CAIR-LA
MAKING AN IMPACT IN TRYING TIMES
Overview
To communities across the nation, CAIR is a beacon of hope.
I came on as the team User Experience Designer and took on the mission of reimagining CAIR’s online presence.
I saw this as a considerable responsibility, and an opportunity to make a deeply meaningful impact.
Deliverables
The Problem
This is a study of the possibility of redesigning the CAIR-LA landing page in pursuit of increasing conversion rates (donations and sign-ups). CAIR is a non-profit civil rights advocacy group. In the scope of recent 501(c)(3) industry trends we believe that a reassessment of the digital space will realign CAIR with its growth potential.
Upon preliminary observation, I suspect that the user experience leaves users with some uncertainty as to how they can make a difference through donations and involvement in the organization. It is likely that the landing page user experience does not capture its full potential in addressing user needs. A redesign of the user experience may increase conversion rates.
The Question
The Goal
The How
How can we design a user experience that will motivate users to donate and/or get involved with CAIR?
Understand user needs/motivations.
Design a user experience that demonstrates why users should donate and/or get involved with CAIR.
Conduct usability tests, user interviews, and collaborate with CAIR’s departments to understand/design for user needs.
The Research
We kicked off user research with stakeholder interviews as well as an audit of website traffic trends/data.
I conducted user interviews and usability tests with 7 participants. These exercises assessed user expectations, impressions, attention, frustrations, motivations, and ultimately user needs.
I wrote and distributed surveys to quantitatively evaluate and prioritize user needs.
After conducting stakeholder interviews, user testing, and user surveys we synthesized findings into key design insights.
Mariam N.
Personal background: 21, university student
Professional background: 4th year Economics major
Daily life: Enjoys meeting friends at the cross-cultural center between classes. Prepares for MUN meetings twice a week.
User environment: Library/dorm on laptop and smartphone.
Psychographics: Searching for career opportunities. Values community-based environments.
Goals: Get into law school. Build a meaningful career.
Scenario: “I’ve been debating pursuing a career as a civil rights attorney or an elected official. I am looking to gain legal experience before I graduate.”
Haroon S.
Personal background: 46, married
Professional background: Engineer, $175K
Daily life: Works a 9-5 job and spends time with family during the evenings. Enjoys engaging with friends and community over weekends.
User environment: Office/home laptop and smartphone.
Psychographics: Involved in managing household finances. Appreciates tools that help facilitate a busy life. Very family and community oriented.
Goals: Provide for their family. Connecting with and contributing to their community. Caring about the state of the country.
Scenario: “I am a first generation immigrant. My country of birth does not value democracy and human rights. I want to give my family the best home and future. I believe that it is our collective responsibility to protect each others’ rights and care for one another.”
General Insights:
Users found the experience disorienting.
Users indicated that they did not have a clear understanding as to why they should get involved or donate to the organization.
Users were overwhelmed by the information and undecided as to if/how they could make a difference.
Design a user experience that illustrates the problems CAIR solves, how it solves them, and how users can make a difference. Integrate a journalistic and community-based ambience in the design.
I kicked off the design process by involving relevant departments in crazy 8 sketches.
After drafting some initial wireframes I moved into prototype design and usability testing.
After multiple iterations, we designed the new and improved CAIR user experience.
The Design
Landing Page (Hero Image)
Landing Page
Article View
Opportunities Form
Donation Form
The Features
I designed the hero image with the mission statement in order to simply and effectively preface user expectations.
At the top of the landing page we summarized the original 8 tabs into 3 tabs that are directly linked to the three sections of the landing page. This was done in order to properly orient and avoid overwhelming users.
These three tabs/sections mirror the flow that I describe in the recommendations. This includes highlighting the problems CAIR is addressing (“National Issues”), how it solves them (“What We Do”), and how users can get involved (“Get Involved”).
The first tab/section ”National Issues” is designed to direct the users’ attention to the problems that CAIR is addressing. Our surveys showed that amongst the various issues that CAIR is involved in addressing, users are primarily concerned with cases of targeted discrimination/violence. The section starts with a headline (problem) followed by an allusion to CAIRs involvement (solution) in the matter. Below this users will find a link to CAIRs annual report (usability tests indicated that users wanted the option to read more about CAIRs efforts and impact), as well as further details concerning the section headline.
The second tab/section ”What We Do” is designed to communicate how CAIR solves the problems previously addressed as well as the magnitude of CAIR’s efforts. The section highlights CAIRs departments and their achievements. This is followed by a call to action. Below this the user will find links to social media and events. In case the user is not yet interested, these components will re-invite the possibility for a micro-conversion.
The third tab/section ”Get Involved” is designed to demonstrate the value and impact of getting involved. The volunteer call to action is accompanied by primary user motivations for volunteering, as indicated by user surveys. The call to donate is accompanied by a clarification of the control a donor has over their donation.
User interviews indicated that users would be more likely to donate if they understood how their donation will make an impact. Beneath the department options the user is also notified that they will be able to track how their contributions are used.
I designed the process for finding opportunities to be dynamic and highly customizable to user interests.