Web User Research

The web development team at Academica Group has been developing websites, portals, and e-communities throughout North America for the past 12 years. Our core philosophy is that effective marketing communications must be based on sound strategy, developed through strategic insights gained from solid market research. Our web-related research services dig into your current or forthcoming website, laying down a strong framework that ensures a distinctive audience-driven web environment.

Validating Architecture & Interface

Architecture and Interface Validation is a process pioneered by our team that brings together the interests of web developers and users at the beginning of a web redesign project to ensure that your information architecture and homepage is design is usable and engaging for your target audience. The methodological process can be conducted in less than a month, and tests can be run either at Academica Group or at a site of your choice.

Our research and web development departments work together and with your team to develop a test instrument specifically tailored to your audience, your technology, and your end goals.

A logical and audience-friendly information architecture is vital to a site's usability and consequently its success. To test the logic of information flow, language, and content, we have developed design/build protocols that can be customized to your needs. We recommend a cost-effective mix of in person, and virtual one-on-one interviews with several audiences:

• Prospects: Regional, National, Non-Direct & International
• Alumni: Local, National, Young, Major Donors
• Internal: Development/Advancement, Recruitment, and other key outward facing bodies

Usability Testing

Consistently we see function triumph over aesthetic in the web world. The most trafficked websites of our time have some of the least aesthetically pleasing or well designed interfaces on the web. Taking the time to test usability with potential users is the most accurate way to ensure a smooth launch of your new website. Messaging, readability, findability and other key variables are explored. Usability testing can also be employed to examine already existing websites, and to find ways to improve its performance. Our two clicks to anywhere methodology ensures the highest standards in usability and site navigation. Moreover, as nearly all issues can be traced back to usability and since your actual users are the best source for identifying these issues, we validate proposed architecture or redesign with target audiences to ensure that critical check points are covered before going live, or even to build. We develop customized target audience testing using both in-person and virtual (on-line) methodologies

In Person

Face-to-face interaction with a specialized, qualitative researcher promises rich feedback from respondents. These responses will include wording, tone and body language. We recommend face-to-face interviews for the testing with regional prospects, local alumni and internal department leaders - if time and budget allow. An optional focus group can be added as well.

Virtual

Virtual research allows us to cross distance, time and culture without the usual expense. Our online environment lets the interviewer guide the user as they engage in testing your proposed designs or architecture.   Interviewer and user converse over the phone to preserve tone of voice or via widespread instant message services that support both voice and/or text conversation.  Low-bandwidth alternatives are available when needed.  All online interviews are automatically archived as a text file, for later analysis. Group interviews are also possible - allowing the interviewer to see how the target audience reacts in front of their peers. 

Participant Recruitment

Academica Group maintains an applicant consumer panel that includes not only thousands of applicants from Canada but applicants from around the world. This consumer panel is at your disposal during any qualitative or quantitative project undertaken with our teams.

Web Trends Research

Which networks are prospects using? Should we have our own social network or should we build into Facebook? Is it appropriate for us to approach prospects, students or alumni via social media? Does our target audience even read blogs, or would our energy be better spent elsewhere?

Our Web Trends Survey is a large part of the fuel that powers the social media strategies and solutions offered by our technology departments. With new web buzzwords being coined every day, it is important to be strategic about which new platforms you choose to deploy. The Web Trends Survey is administered to the Academica Group consumer panel, providing insight into web and social media use, as well as comparisons to traditional information and communication technologies.