ROSE HAVEN

A website redesign for a non-profit day shelter

Overview
Rose Haven is a day shelter serving women, children, and non-binary individuals experiencing abuse and homelessness. The website serves as a critical resource, offering information about the wide range of services available.

Aim
This project aimed to enhance the website experience by providing clients with easier access to resources, fostering hope and security, and creating streamlined, impactful user paths for donors to inspire and simplify their contributions.

Role & Duration

Product Designer

User Research, UX/UI Design, Prototyping

4 Team members

2 Weeks

Why redesign the old website?

Clients experiencing trauma and homelessness struggle to access resources, while donors face navigation challenges, hindering contributions. Rose Haven's website lacked streamlined paths, making it harder for clients to find help and for donors to engage effectively.

User-Research

To ensure the redesign addressed real user needs, I conducted interviews with clients (survivors) and donors. The goals were to understand survivors’ most common needs and their challenges in accessing information, as well as what motivates donors. These conversations revealed key challenges and emotional drivers for each group, shaping the redesign approach.

“I was scared my partner might see what I was looking at, so I needed to do everything very quickly. There was too much text and not enough immediate clarity on what services were offered.”
- Client

“Knowing that my contribution directly helps survivors regain control over their lives is very meaningful to me.”
- Donor

From Interviews to Personas

Using insights from the interviews, I developed two personas to represent Rose Haven’s primary user-types:

  • Sarah, the Client: A single mother seeking quick and reliable access to services for herself and her children. She values clear, accessible information and discreet safety features to protect her privacy.

  • Lily, the Donor: A dedicated supporter who seeks transparency and a clear understanding of how her contributions directly impact the community.

These personas served as guiding tools for aligning the redesign with user needs.

Analyzing Competitors

To gather additional ideas and inspiration, I conducted a competitive analysis of similar nonprofit websites.

Key Takeaways

  • Clear Navigation: Competitor websites emphasize the importance of making essential resources easily accessible by avoiding overly complex or deeply embedded structures.

  • Safe Exit Feature: A critical feature observed is the inclusion of a "safe exit" button, enabling users to quickly leave the site while redirecting to a neutral page (e.g., a Google search for recipes) and clearing browsing history for added safety.

  • Symbolic Use of Purple: Many nonprofit domestic abuse websites incorporate purple as a core design element, leveraging its symbolic connection to peace, courage, survival, honor, and a commitment to ending violence.

Current Design Analysis

A heuristic evaluation of the original website was conducted, focusing on user needs revealed by the research.

Core Issues Identified:

  • Ambiguous service icons on the homepage.

  • Outdated information about COVID-19's impact on services.

  • Accessibility issues with color and font.

  • Insufficient emphasis on donations.

  • Outdated terminology (e.g., "helping" vs. "our impact").

  • Missing critical "Safely Exit" button for domestic abuse victims.

The Redesign

Building on user research, competitor analysis, and heuristic evaluation, I developed a focused redesign with the following updates:

  • Safety Features: Added a "Safely Exit" button that redirects to a neutral page and disables the back button to protect user privacy.

  • Service Accessibility: Highlighted essential services on the homepage for quick access and redesigned the services page for clarity.

  • Purposeful Use of Purple: Integrated purple into the design to evoke peace, courage, and hope, reinforcing the mission to support survivors.

  • Updated Information: Ensured content reflects the latest impact of COVID-19 on services.

  • Inclusive Design: Modernized terminology and applied a refreshed, accessible design system.

  • Donation Focus: Featured a prominent "Donate" button, paired with stories and impacts of past contributions to inspire and build trust among donors.

Client Path Prototype

Donor Path Prototype

KPI’s

  • Clients spend 15% less time on the site because they find the information they need in a smoother and quicker manner

  • Donors spend 10% more time on the By The Numbers page

  • Online donations increase by 10%

  • 30% less calls and questions to staff, as all the information is easily found on the website

Lesson for the future

  • Understanding your user is key - Initially defined only the client, but quickly realized the donor’s significant role in the use of the website.

Next steps would be

  • Collaborate with an overnight shelter to provide basic information on how to reach their services

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