U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- The Air Force Academy has a new website.
It’s “www.usafa.edu” … and it’s the most ambitious website in our history.
It’s dynamic, user-friendly and easy on the eyes. Most importantly, it’s based on current mobile technology in keeping with websites seen and used across other major universities in the U.S.
Andrew Hamilton, the Academy’s chief of marketing, said the majority of Internet use and content searches occur on Smartphones. The site was constructed to appeal to all who represent or are interested in the Academy: cadets, faculty and staff, graduates, the school’s more-than 500,000 annual visitors, and the U.S. tax payers who finance the Defense Department at-large.
“Our new website was built to ensure site visitors access our content seamlessly across all devices and locations,” Hamilton said. “The new website is built on a foundation of authentic stories and inspiring experiences, designed to spark conversation and tell the story of cadets in a creative, refreshing way, with the use of integrated video and social media.”
Hamilton said the upgrade makes sense, especially at a school known for setting technological trends around the world.
“As an institution recognized for its commitment to innovation, our previous website experience failed to deliver on our brand promise,” he said. “We’ve recently refreshed the visual design across the Academy to achieve a consistent experience across all products and platforms.”
We believe our products should reflect our purpose, our people and our achievements, and tell the Academy story. Instead of relying on outdated communication platforms, we believe in leading from the front.
So far it seems to be grabbing people’s attention. According to a Web-analytics report released April 7 at the Academy, 21,405 people visited the site between March 21 -- when we went “live” -- April 6. Since then, 46.8-percent of our visitors learned about the Academy through a mobile device. We’ve had visitors from all 50 states, as well as from 127 countries around the world.
We expect this number to grow as we continue to expand the website’s capabilities and content.
Check it out. We think you’ll be surprised.