SlideRoomBlog

In 2009, we were completely focused on making the user-interface for applicants as simple & beautiful as possible. So, for 2010 we are shifting our focus to enhance the administrative & reviewer side of the system. This includes adding new features and making everything easier to use. Here is a short list of our broad goals:

• Make it easier to create/edit/manage large numbers of programs
• Add a form builder for admins to create their own forms!
• Provide more viewing options for reviewers
• Make the system more applicant-centric (rather than portfolio-centric)
• Enhance reporting capabilities
• Provide more control over different user roles
• Enhance tools for evaluation
• Add ability to generate unique lists of applicants for emailing
• Add ability to collect letters of reference
• Greater ability to configure settings/features in general
• and more ….

In short, SlideRoom is growing from a portfolio management system into a more complete applicant tracking system. This will be useful as a comprehensive system for admissions, hiring, contests or any situation with an application & review process. This is going to be an exciting year!

We launched a new feature this weekend to generate a report (spreadsheet) on all applicants, regardless of the program they are in. Previously, reports had to be generated program-by-program. With some clients using 20+ programs, the task of generating regular reports on all applicants wasn’t efficient. So, not only does this report include applicants from all active programs, it uses the new horizontal layout that has been so commonly requested.

Because applicants apply periodically, we thought it would be nice for administrators to get an email notification of new activity. Now administrators can opt in to receive a daily (or weekly) email containing a notification of newly completed submissions. The email displays applicants by program and lists their name/confirmation ID.  This helps admins to know when to login and review portfolios!

Via Jessica Hagy

Long suffering administrators have a tendency to post too many instructions when announcing the application process. This results from desperately trying to answer all possible questions ahead of time. However, this strategy of just posting tons of information backfires. It results in confusion and applicants not reading any of the information. So what’s the solution?

We believe relevant instructions need be delivered at the pertinent moment, rather than all at once. SlideRoom was designed around this philosophy. While a brief overview of requirements is good to list on your main website announcing the process, you can leave the details for later. Here are some of the stages we have designed for:

• Welcome Page: Announce what your institution stands for and general instructions. Video Tutorial is also included.
• Program Choices: Announces program titles, deadlines and requirements. 2-3 sentence descriptions help applicants choose the correct program.
• Application Forms: Instructions for completing supplementary materials are displayed on that step (not before). This may include an application form, resume, etc.
• Add Media: Portfolio requirements are displayed when the applicant is actually choosing work to upload.
• Confirmation: Additional instructions can be displayed at the end of the process.

By timing the display of instructions for the appropiate moment, the need to display everything all at once has been replaced. This will make the whole process seem simpler to applicants and increase their likely hood of beginning the process. And having a beautifully designed structure will also be helpful in helping them complete the process without problems.

Applicants often don’t want to wait for technical support staff to respond (usually an hour). They want answers “now.” One of the big new features for applicant portals is access to our new Help Desk. This is accessible after they login under the “help” tab. It is a complete knowledge base for answers to frequently asked questions. And if they can’t find an answer to their question, they can still email us for assistance.

Institutions may wish to add this link on their website announcing programs: http://slideroom.zendesk.com. This way, applicants who have trouble starting the process can also find answers to their questions.

Historically, applicants often wait until the deadline to apply. In fact, the day and hours leading up to the deadline are always busiest periods. If the deadline cuts off at the end of that day, a large number of applicants will be shut out. So, I would like to highlight a new feature that we are particularly proud of: Deadline Timer and Grace Period.

Within a week of the deadline, the date turns into a countdown timer. This helps applicants in different time-zones to know exactly how much time they have left and also creates a greater sense of urgency. However, some people will still miss the deadline by a few hours. This is why we created the ability for institutions to turn on a secret grace period.

This can provide an extra day or two for applicants (who have already begun the process) to finish up. They have no knowledge that this grace is coming, but the deadline will turn into another countdown timer and give them a pleasant surprise. Further, no new applicants will be able to start a submission to this expired program. This creates a win/win situation for applicants and administrators.