Conceptual Analysis

Audience:

The audience for the Goodwill website will be varied because they cover a wide assortment of information. Because the audience is varied, it is important to have a good understanding of the different visitors.

People looking to donate will probably be of the middle class with a fairly good, if not high education, which means they will have a wider understanding of the language. They will probably have ready access to a computer and some basic knowledge of how to use it and navigate the web. The age of this audience could range from twenty to fifty, but could also be wider. They probably have mid-income jobs that allow them to live comfortable lives and allow them to accumulate things.

Those looking to hire Goodwill would be businesses, with middle-aged employers, looking for employees. The language on this portion of the website should be professional to cater to these people. They would have experience with computers and know their way around the web. They would appreciate clarity and conciseness in a website, along with a professional appearance.

Those looking to shop at Goodwill could be from any class, but probably they are mostly of the middle-to-upper middle class. The education of these people could vary, which means that they may not have extensive knowledge of the web and may only have limited access to computers. In addition, they may be limited to dial-up connections if they do, so it’s important to have a plain-text version to bypass the time it would take to download graphics on a slow connection. Because they may not know their way around the web, it’s important that the portal page of the Goodwill website be clear in helping them locate what they desire.

Clarity is also important for those interested in becoming involved in Goodwill’s programs and services because these people are likely from the lower class with little or no education. They would be seeking help with job training and placement. They probably wouldn’t have much computer knowledge and limited access to computers. When reaching the Goodwill website, it’s extremely important that they immediately are able to locate what they are looking for on the home page.

Objectives:

 I believe the objective of this website is to provide information to those seeking it, whether they be looking to donate, hire, shop, or get involved with the programs and services. The website provides information on each, such as store locations, different services they provide, a range of programs they have, and donation locations.

Another objective is to get businesses to help out. They are a non-profit organization, relying on the community to keep it going; therefore, appealing to local businesses would be important. In addition, they are appealing to potential employers for their graduates.

Tasks and Scenarios:

Because there are several scenarios for those visiting the Goodwill website, it is important that the home page be clear and concise so that the person will immediately know where they need to go. Below are a few different examples of what they may wish to do on the Goodwill website.

There are several things that those visiting the Goodwill website may be looking to do. First, they may merely be looking up donation locations where they can drop items off. They may also be looking into home-pickups, especially for garage sale leftovers. In addition, they might be looking into the type of items Goodwill accepts as donation and what they do not, or researching the different ways they can contribute to the organization.

Second, visitors may be interested in shopping at Goodwill, which means they would want different store locations in their area. They could also be interested in shopping online at Goodwill at their store website.

Third, they may be employers looking to hire Goodwill graduates. The visitors may be interested in outsourcing or temporary workers to help on projects. They might also be looking to fill a permanent position. Some businesses could also be interested in getting involved with Goodwill, like Younkers did recently.

Finally, there are those visitors interested in the programs and services, possibly looking for information on how to become involved. These people may be mothers or family members of someone with a disability who want them to become successful, self-supporting members of society. It could also be a person with a disability or other barrier to employment looking for job training and placement.

Content Analysis:

Currently, the Goodwill website has a lot of information in it, with five main categories and several more subcategories. The writing is fairy professional and basic; however, there are some pages that are redundant. With regard to the text, it will be necessary to rewrite some of it to make it more concise. I will also need to go through and make sure that information isn’t repeated on unrelated pages.

The graphics on the Goodwill website are okay, showing workers and groups of people. They give a good feeling of community and most of them work nicely with the text; however, the pictures in the upper left hand corner next to the logo seem to do nothing more than take up space. Some of the pictures there are nice and may be used in other areas, perhaps in the body text. Therefore, I will have to eliminate the pictures in the upper corner and also make the logo and header portion of the page smaller, leaving more room for body and navigation.

In regard to adding information, the Goodwill website does not need much more. I might add some things to the history section, which also requires light rewriting. Some things also need to be added to the donation pages, particularly phrases of appreciation. The language in that section should be concise and very clear; therefore, I will have to work on making sure the contact information and other important facts are clear.

The Goodwill website would benefit by adding some more graphics as well. There are several pages without graphics that might be better with them, such as the history page, and some of the donation pages. Those pages in particular should have a warmer feel because the audience for those pages would expect it.