Critique of the Conservative Party of Canada Website By: Nisha Vijh Ritesh Kotak Alex Tong

Election Readiness They have provided enough articles to provide the user with information regarding the conservative party’s platforms and actions regarding voter issues The user has access to a side bar which conveys a sense of openness to the public in terms of allowing them to be a part of the party’s movement

Balance Between Self-Advocacy and Attack One entire tab has been dedicated to Stephen Harper’s leadership (abilities, past experience, his family-friendly image and even a biography on his wife) There is a podcast with Stephen Harper speaking There is only one direct attack in terms of a specific article (the Liberal stance on GST) Throughout the website there are indirect put downs about the other parties and their faults The balance would be 75% self advocacy and a mere 25% attack

Balance Among Leader, Party, Policy The leader is given the most attention on the website with majority of the tabs and articles directly about him, his family and even his hobbies Discretely lays out party’s platform on key issues (policy) Has adequate information on the party’s history and principles

Scope for Citizen Initiative The side bar allows users to participate in the conservative party endeavour through links that allow them to donate, help, shop, join, own signs, vote and my campaign

Social Networking Strong attempt to captivate to engage the younger public through familiar means such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Flickr, etc...

Branding, Look and Feel It is a very clean look, visually appealing Conservative party branding is dominant Not as user friendly as it can be due to disappearing tabs when scrolling over links with the mouse Picture of Stephen Harper Mission statement missing Very youthful

Technological Sophistication Cycling banner upon the page changing or being refreshed where all pictures emanate a family friendly feel Utilization of several online techniques to portray the message (podcasts, radio ads etc)

Use of Languages Complete equality is not shown to both the French and English speaking user due to the fact that landing page is automatically set to English It is easy to switch between the two languages because even with the change the layout and access to all articles and links remains the same

Provision for People with Disabilities There are a great number of pictures, and videos which allows users to access the information via other means than just text

Privacy Protection A Privacy Policy is provided It is very well organized, and is easy for the average citizen to read and understand It is informative and contact information has also been made available for further inquiries

Site’s Effectiveness Pros Great branding Interactive (social networking and videos) Contact Us User friendly Informative Everything is accessible within three clicks (information is easily found) Cons The option to switch languages is not too obvious as it is only indicated as a mere E or F on the top right hand side of the page Lack of multiculturalism Lack of disability tools (audio text and ability to change font size)

Recommendations Flash intro page which gives the option of French or English Site map Search Bar Frequently Asked Questions Section

Down With The Coalition Thank You! Any Questions?