Did you realize that online donations to nonprofit organizations increase about 13 percent each year? For most organizations, finding a way to attract a large number of donors is one of their main focuses. Having an appealing and easy to navigate nonprofit website is a great way to garner more attention and increase the donations you get. When having the new site designed, be sure to include some of the following elements.
1. Make Every Pixel Purposeful
The main goal you need to have with your website is to convert visitors into actual donors. The only way to do this is by making your website appealing and informative. A web designer will help you to create the right balance between graphics, content and white space. The pixels you leave white are just as important as the parts of a web page covered with content or graphics. Having too much content crammed in will overwhelm a visitor, which can lead to your message being lost on them.
2. Audience-Centric Design Is Important
Knowing who your audience is should be a priority before beginning the construction of a new website. Without this type of information, you will struggle to create an audience-centric website. The overall design and content on your website should cater to the needs of your donor base. Losing sight of who your core donor is can lead to digital marketing disasters. Taking the time to look at other websites for organizations is a great way to get some ideas about how to approach the design of your own site.
3. Abide By the ‘Less Is More’ Policy
Choosing the right web design and theme is no easy task. There is a fine line between an appealing website and a site that just looks cluttered. Generally speaking, you should abide by the “less is more policy” when it comes to the amount of “stuff” you have on your website.
4. Consider Brand Identity
Determining the brand identity of your nonprofit is also important before beginning the web design process. Ideally, you want your website to coincide with the message and branding you are known for. Rather than rewriting essential elements of your brand that made you a success to begin with, you have to find a way to refine them. Changing the message of your nonprofit can have disastrous consequences and can make it very hard to get new donors interested.
5. Make the Purpose of the Nonprofit Evident
The visitors to your website will make a decision about whether or not they are interested in your cause in a matter of seconds. This means you only have a short window of time to entice and attract these visitors with your message. Making it clear what your charity is about and who it supports right away is paramount to the overall success of your website. If visitors have to hunt around for this type of basic information, they are more likely to get frustrated and leave quickly.
6. Move the Audience With Engaging Content
Nearly 30 percent of all website traffic comes from organic searches on powerful search engines like Google. Having keyword-rich content on your website is essential when trying to increase search traffic. When having this content developed, you need to stay on message.
7. The Right Mix of Creativity and Usability
While having a unique and creative website is important, you also need to make sure it is usable. If visitors to the site have a hard time navigating or are unable to find out certain information, it will be hard to convert them into actual donors.
Are you preparing for a website redesign? Get in touch to talk about your project.
