Nonprofit Website Stories By Design May 1, 2023 by Brad DeForest Thinking in: CMS/WebsitesWhen most nonprofits think about telling their stories through website design, they usually think of navigation and the content of the site. While navigation and content are important for telling visitors about the organization, and the “About” page should be easily found, most visitors just want to find something useful to them when they first… Read More
Nonprofit Websites Must Be Measured, Optimized, and Refactored June 29, 2022 by Brad DeForest Thinking in: CMS/Websites, Non Profit Tips, StrategyA well-designed nonprofit website will get some attention, putting forth a strong brand image and prompting engagement from your audience. But the work doesn’t end with the initial launch of your site – if you want to increase donations and/or sign-ups over time, you need to measure, optimize, and refactor. Here at BackOffice Thinking, we… Read More
Create an Effective and Helpful Hub for Nonprofit Members March 30, 2022 by Brad DeForest Thinking in: CMS/Websites, DesignDoes your nonprofit have an area of your website that requires members or constituents to login? Call it a Dashboard, Portal, or a Membership Center – whatever the name, you can think of it as a “homepage” for the constituent or member, and this can be enormously valuable to your audience. To provide the best… Read More
Improve Your Drupal Content Management Experience February 22, 2022 by Brad DeForest Thinking in: CMS/Websites, DesignContent management for your website should be easy, even if your site is highly complex. Over the years, we have continually improved the backend experience for the Drupal websites we develop. Our goal is to make it easier for administrators at nonprofit organizations to manage existing content and create new content. We have been focused… Read More
Drupal 7 is “Sunsetting” in 2023 (now 2025) December 21, 2021 by Brad DeForest Thinking in: CMS/Websites, DesignYou have probably heard by now that on January 5th in 2025, Drupal 7 will be at its “End of Life” (extended for the final time). This means the Drupal Association will no longer be supporting Drupal 7. But that doesn’t mean you have to upend everything and rush to upgrade your content management system!… Read More
How Accessible Is Your Nonprofit Website? May 25, 2021 by Brad DeForest Thinking in: CMS/Websites, DesignHow accessible is your website? Was accessibility a consideration when your website was designed? When we work with our clients, digital accessibility is a key focus of our work. If your website is to be a true “mission delivery platform,” helping you fully achieve your organization’s goals, it needs to serve all your constituents. Your… Read More
Top 9 SEO Tips for Nonprofit Success December 20, 2019 by Brad DeForest Thinking in: CMS/Websites, Non Profit Tips, StrategyHow familiar are you with the Search Engine Optimization setup of your website?What keywords does your website rank for? On average, how many visitors visit your website from Google search results? What is the average bounce rate on your website? These are a few of the many questions you should be able to answer about… Read More
Nonprofit Website Redesign: Bringing It All Together April 29, 2019 by Brad DeForest Thinking in: CMS/Websites, DesignIn previous blog posts, we’ve talked about Breaking the “Brochureware” Mindset and the Identity+Brain connection. Bringing all of it together will get us to a successful website design. Steve Jobs once said, “Design is not just what it looks like & feels like. Design is how it works.” When talking about websites, my version sounds… Read More
Nonprofit Website Redesign: Identity + Brain April 29, 2019 by Brad DeForest Thinking in: CMS/Websites, DesignDeveloping Your Interface In a previous blog post, we talked about Breaking the “Brochureware” Mindset and thinking about your organization’s Constituent User Interface (CUI) as an interactive hub. Now, we are going to focus on two primary concepts that can help you develop your CUI: Your Organization’s Identity: Your public “persona,” the face you’re presenting… Read More
Nonprofit Website Redesign: Breaking the Brochureware Mindset April 29, 2019 by Brad DeForest Thinking in: CMS/Websites, DesignWhen you think about redesigning your nonprofit’s website, what comes to mind? Often, organizations start with a list of information they need to share — facts, figures, operating hours, maybe a donate button. It’s time to move on from this “brochureware” approach. We’re here to suggest a totally new mindset that will help you establish… Read More
Is your Nonprofit Organization considering a Mobile App? February 13, 2018 by Brad DeForest Thinking in: CMS/Websites, CRM/AMS, Design, StrategyPerhaps your nonprofit wants to keep your constituents “in the loop” and updated on your organization’s latest efforts, impact stories, and events. Maybe you are doing that now using letters and newsletters through postal mail and emails. Perhaps you publish an annual report in PDF format or on your website. Maybe you even write regular… Read More
