Nonprofit Website Redesign: Breaking the Brochureware Mindset

When 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 your strategy, not just for redesigning your website, but for ALL the systems you use for marketing, fundraising, and communications. The brochureware days are over, and you must now think of your website as a dynamic place for engagement and transactions around your mission.

“Constituent User Interface” or CUI

Maybe you’ve heard of CMS, CRM, EMS, UI, UX, maybe even GUI — but as nonprofit leaders, you need to think of your website as a “Constituent User Interface.”

As a designer and solution architect, I use this term because it gives me a clearer, more holistic understanding of what is being designed. We are creating a connection between an organization’s constituents and the organization (its people and its systems). Your website will be the most central, most accessible place for humans all over the planet to learn, engage, interact, and transact with your nonprofit. It can’t be just a one-way, info-dump, bullhorn-style broadcast tool you maintain on the web. It must be a two-way interactive, multimedia, conversation space that is interconnected with all your systems and staff. In other words, it is an interface for constituents to interact and transact with your systems and databases in an easy, direct, and useful way.

For example, one of our Land Trust clients wanted to drive more visitors to its website, and ultimately to visit its properties. So, we embedded All Trails maps into the site. This resource keeps visitors returning to the website because they can interact and get useful information with a click. (And notice they can also easily transact with the Join and Donate buttons at the top.)

First Impressions in Marketing and Fundraising

This CUI will be your potential donor’s or member’s first impression of your nonprofit organization. The user experience (UX) of your website will be a positive and effective one…or not, depending on how much thought, effort, and time you give to designing it.

First impressions get you to the next impression. Needless to say, that first impression is critical for establishing lasting engagement!

Shifting to this mindset of interaction rather than brochureware is the first step in transforming your website. Next discover how your organization’s identity and brain will influence the choices you make for your interface.

Discover more resources for making your land trust website a powerful marketing & fundraising tool on our Powerful Land Trusts page.