Web Advert Report

Project title:

Look To The Skies

The idea:

The idea behind my site was for it to be a smaller website that advertises the National Space Centre with overview pages and a business-style template. Wix is a simple site to use, but as it was my first time using it I decided not to do anything overly ambitious.

Research:

• The obvious first step I took was to look at the official National Space Centre website (https://spacecentre.co.uk/) and see how it was laid out. The site contains news and information about upcoming events, exhibits and where you can buy tickets.
• I looked at some articles on what makes a good website. A good one was https://www.yola.com/blog/what-makes-a-good-website/. This gave me information on what I should include in my website
• I had a look at the website for the Science Museum in London (https://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/). The Museum is similar to the National Space Centre (though probably more well known). Either way, the website let me see what an official website of a space museum looks like. 

Target Audience:
The age rating I want to cater to is people around 13-18 years old who are either interested in astronomy or who want to learn more about space.


Website development
By looking at the official space centre website, I drew a conclusion on what was included: the main categories promoted where dedicated to the exhibits and the events. Naturally what's at a place like the National Space Centre is the main pull-in to the site. This is half the story of how I knew what sections I wanted to include in my website (we were advised to limit the page number to around 4 main pages, so I had to pick wisely). The other half is how I picked the idea for the "About Us" and "Book Online" tabs. Essentially, it all boiled down to thinking of what any other business should advocate on their website: enticing the viewer to learn more about them and actually informing the viewer on how they can order the services. These are essentials to include on a website in my eyes, so I knew where to go from there.



Actual final idea:
The final website has a home page with a group of 4 tabs presented in full. These tabs lead the viewer to the 4 main pages of the site:

• What's On - The events currently being run
• What's Here - The exhibits on display
• About Us - Company information along with a promotional viral video
• Book Your Visit - Buy tickets from the website

The "What's Here" page leads to two more tabs that lead to sub-pages detailing the events and exhibits. The "Exhibits" page features multiple slider galleries, each with pictures of a specific exhibit. Accompanying these galleries is information about the exhibit, including a title box and a short paragraph describing the exhibit as compactly as possible.


The "About Us" page includes the short promotional video I created for the project. This video is also accompanied by a short paragraph which briefly describes the history of the centre and what to expect of the centre as a whole.


The "Book Online" page includes a service box with details about the site and the service offered i.e visit duration and ticket price. As the name suggests, this is the page where you can buy tickets and book your visit.


Website production in WIX:

To begin, I used the “Advertising and Marketing Firm” template provided by Wix.

On the home page, I got rid of the “Let’s Meet” box as I didn’t need to use it.

I changed the background to the theme named “Spaceman” provided by Wix.

I revamped the entire home page with a new image and different categories with the tabs.

 I used the same template for the buttons on this page for the menu in the top-right corner.  

Moving on to the Exhibit’s page, I used a template similar to the one given to me. I merely changed the box colours, vector art and text.

The only thing I put in the events page is a cheeky little message saying that no events are being held yet. I did this because events are changing constantly and this website is only a one-and-done thing. 

Next, I edited the “About” page. I deleted the staff information at the bottom of the page as I didn’t know of any staff members at the space centre, and it seemed irrelevant to include. What I did add was the promotional video I created and a paragraph giving information about the centre.

 The “Book Online” page conveniently had a services box already in the template. All I had to do was add in a different picture and change the times and costs.

With the major pages finished and out of the way, I decided to focus on the smaller details to finish the site off.

First, I replaced the template logo with the space centre’s logo. This change seems obvious: if I’m promoting a certain service, of course its logo must be there.

I also changed the address and the location on the Google map. The map only shows up on the “About” page, but the address is prevalent everywhere else.

Upload onto WIX:
https://finleydriver2013.wixsite.com/mysite

Testing of the website in situ:
My website was praised for its easy-to-use format and attention to detail. People seemed to like the background I chose, as it was not only nice to look at but it fit with the website thematically. However, I was told that I could add to some pages, such as the events page or the about page. It seems that removing some things from those pages wasn't the best call. 

Evaluation:
I am surprised at how well the website turned out. It was my first time using Wix to do anything, but I adapted to the basics rather quickly. Then again, Wix is a rather easy site to use. I have taken the criticism I recieved into consideration: I am considering adding some events to the events page if need be. I might find some old events the centre has hosted in the past and present them as if they were being held in the present.