Nonprofit Orgs: What a First-Time Donor Sees on Your Homepage
POV: it's 11pm on a Tuesday night, someone followed a link to your nonprofit's website. They don't know you, or have any existing relationship with your work. They aren’t loyal to your mission, and have no reason yet to believe you're different from the three other organizations working in the same space.
They're going to form an impression of your organization in about ten seconds, and in that short amount of time, will determine whether they remain on your site or leave.
What the research shows about first impressions
In UX research, this manifests in how trust influences decisions made on websites before content is consciously processed. First impressions show that people evaluate a website's credibility almost entirely through visual signals in the first few seconds, including layout, color coherence, visual hierarchy, image quality, which is all before reading any content.
For nonprofit organizations, the relationship with a donor, volunteer, or community member is built on trust, which is he visual impression your homepage makes in less than a minute is more persuasive than any other content on the site.
What the donor actually needs
The person who lands on your homepage, without any existing relationship with your work, is subconsciously asking themselves these type of questions:
Does this look like a real organization?
Does this feel like somewhere that takes its work seriously?
Can I tell immediately what this organization does and who it serves?
Is there a clear next step if I want to know more or get involved?
These questions won't get answered by reading a blog post or your mission statement; the consistency and professionalism of the brand design will answer questions before someone reads anything.
The quicker someone gets their questions answered, they will remain on the site to gather more information. This typically ends in more interaction, such as donating or signing up to volunteer.
When someone isn’t able to get their questions answered because the brand design is cluttered, or it looks dated, or unconsidered, people tend to leave a site faster; brand design communicates legitimacy just as much as words do.
What good nonprofit homepage design does in ten seconds
A homepage that earns the first-time visitor's trust does three things immediately:
It names exactly who the organization is and who it serves, such as in a headline. It should be a clear, specific statement of what this organization does and for whom.
It provides one visible point of proof, such as a result in numbers or a personal story. Concrete evidence demonstrates that real work has been done, and has a foundation to continue.
It provides a clear next step, such as donate, get involved, learn more, contact us that doesn’t require the visitor to navigate or search.
The homepage is the whole conversation
For most nonprofit organizations, the majority of first-time visitors will never become regular visitors for different reasons. But, a first impression leads to some kind of engagement depends almost entirely on those first ten seconds.
Take the next step
Want to know what a first-time visitor sees when they land on your nonprofit's homepage? Download the free Nonprofit Website Checklist, 10 questions that help you evaluate your online presence before it costs you a donor.
→ Get it free at wellfolkdesign.com/resources