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School Website Design with Added Benefits
January 24, 2019

School Website Design with Added Benefits

Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with SchoolMessenger

We transitioned our district and school websites over to SchoolMessenger. We were looking for something that offered a more modern look and feel, as well as responsive technology so it could be viewed on different devices. We also wanted something that had an app feature, included broadcasts, and didn't break us financially. This included everything we need in one package.
  • The responsive technology is really good. Moving banners are smooth and viewing on a phone has a cleaner scrolling view.
  • Modern, sleek design, with more visual options.
  • The included broadcast feature helps us a lot with notifications.
  • Limited functionality. A lot is set through templates. This makes it difficult to really hone in and customize to your liking. You can change colors, etc. But really getting creative with website/webpage design isn't as advanced as some other programs.
  • The page editing (for example faculty member and department pages) is difficult to navigate. This would be a lot better if it was cleaned up and easier to navigate.
  • Setting up the website is difficult and time-consuming as well as the app part.
  • Allowed visitors to navigate our website on mobile devices much easier, with less time.
  • Afforded us options to integrate broadcasts and notifications limited other tools used.
  • Updated our look to match a more modern, tech savvy atmosphere.
We went from Final Site to SchoolMessenger. Final Site had a lot of customization with so much functionality and a real professional look and feel. Unfortunately, the cost set us on a new path, which led us to SchoolMessenger. SchoolMessenger packages a lot of the services we need in one, but it is missing core elements of design that Final Site offered us.
Overall, this is a good, effective, and cost-efficient product. It is missing some key functionality we had with a previous program which limits my total score, but I still think a lot of school districts can get a lot out of SchoolMessenger. The features and functions they do include work well.
Viewing the website works really well. However, designing and building pages is difficult and limited. The menu of choices and navigating it is difficult. It requires steps to complete simple tasks or embed outside elements. With this, I think SchoolMessenger could use some revamping to assist those who aren't fluent in HTML and web design, much like other programs like Weebly, Wix, or WordPress work.
What we thought would be a simple task was no easy feat. It took us a lot of time to get SchoolMessenger up and running and we never implemented the app feature. This was something that just put us over our timetable as we needed to get the website up for parents and community.
This is great for schools who want a bulk package of services at a competitive cost. Older website designs limit functionality and have a very square design. SchoolMessenger has more modern templates with newer capabilities which is better for visitors of the site. The functionality is great for parents who are accessing the site on the go, which happens more often than you know.