generates an emotional response in the reader and captures the reader’s attention, making them want to read more to find out what is happening in the story. As we learned, using a headline that hits the reader right in the feels is what can drive action by targeting those emotions and what better way to do that than with a headline that is about a heartwarming dog rescue story. The headline that I created also provides a good amount of information about the story and what readers are going to find when they click on the headline to see more. It is important when creating headlines that they are not misleading and not just created for “click bait”, headlines should be a representation of what the reader is going to find when they click on your story.

Headline #2: A Perfect Fit: Misfit Lopsided Dog Finds Happiness and Love with His New Family

For this headline along with my other headlines, it has a main theme of invoking a sense of emotion in the reader. But along with that element, there are a few more that make this headline different from my first headline. The first element is that it focuses on the positive outcome of the story. From the headline, the reader can see right away that the misfit dog finds happiness and love with his new family. By showing that this is a feel-good story with a happy ending from the headline, it is more likely to get the attention of readers who specifically enjoy these types of stories. Going along with that element, my headline is relevant to my audience which is people who enjoy feel-good animal heartwarming stories. By stating that it has a happy ending in the headline and that this story is about a dog it could really resonate with any animal lovers or people who have rescued their own pets. This headline is relevant to my audience because of the themes of hope, animals and heartwarming stories. Finally, I believe the most important phrase in this headline that I used is the beginning which is “a perfect fit”. Using the phrase “a perfect fit” at the very beginning of my headline can be a big aspect of drawing in my audience to read this article because it can be very appealing to people who are interested in a happy ending. This phrase creates an expectation that within the story everything works out for the misfit dog.

Headline #3: Family Overcomes Obstacles to Give Lopsided Dog a Forever Home in Heartwarming Adoption

For the third and final headline the reason, I chose “Family Overcomes Obstacles to Give Lopsided Dog a Forever Home in Heartwarming Adoption” as the headline is because it is clear and concise. This headline directly delivers the main message of the story in a clear and easy way for the reader to understand. It is very clear from just reading the headline once that this story is about a family that overcomes obstacles to give a lopsided misfit dog a forever home. Along with this headline being clear, it is also concise. The headline is fairly short and is able to convey the entire message of the story in one headline. With readers that usually skim over things, it makes it easy for the headline to get the reader’s attention because it is short and easy to read and retain. The next reason and element why I created this headline are because the words are driven by action. The message of the story or article makes readers want to know the obstacles the family had to overcome in order to adopt the misfit dog. Leaving some things unknown in the headline it makes readers more interested and intrigued in your story and makes them want to click on it to find out more. Finally similar to my other two headlines, this headline instils a sense of emotion in the reader especially because it is about an animal. This headline evokes emotion that makes readers want to know what happened to the dog and his adoption story.

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Based on what we discussed in class headlines are the single most important part of any marketing document including web content. I feel that headlines are so important in web content because as we discussed in class your headline is generally the universal representation of your story and most importantly if it is a good headline there is an opportunity for it to get in front of a lot of people, but if it is a bad headline you won’t have that opportunity. Having a good headline is so important because it is essentially the first thing the reader sees or the first impression that determines if the reader is going to click to find out more. Headlines are so important in web content because if you are not able to catch the attention of the reader in the split second you have of their attention and make an impression on them, the reader will lose interest and not have the desire to investigate further or click on the article which will lead to you losing that reader potentially forever. Another aspect that makes headlines so important in web content is that we learned a lot about today’s digital user and how important it is to understand and provide what today’s digital user wants. Today’s digital user is impatient, they want to be told what to click, watch, read and learn which is why headlines are the only opportunity for us to make an impression and are so important for us to be able to get our audience to engage in our content.

Headline: “Dog with lopsided face finds loving family who drove more than 2,500 miles to save him”

https://www.today.com/pets/dog-lopsided-face-finds-loving-family-drove-2500-miles-rcna74786A headline that I recently clicked on was “Dog with lopsided face finds loving family who drove more than 2,500 miles to save him”. When I saw this headline it immediately caught my attention, as someone who loves animals and also loves feel-good stories this headline was intriguing to me and I wanted to find out more. By just glancing at this headline why I actually clicked on it was because at first glance I could tell it was a feel-good story. Along with the headline the image of the dog also played a major role in me clicking on this because now that I had an image to go along with the story I wanted to know more. The headline features a heartwarming story which is something that a lot of people are often drawn towards. The headline is short but uses detail to explain exactly what the article is about and created a sense of interest when I read that the dog had a lop sided face. Finally, the last aspect of this headline that made me click on it was I wanted to know the happy ending to this story. After reading the headline I felt an emotional connection to the dog and wanted to read more to find out how he was saved and how he is doing now. Overall I think this headline was clever effective and compelling to me and other readers. This headline uses emotion to its advantage and hits the reader in the feels making them compelled to click on this story, especially those who enjoy heartwarming feel good animal stories.

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