Classes
I have offered several non-credit workshops at Piedmont Virginia Community College (PVCC) and given workshops at the Center for Nonprofit Excellence and SCORE. I also do in-house training and coach and mentor clients.
I teach many of the principles that I apply in my consulting work. The classes show you how to "do it yourself." You'll practice the skills I teach and leave knowing how to improve your site when you get back to your office.
Contact me if you are interested in sponsoring a workshop or offering inhouse training.
Find and Fix the Problems With Your Web Site: User Testing
If you’re not getting the results you want from your web site, there’s a quick and easy way to find out why. Just watch how someone uses your site. User testing is a secret ingredient of successful web sites.
You can get reliable information with as few as 3-5 user tests, and you’ll do the first test in this workshop.
This hands-on class will introduce you to user testing. You’ll team up with other participants, with guidance from your instructor. Team members will explore one another’s sites and comment on what they notice as they use the site. In this workshop you will get an introduction on how to:
- Identify what to test, and create user tasks that will provide the information you need
- Establish rapport and listen actively while someone uses your web site, without influencing what they tell you
- Determine what to fix first
You’ll walk away with the results of one user test, and with basic skills that will enable you to do more testing on your own. You’ll have an idea of what needs to be fixed first (graphic redesign can often be avoided).You’ll also get a brief list of the best resources for do-it-yourself user tests.
Instructor: Linda Kolker is an experienced marketing and web consultant who has taught many workshops. She is an expert on best practices for web sites and has conducted user testing.
Best Practices for Your Web Site
(Two sessions. Also available in one session.)
33 seconds. That’s how long you have before visitors to your website decide whether to stay or move on to your competitors. Learn how you can improve your site (without necessarily changing your graphic design), and turn visitors into customers.
In the first meeting, we’ll look at sites that work, and ones that don’t. You’ll learn what to look for and how to assess your website. You’ll review a list of research-tested best practices for site structure, navigation, content and design.
Before the second meeting, you’ll assess your own site using a checklist. In the second meeting, you’ll bring your completed checklist, discuss your findings, and develop a prioritized list of changes that will help your site produce the results you want.
Audience
Business owners and managers. Marketing, communications and web managers at organizations of any size. Back to top
Write More Powerful Web Site Copy
Turn your website visitors into customers with writing that drives interaction and response. You’ll learn how to
- clearly communicate who you are and what sets you apart from competitors
- distinguish features and benefits
- create credible, hype-free messages
- structure copy for search engine optimization
- persuade readers to take action
In three sessions, you’ll review what works and what doesn’t work on the web, write copy for your website and review and discuss your work in class. The instructor will share tips from years of experience in direct response copywriting, marketing and web consulting.
Audience
Entrepreneurs, marketing managers, copywriters. Back to top
Contact me if you would like customized training in your organization.