Courses.ie
Mary Horton
Mary ran eComputerTraining in Dundrum, Dublin. I met her as a ECDL Trainer (another feather) and we clicked. She had a vision, to create a course search engine from that listed training courses from t’ai chi to IT. I adored her concept and her energy and Courses.ie was created.
There were other course search directories although they were more similar to the Yahoo search engine of its time. They were overwhelming and cubersome. They also lacked the connection between the variety of user across all ages.
Team
Sam & Dara
Services
Consulting, Marketing, & Coaching
Duration
Mar 2006 to Jan 2007
A Simple Way To Find any course in Ireland
How can you let people find any course that is happening in Ireland? Whether it’s knitting, taking a language, t’ai chi or Computer Programming. Can it be simple enough for the most basic internet user of 70 years of age and the process of booking is straightforward. How do we get it known across the country to get organisations to sign-up and for people to start using it.
Method
Turning Vision into Reality
One of my greatest strengths is creatively directing a project from the idea phase. Marys’ vision was so strong it was so easy to work alongside her. Translating her ideas into something concrete was about developing a brand that infused every part of the web portal. We quickly developed the road concept from the idea of people choosing to learn is all about going on a journey. Our job was to make that journey as smooth as fluid as possible. We were developing the signposts along the way that got them where they needed to go. It was about connections. We found an amazing Php web developer Dara who allowed us to properly build this new online reality.
Simplicity, Clarity and reach
Using the KISS philosophy my first design was taken from the Google homepage. An uncluttered search portal that brought you the content you needed immediately. This was then translated with Course Provider listing based on Roads/Routes. We utilised proximity-based searches based on your location.
The next biggest task was getting the message out there. We employed a mixed media marketing approach using both digital and traditional techniques. This included cold calling, email marketing, PPC, radio advertisements, PR, and a nationwide bus advertisement campaign that took Courses.ie to the next level.
Income
2016: €12,500
2017: €64,000
Traffic
20,000 Uniques Visits 2016
350,000 Uniques Visits 2017
New Venues
67 Institutions 2016
245 Institutions 2017
