FINAL PROJECT

By K. Berrada

For my final project, I chose to refurbish the website for DAV Insurance. The link below shows what the website originally looked like.

DAV Insurance

I took the following steps to improve the website:

1. Deleted what didn’t belong.2. Revised the remaining information.3. Polished the look.

Step 1: What doesn’t

belong?

Furry Family. I love cats, but I honestly don’t care if my insurance agent does. I don’t think it’s appropriate or necessary for a website to show the pets of a prospective insurance agent. There should be a line drawn between professional and personal.

Step 1: What doesn’t belong?

Links of Interest. While links to help groups and animal rescue sites are fine for a personal website, they do not belong on a site for an insurance agent. In addition, there is actually an advertisement for another product, Send Out Cards, that has nothing to do with insurance.

Step 1: What doesn’t belong?

Red, bold and underlined? Why not

throw in some italics for good measure?

The site is screaming at the user to CLICK!

NOW!

An interested user can click the Contact David tab. Or, there could be

a discreet link at the very bottom of each page. The repeated

imperatives to CLICK HERE are both

unnecessary and distracting.

Step 1: What doesn’t belong?

Step 2: Revise What Remains

Step 2: Revise What Remains

The Glossary is a good tool. However, showing each definition makes the page unwieldy and cumbersome – you have to scroll for a while to get to the end of the alphabet. Instead, list the words in a double column. When a user clicks on a word, the definition appears.

Step 2: Revise What Remains

Clean up spelling, punctuation, etc.

Who trusts an insurance agent who doesn’t pay attention to details?

Step 3:Polish the Look

Step 3: Polish the Look

The DAV website currently does not have many pictures. In addition to the businessman at the

top of each page, there’s a nod to patriotism with the American flag and a picture of David. Does

this businessman truly represent peace of mind?

The content of the website focuses on protecting family,

especially children and even grandchildren.

There are also repeated references to being able

to afford car and mortgage payments. It would make sense to

include some visuals to illustrate these points.

The theme could be negative images

(warning - this could happen to you!) or

positive images (peace of mind).

Step 3: Polish the Look

And in the future, if you ask David about creating a

professional website, he will refer you to a professional

writer!

Know thyself.