Wild Cumberland | Nonprofit Redesign

July 2, 2020

Background:

Cumberland Island has been an interest of mine ever since I was taken there in 2011, so when my wife became the program manager for the Wild Cumberland 501(3)c, we had some work to do to bring things up to speed with all aspects of the organization.

The goal of Wild Cumberland is to provide public oversight and stewardship of Cumberland Island. Their purpose is to help educate the public and hold decision-makers accountable.

The Problem:

The organization was lacking the leadership it needed to achieve it’s goals. This meant little donation activity which was not helping the organization’s initiatives move forward.

5 Why’s to Determine Root Cause

  • Problem: The organization lacks the resources needed to achieve it’s goals.
    • Why?: It is difficult for viewers to donate, voice opinions, volunteer time or stay connected to the org activities.
    • Why?: The org wasn’t easily accessible on social media and dated website made the org look inactive.
    • Why?: No plan for social media content or funds for website updates.

The Actions:

Now that we identified the problem, it was time to determine next actions.

Through my competitor research on other non-profits with similar goals, we came to a few areas of focus we needed to concentrate on which defined the product strategy.

This was validated with stakeholders. Then larger pieces of website development work were split into smaller, more consumable prioritized stories.

Areas of Focus:

  • WEBSITE & SOCIAL
    • WILDERNESS HISTORY EDUCATION
      Educate the public about the wilderness designation so that can participate in the stewardship of the island.
    • ISLAND ISSUES EDUCATION
      Educate the public about issues the island faces so that they can participate in the eradication of these issues.
    • BUILD WC TEAM
      Gather volunteers to spread the word and advisory board members so that we follow non-profit bylaws.
    • GENERATE REVENUE
      Funds are needed so that the organization can defend it’s stance.
    • BRAND EXPOSURE
      Make sure that the Wild Cumberland brand is recognizable when it comes to the protection of Cumberland Island.

The Results:

2 months since the launch of the new website and store, we have had a consistent stream of t-shirt and book purchases along with many submitted forms on the website.

Final Branding:


Branding:

  • Used initial sketches from stakeholders to craft new logo applicable on all forms of collateral
  • Created style guide to help kick off website design [Need image]
  • Provided wireframes, mock-ups and XD prototypes to facilitate stake-holder feedback
Website Features:

  • Easy to donate
  • Market page ft. t-shirts and autographed books
  • User Forms
    • Submit volunteering inquiries
    • Submit concerns about the island
    • Message the National Park Service directly about any of the island’s issues
    • Access to legal documents

Measured Success:

  • WEBSITE & SOCIAL
    • WILDERNESS HISTORY EDUCATION
      Easily navigable website gives access access to legal docs. The timeline visualizations makes the history easy to consume.
    • ISLAND ISSUES EDUCATION
      An average of 10 forms a month by users voicing concern about island issues were submitted directly to the superintendent of the National Park Service
    • BUILD WC TEAM
      Constant stream of volunteer inquiries received through website
    • GENERATE REVENUE
      An average of 8 shirts and 1 book sold per month
    • BRAND EXPOSURE