Digital Transformation: How fjorge Helped Dunwoody College Stand Out in Higher Education

Snapshot

• Client: Dunwoody College of Technology - Private, non-profit technical college
• Services: Website redesign, custom WordPress development, ongoing managed services
• Results:
  • Increased student exploration and engagement with program pages
  • Higher conversion rates from direct program page traffic vs. landing pages
  • Consistent website performance and reliability across all content levels

Introducing Dunwoody College

Founded in 1917, Dunwoody College of Technology is a private, non-profit technical college in Minneapolis with a unique mission to align skilled workers with workforce needs. As one of the only private non-profit technical colleges in the US, they offer hands-on, project-focused education that prepares students for immediate career success.

The Challenge

Dunwoody faced several critical challenges with their digital presence:

Their existing website infrastructure relied on a patchwork of freelancers and internal IT support, making it difficult to maintain consistency and respond quickly to issues. The site's structure followed outdated higher education website conventions, with information scattered across numerous pages and an inconsistent user experience beyond the homepage.

Most critically, in an era of declining high school graduation rates and increasing competition, Dunwoody needed their website to effectively communicate their unique value proposition. Research showed that despite changes in how students discover colleges, websites remain the primary factor in students' decisions to apply. Dunwoody needed a website that would stand out in the higher education landscape while staying true to their practical, hands-on approach.

The Solution

After connecting through an agency partner, Dunwoody chose fjorge to completely reimagine their web presence. Rather than simply following higher education website conventions, fjorge and Dunwoody looked at best practices across all industries to create a modern, effective experience.

Key elements of the solution included:

• A complete redesign using horizontal content bands that made information clear and scannable
• Custom WordPress modules developed with Gutenberg in mind, allowing flexible content presentation for different audience needs
• A cohesive experience maintained throughout the site, not just on top-level pages
• Specialized program offering presentations that support prospective students' natural exploration behavior
• Comprehensive hosting and maintenance support

The Results & Impact

The partnership with fjorge has delivered significant improvements:

• Better User Experience: User testing revealed that prospective students prefer to explore program pages deeply rather than being funneled through landing pages. Direct program page traffic shows higher conversion rates than traditional landing page approaches.
• Consistent Performance: The website maintains its design integrity and performance at all levels, not just the homepage - a rare achievement in higher education websites.
• Reliable Support: Quick response times and proactive monitoring have eliminated the uncertainty of the previous freelancer approach. Issues are often identified and addressed before Dunwoody even notices them.
• Cost-Effective Value: As a non-profit institution, Dunwoody appreciates fjorge's transparent pricing and focus on delivering value without unnecessary features or inflated costs.

Most importantly, the website now effectively communicates Dunwoody's unique position in higher education, supporting their enrollment goals during a challenging time for the industry. The partnership continues to evolve, with regular refinements and updates ensuring the site remains effective and current.

The Director of Marketing Analytics at Dunwoody summarizes the ongoing partnership: "We've looked at other options, but I'm telling you - we're not going to get the best balance of service and expertise for the price by looking elsewhere."