audience needs

PHARMACY.UNC.EDU
AUDIENCE NEEDS

Audience Profile
The UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s website audience comprises three main groups of people. The first audience group is prospective students, who visit the site for more information on the School’s curriculum and programs. The website’s primary function is to attract these top-notch students to our PharmD and PhD programs. To do this, the website highlights faculty and student achievements and accomplishments. The website also publicizes the School’s ranking and status among pharmacy schools across the United States.

The second audience group is made up of current students, faculty, and staff. These people visit the site for accurate and up-to-date information about departments, programs, and events happening at the School. They also frequent the site seeking contact information for people associated with the School.

The last audience group consists of alumni and people affiliated with national pharmacy organizations, grant-making foundations, and government bodies. These people visit the site looking for information on specific faculty members and their research and certain School programs to determine if these initiatives are worthy of funding and support.

Primary Purpose of Publication
Within pharmacy.unc.edu, the School maintains a current news section. In this section, we publicize recent events, as well as faculty, staff, and student accomplishments. This section is used to inform readers of important happenings and spark enthusiasm for our programs. We hope prospective students read this section and feel excited about the idea of joining our team, and we hope current students and faculty read this section and feel proud of their achievements. Lastly, we hope to impress organizations and people looking to fund our programs and convince them that their support goes toward life-changing research and stellar students.

Frequency of Publication
The current news section is updated regularly and does not follow a strict schedule. Stories are published as events unfold at the School. This section is designed to make readers feel fully in the loop, as if they’re missing nothing that happens at the School.

Competition for the Same Readers/Viewers
Other pharmacy school websites serve as the main competition for the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s site. As of July 2013, 129 pharmacy schools exist in the United States. Last year, more than 2,000 students began working toward PharmDs at accredited pharmacy schools across the country. As more students seek pharmacy careers and the field becomes more saturated, the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy strives to attract the best and brightest students in the country in order to produce the best and brightest pharmacists in the country. The School’s website must stand out against other pharmacy school websites and convince top students to apply to the program and organizations and individuals to support our programs.  

The School also competes with national pharmacy organizations—such as the American Pharmacists Association, American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, and the American College of Clinical Pharmacy—for readers. Alumni often visit these sites for information on current research and best practices. The School’s site must convince readers that it provides better and more accurate information in these areas.

Style Issues
The UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy follows the Chicago Manual of Style. We also have our own style guide here. All writing on the website must adhere to these style guides.

Information Challenges
In order to publicize the accomplishments of our faculty, staff, and students, we need to hear about these accomplishments. Because the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy is spread across multiple buildings and even multiple campuses, one of the biggest challenges facing the School’s website is collecting information. Encouraging participation in social media opens vital conversations and begs input into story topics and creation. Social media also allow us to publicize stories and spread news to all constituents.   

FEATURE STORY FOR PHARMACY.UNC.EDU
Next week, Emeritus Dean Bill Campbell returns to the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy to discuss the importance of mentoring and collaboration within health sciences. During his visit, Campbell, who served the School as dean from 1992 to 2003, is planning to talk to students and faculty, as well as deans from other health-oriented schools on campus. Campbell is also planning to visit with alumni who graduated within his tenure at the School. All of his visits will serve to unite the various arms of the School and encourage partnership.

To celebrate his return to campus, the School will feature a story highlighting the visit in the current news section of its website. In this feature story, we will explain Campbell’s legacy and influence on the School’s current curriculum. The story will also look at how Campbell inspires teamwork and helped throttle the School to its number two ranking in the U.S. News & World Report list of pharmacy programs in the country.

Because this story will be published on the School’s site, other schools can share it via social media to advertise their deans’ involvement in the visit.