Club websites

[lindseyk]

Back to the original question, I would advocate a decent sized font, clear menu headings and don't clutter the page too much. Avoid a dark page with a lighter coloured font as this is difficult to see for many people.

A members forum/area or Facebook Closed Group should be available so that members can exchange information/banter that isn't suitable for the front page of a club website. A Facebook Group is much easier to set up and manage than a members area but you can't make people join up - they'll miss out on lots of interesting stuff but that's their choice.

[Oldman]

I prefer individual personalised communications, Mrs H. I also think I'm entitled to comment about Facebook even when you disagree (unless you act as some kind of Nopesport censor )

[andy]

Why does everyone slag off Facebook all the time - its the most incredibly efficient way of keeping in touch with your family and friends all over the world.

hear hear

[AndyC]

Oldman, Mrs H,andy -different strokes for different folks.
There is a place for all sorts of media -and we should use all those that get the message to the people we want to hear it. If carrier pigeon makes sense I'll use them

[Oldman]

AndyC - I agree with your comment, but you should have not included my name, because that's what I said - use Facebook for those who wish to use it, but don't try to force it down other people's throats.

[andy]

use Facebook for those who wish to use it, but don't try to force it down other people's throats.

Actually, I disagree (we would have moved all our discussion to facebook had one loud committee member not been shouty). Consolidating into one place makes life a lot easier for those updating. Also, one must adapt and change with the times.

[mharky]

I'm not trying to force Facebook down your throat. You said you have better uses for your time, and I'm trying to tell you that it can actually save you time by having a vast array of orienteering information in one place with automatic notifications.

[SeanC]

Come on everyone, I think DaveK might be looking for some feedback directly relevant to Saxons. Have a look at their website and make some comments http://www.saxons-oc.org.

As it happens Saxons must be a pretty average club so comments applied to them probably apply to many others.

The current Saxons website looks pretty clean, but one thought is that there is too much information. Someone surfing the net for something to do in Kent will need just the key messages on the front page. ParkRun does a pretty good job .. http://www.parkrun.org.uk/ for this. ParkRun has the advantage of having a more simple product to sell, but local orienteering can be made to sound simple too...

"it's a run in a wood or park, no marshalls, use a map but there's always an easy navigation option and help, different length courses from 2k to 10k. An event every week somewhere in Kent. At night as well. You'll get muddy and it can be tough, but you'll have fun and get fit"

Add some decent graphics and carefully chosen pictures and that's all you need on the front page(s), all the detailed stuff that the regulars use can be found further down the website.

The club would need to accept the principle that the front page(s) of the website is for marketing and not announcements about the new chairman, pleas for volunteers or other business as usual stuff.

I would suggest getting an experienced professional to build the content for the front/marketing pages, and letting club members manage the other pages.

Beginner sections on websites. Lots of clubs have these but they tend to go out of date, so probably best just linking to the BOF website. It is worth a section explaining to newcomers the local leagues/competitions. For parents, what's available for juniors? Saxons do have a good junior news section, but could do with a page explaining things for the new parents. Ie stuff about shadowing, what coaching is available, safety etc.

Event/Races lists: Saxons generally do this well, current list goes well into next year with a nice map. Perhaps it could be "events in Kent" and include all the DFOK ones that are in Kent? People won't know the Saxons/DFOK boundary and for newcomers it shows it's an affordable sport... plenty of local O, not too much driving.

[DaveK]

Much appreciated Sean and thanks to others for responses. Certainly we would be interested in comments on the Saxons website http://www.saxons-oc.org if anyone wants to have a look, but I will admit to being particularly interested in other club websites which people used/viewed and thought good, so we could look to copy the best bits .

As to Facebook, the club does have a Group which is beginning to get used a bit more and although not (yet) a user personally, I can see that this and other social media sources must form part of our marketing/information strategy, particularly if we want to target younger age groups.

[Sunlit Forres]

I like the look of Saxons' site. Very clear and easy to navigate. I'd personally move the forthcoming fixtures higher up the home page as that's generally what most people go to the web site looking for.

Ref Facebook, I completely agree with Mharky, Mrs H etc, but it doesn't lend itself to the personality of many orienteers. One advatage of a vibrant club FB page with lots of interaction is that it helps sell your club. If the members are seen to be enjoying a good bit of banter it's bound to make it more attractive to outsiders, but too many of us seem to want to keep orienteering a secret. The "share" facility" is a great way of spreading the word about particular highlights - something that club FB subscribers seem reluctant to do for some reason.

It will never suit everyone - one of the problems of communication these days is that you have to use so many differnet media types to reach everyone which can be bloody hard work!