May 15, 2009

Dear Allysa,

            First I want to say how much I like your idea for a project. I think it is awesome that you are designing a website with a cause that you personally identify with, and whose usefulness will go beyond the scope of this class. That being said, I think there are a few changes that, if made, could improve your site.

    The biggest criticism I have with your website is it’s organization and navigation at this point in time. First, after reading your homepage I was confused about how to proceed. Although your homepage states what the purpose of your website is, it does not direct the user anywhere after that. Your homepage should be a guide that quickly directs your different target audiences to their respective places on the website. For example, there could be a link on your homepage that addressed members of the Tlingit tribe, which sent them directly to a Tlingit community calendar. Another suggestion regarding organization would be to not have the titles of your pages be in the Tlingit native language. The majority of people accessing your site will have no idea what those words mean or where on the website to find specific information. One strategy you could employ to solve this problem is the one used on The Chinese Family website made last year. On this website the titles of the pages were in English until you scrolled over them, when they changed to Chinese.

    Another suggestion is to reread the information posted on your website and make sure that your writing is grammatically sound. Although the majority of the writing on your website is very good, just a few typos can undermine your entire sites credibility. For example, there is a typo on your homepage, “This purpose of this website,” which, right off the bat, makes the user hesitant to explore your website. Also make sure to that you put the date that you constructed your pages.

    One potential problem I see with this website is generating interest amongst those who are not familiar with the Tlingit culture. Since public knowledge of the Tlingit tribe is extremely limited, not many non-Tlingit’s will have any connection or experience with the culture. This means sparking an interest in your user quickly, is necessary to keep them engaged with the site. I think the most effective way to hook this target audience is through extensive visuals and interactive media. Interesting pictures of cultural artifacts, video’s of events, and charming native songs will go much farther in keeping the attention unfamiliar users than text will. Use these types of graphics and multi-media extensively on all the pages intended for non-Tlingit users. You mentioned in your outline you intended to put visuals and mp3’s on your site but I just wanted to stress its importance.

    Overall, I think your project is well on its way. You have clearly identified your target audiences as well as your objectives. With your obvious enthusiasm about this subject combined with your clear outline, you will develop a very successful website.

Good Luck,

Nick

May 17, 2009

Dear Donald,

            Your website is already very impressive. It is well organized and easy to navigate. The structure of your site also quickly filters different users to their respective pages. I also like your writing style; you use self-sustaining paragraphs, which makes it easy to skim.

    One additional feature that could improve your website is a search option. While the way you present the various fields of professional medicine is sufficient, the sheer number of different options could be overwhelming to premed students who have no idea which field they would like to enter. An advanced search option that prompted users to enter information about their salary, length of residency, subject matter, etc. and then gave a list of professions with these desired qualifications would prove a very useful tool for premed students using your site.

    One potential problem I see is overcoming your formidable competition. Studentdoc.com, as well as many other websites, provide comparable services to your own, and are already well established in the eyes of your target audience. One technique you could employ to gain the edge over your competition is localize your website to Stanford students. By connecting premed students with potential mentors in the field they are interested in you could offer premed students something that your competition could not. Also connecting yourself in some way to Stanford would also help the credibility of your website.

    Overall, I think your website is terrific and if you keep developing it as you have been over the next couple of weeks you will have an excellent product.

Good Luck,

Nick Latourette