The school website usually contains most of the important information. However, people don’t visit it with a clear understanding of the school’s structure. They don’t know whether to look in the news section, the documents section, the parents’ tab, the admissions section or the school menu. And when they can’t find something quickly, they usually don’t ask themselves if they’ve searched in the wrong place. They ask the school.
Let's take a look at what a parent is really looking for on the school website - and why they often don't find it there.
The parent doesn't read. He scans.
Before we get to the specifics, one crucial point: your parent is not browsing your site. He's scanning it.
He opens it in the evening, on his cell phone, between cooking dinner and putting the kids down. He has neither the time nor the inclination to read long texts or to wade through a drop-down menu. He flips the page with his eyes, looking for clues. What he doesn't find in a few seconds ceases to exist for him - even if it is on the web.
That's why "we have it there" is not enough. Having the information on the web and presenting it in a way that a parent can capture it when scanning are two different things.
What a parent is really looking for
What makes this school different
The first question a parent asks is: why here? When there is a choice in the neighborhood, he needs a reason. And a list of majors and clubs won't give him one - everyone has that. He's looking for one clear thing that sets the school apart. Most websites won't say it because it's "obvious" to the school - so they don't write it anywhere.
How's it going with you
The parent wants to imagine where the child will go. To do this, they need to see the real face of the school - photos of classes, children at work, events. Not just the building on the outside and the logo in the header. It's not the word "family environment" that builds trust, it's what the parent sees with their own eyes.
How do you treat children in your country?
It's not about pictures of teachers - not everyone wants them and that's fine. It's about giving the parent a sense of how you teach and how you approach your children. A few sentences per class, per subject area, per administration will say more than a list of last names. A parent doesn't entrust a child to an institution. He entrusts it to people he knows something about.
Answers to what he doesn't know yet
For the school, it is a given that the enrolment is done through a side entrance and that it will be "like last year". But the parent wasn't there last year. They don't know where to go, what to bring, how it will be run - and they are stressed. What is clear to the school is not clear to the parents. And an unanswered question can easily turn into uncertainty that makes them try another school.
What to do next
When a parent's site catches their eye, they need to know what to do now. Sign up for an open house, download an application, call. One clear step, not three equivalent links and a hunch that they'll "get back to it sometime". Because if the website doesn't lead to action, even an interested parent will leave - and usually not return.
Why isn't it usually there
It's not negligence. It's because the school website is usually written by someone who is too close to the school. To an insider, everything is clear and logical - it's there. But a parent who doesn't know the school and just quickly scans it sees something completely different.
This is the most common reason why a school website does not do what it could. Not bad graphics. Not too little information. But an insider's view instead of a parent's view.
See your website through the eyes of a parent
The best way to spot this gap is to go through your own website as a parent would. I've prepared a short checklist for this: 7 things a parent looks for on the school website - and often doesn't find. For each point there is a short explanation of why it matters - and why the parent needs to find it now.
You can download it for free and without obligation at page about creating school websites.
And if, after going through it, you find that there are more gaps than you expected, write to me. We'll look at your site together and suggest what to do - without paying for anything unnecessary.
Michal Šanca - I help schools to make their website not just a bulletin board, but to guide parents and students to make decisions.
