1 / 25

NGO Websites

NGO Websites. Course Instructors: Eric R. Jacobs, M.B.A. Sandra M. Jacobs, M.B.A. US Peace Corps L’viv Catholic University’s Institute for Non-Profit Management February 2006 Certificate Program. Agenda. Why does your NGO need a Website? Fundamental Website Principles Development Strategies

alyn
Download Presentation

NGO Websites

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. NGO Websites Course Instructors:Eric R. Jacobs, M.B.A.Sandra M. Jacobs, M.B.A.US Peace CorpsL’viv Catholic University’s Institute for Non-Profit Management February 2006 Certificate Program

  2. Agenda • Why does your NGO need a Website? • Fundamental Website Principles • Development Strategies • Real ‘Live’ Examples • Practical Application Exercise

  3. Why does your NGO need a Website? • The internet has become the first source of communication for most organizations • Domestically • Internationally • Websites allow a direct link to your service recipients, employees and volunteers…even to those who did not know you otherwise existed! • Websites are a relatively inexpensive way to disseminate as much information as you wish

  4. Key Website Principles • KISS (Keep it Simple, Silly) • Identify your audience • Homepage basics…what to include? • Language options and translation strategies • 2 click principle • Font and color strategies • Remember loading time • Photos – to include or not to include?

  5. KISS (Keep it Simple, Stupid) • Don’t create a monster or website for everyone, focus on your audiences • Only include information you need to effectively communicate to your audience • Build your website in stages. It is better to have small site than one “under construction” • The home page should answer who, what, where, why, when and how

  6. Identify your audience • Answer the following questions: • Who needs information about my NGO? • Potential donors • Members and or staff • Service recipients • Others • What information will be helpful to them? • What language(s) do they speak? • Culture, Time Zone, etceteras?

  7. Homepage basics…what you need? • Important homepage information or links: • Mission and vision of your NGO • Services provided by your NGO & to whom • Donors • Service recipients • Members page • ‘Contact Us’ page • Annual report, if applicable • Current Projects • Success stories and past projects • Fundraising and or donation information • Index page

  8. Language translation strategies • Consider your language requirements: • Is Ukrainian or Ukrainian/Russian sufficient to meet your website and organizational needs? • If English or other languages are required, who will translate the website? • When presenting information for foreign donors or partners, professionalism is critical! • Find a native speaker if possible to proofread your website content before posting online. • Translations of new material must be timely and accurate.

  9. Two (2) click principle • Try to keep your website to 3 layers, so that a user can navigate anywhere on the website with only two ‘2’ clicks • Navigation bar helps to implement this within the website design, a vertical bar on the left of the screen is a well accepted norm • Homepage link should be on every page • Have a Website index on the homepage and every page if possible

  10. Font and color strategies • Try to keep the fonts standard and easy to read • Information first, style second • Stay away from cursive, mixed fonts and blinking texts • Bolding is acceptable and effective to highlight headings and titles, but do not “over do it” • It is acceptable to use your organization’s fonts when expressing symbols, emblems and titles.

  11. Font and colorstrategies • Keep the color schemes simple, easy to read and pleasant to the eyes. • Stay away from black, red, purples and yellow backgrounds. • Try to use soothing colors; grey, blues, earth tones and greens. • It is acceptable to use your organizations colors, symbols or emblems, but use them sparingly if they are not a good website colors

  12. Remember loading time • Your homepage should consider lower connectivity speed users. • If a user does not see the homepage, they will not wait to see the rest of the site • 5 seconds should be the maximum loading time for your homepage (1 - 2 seconds is the norm in America) • 10 second maximum for other pages on the site • If you do not expect a lot of users to download information, do not include it

  13. Photos, to include or not to include? • Pros • A picture tells a thousand words • They grab people attention • They create familiarity • Cons • They slow page download speed • They can miscommunicate a message • They can be perceived as unprofessional

  14. Development Strategies • What if your organization has no knowledge of websites? • Incorporate website design and development into a larger or specific project proposal • Research Ukrainian and international websites of organizations similar to yours • What do you like? What don’t you like? What is missing? What is annoying? • Use the answers assist in the development of your site • Work with a university or institute to find technical students looking for ‘practical internship’

  15. Development Strategies • Building an effective website is a project first, then an ongoing operation. Plan accordingly. • Create a project to build or overhaul your website • Determine who builds the site • Who will host the site • Develop a budget and stick to it • Develop an operational strategy to keep you website updated and maintained • Will the site be maintained internally or externally? • Develop a budget and stick to it • Review the plan every six months • A neglected website can do more harm than good to your organization, do not build it and forget it!

  16. Development Strategies80 / 20 Rule • The classic definition of the principle states: that a small number of the causes (20%) are responsible for most (80%) of the effect. • With respect to web design, it can be said that 20% of the work will take up 80% of your time. • Success can be found in identifying that expensive 20% and taking proactive steps to mitigate the costs and time.

  17. Good and Bad Websites • The following slides show three examples of websites from good to fair to bad. • A good website is easily understood, with a high information to data ratio. It can be read over quickly and effectively and has left side or top navigation. • A fair website has all the right components, but may have too large a homepage or too long a loading time or some missing key elements • A poor website it confusing, requires a lot of work form the reader and looks unprofessional, it does not invite someone back regardless of the information’s value

  18. Example #1 Goodwill Industries

  19. Example #1 Goodwill Industries

  20. Example #2 Youth Can

  21. Example #2 Youth Can

  22. Example #3 Youth Can

  23. Example #3 RAFSG – L,R&V

  24. Example #3 RAFSG – L,R&V

  25. NGO Website Design . Any Questions?

More Related