Before ever looking once at the Goodwill of Greater Grand Rapids Website, I really had no expectations. I was always under the assumption that Goodwill just sold clothes and took the money they made from selling those clothes to pay their employees and the other costs associated with the movement of clothing. Thus, upon entering the website, I was most surprised to see all of the services that the Goodwill organization had to offer. The question that I really strived to answer was, “Does the Goodwill of Greater Grand Rapids website do an adequate job of appealing to the readers and portraying its objectives in the easiest and most accessible way possible?” Using the tools of rhetorical analysis, I believe the site falls short in many areas.

First and foremost, the website does come through and adequately appeal to the reader’s reasoning, or logos. One can obtain almost any information about the Goodwill organization that may be desired. I found through my exploration of the site of all the services Goodwill provides. You can contact them for employment, find drop-off and shopping locations, and even shop online. The appeal to reason is very strong. Unfortunately, this is about it.

In terms of appealing to emotion, the site falls far below expectations of what one would think an organization like Goodwill would have. The photos in the corners of each page seem very fake. Also, all of the writing is very long-winded and not very clear. If I was an employer trying to hire a Goodwill grad, I would have a very difficult time knowing how. The website has a very dry layout that seems to deter someone from exploring any more than what is absolutely necessary.

If Goodwill was trying to persuade people to use their services and buy their products, then they certainly fooled me. Nowhere in the entire site did I find anything that would make me want to shop at Goodwill or use their services. Some statistics on the effectiveness of their employees or maybe a price comparison of clothing would have helped. Any attempt at persuasion is so vague that there doesn’t even seem to be persuasion. One of the keys of the Goodwill organization is receiving donations. I feel as though they rely way too much on showing how they help people with education and fail to show how donations help other areas, something that would persuade people to donate more if they knew.

Whether this site appeals to the right audience or not is also in question. I feel as though most people going to the Goodwill website are possible donators or people who want to know where they can drop their goods off. The focus on the education might drive a lot of people away from the site. Also, the opportunity for speech, or kairos, does not seem very effective and efficient. Long winded paragraphs about education and the companies founding seem mundane and unnecessary. Utilizing their word choice better and picking their spots of emphasis would greatly help their appeal.

Overall, the Goodwill website does a good job of informing. But, the way in which they try to appeal the right audience and the methods used to do so make the site very uninviting and in desperate need of improvement.