I was responsible for designing the interactive annual report for Blue Sky fund, increasing donor retention and corporate funding by over 54%.
Blue Sky Fund is a youth development non-profit that provides transformational experiences for urban youth through outdoor education. They came to me in 2018 to transform their traditional, print-based annual report layout into an interactive experience to engage donors and increase support. Over the last 4 years I have helped them increase corporate donor funding by over 54% and individual donor funding to more than $379,000 per year which has helped increase the impact on at-risk youth in the community.
By analyzing secondary research and conducting my own primary research, I discovered that by targeting Millennials, Blue Sky Fund would likely see the most increase in donor support as well as corporate funding. Historically, Blue Sky Fund has only produced a print-based annual report which only reached current donors and with very little increase in support from year to year. By focusing on the “online” and “donor matching” statistics of giving for millennials, Blue Sky Fund was able to dramatically increase their individual donor roster as well as corporate matching programs.
Research Goals
Understand why individuals and businesses donate to non profits
Define the standard for donating online
Learn about popular and effective donation campaigns
Define common behaviors of individuals and businesses when donating
Determine users’ needs and frustrations when deciding to donate
Determine users’ needs and frustrations when donating online
Understand how donors and nonprofit recipients interact
Identify areas of the donation experience that could be improve
Since 2014, Blue Sky Fund has been producing a printed Annual Report that was mailed out to individuals and businesses on their current donor roster. Their annual report has served as their largest educational tool and traditional giving campaign initiative. Over the years they have hired multiple design teams without a consistent visual appearance, format, or an actionable giving opportunity.
Key Problems to address:
Print Version only
Too much text / too small
Lack of hierarchy of information
Lack of focus on giving
No actionable way to give
No options for giving: monthly
No clear aesthetic
Inconsistent branding
After researching the giving statistics and online habits of millennials across the United States and specifically Richmond, VA, I created three User Personas to guide my designs with empathy and action in mind: The “New to Blue Sky Fund” Influencer, the extremely active Blue Sky Fund Volunteer, and the Monthly giver with a soft spot for youth and the outdoors.
By using Empathy Maps I was able to understand what they users say, think, do and feel in their decision to make a donation. Using User Scenario-based and aggregate mapping I was able to enter the ideation phase armed with empathy and understand of potential users.
By quickly sketching out ideas on paper, I was able to consider the user journey and the various screens they encounter on their donation journey.
I created clickable Lo Fi wireframes to map out each screen before sending them out for usability testing. Intentionally excluding images and color allowed the testers (clients, existing donors, and non-affiliated users) to consider the functionality and completion of the goal instead of being distracted by primary visual components.
By completing three rounds of Usability Testing I discovered the various journeys users took to complete a donation. From directly to the donate page users to users who clicked on every screen, I was able to understand pain points and make adjustments.
Key Takeaways:
Donate footer works well on most screens but not on the donate page. Solution: A more traditional “Donate Now” button.
Lengthy vertical scrolling on the programming pages kept the users from seeing vital information that could impact their donation decision. Solution: Keeping the goal stationary in front of the user while cycling the facts and impact numbers horizontally.
Donation Amounts: Users all agreed that they preferred the donation screen option that had set donation amounts with the option to input a custom amount.
Corporate matching: Users were not always sure if the company they worked for allowed corporate matching. Many were curious what companies allowed it even if they were certain theirs did not. Solution: Search field for registered businesses as well as an input if their company was not listed in the drop down.
In my research I learned that one of the biggest reasons potential donors fail to give is that they are unclear what exactly they are giving to. I made sure that Blue Sky Fund’s mission and key programming facts are front and center every step of the way.
Potential donors want to know exactly what an organization’s financial goals are and where that money is going so they can be sure that their donation will make maximum impact. By Including financial charts and listing other donors and sponsors, users can be assured that their donation is in good hands.
The purpose of Blue Sky Fund’s Annual Report is to increase their donor roster, increase engagement, and raise funds to keep programming growing from year to year. Increasing the donor roster was the number one priority for this project so I made sure that the “donate now” button was always visible and actionable.
One of the key takeaways from User Research and Usability Testing was the absolute need for the donation process to be clear, simple, and quick. Feedback from preliminary testing and research led me to donation increment choices that best suited Millennials, our main target market. The inclusion of an easy “corporate donation matching” process was also vital to maximum efficacy of the campaign.
