Question

Topic: Website Critique

Non-profit: Help Make Site More User Friendly

Posted by Anonymous on 7/1/2006 at 3:15 AM ET 250 Points
I developed a website (up for three years now in different revolutions) at www.iLoveSchools.com. This site lets teachers register and ask for anything they need. I then find donors to give to the teachers. 100% of donations go directly from the donor to the teacher in need.


My concern is teachers have several opportunities on this site including:

1. Asking for anything they need (new or used) such as computers, pens, art supplies
2. Shopping through a catalog and adding items to a wishlist. In the near future (next two weeks) I will be adding the ability for teachers to shop from a catalog of 30,000 products and add them to a wishlist. Donors can then buy the wishlist and profits from that sale will be used to run the operation.
3. Browsing through what's called DonorOffer - a bulletin board where donors will list what they have to give. (similar to Craigslist) Teachers will ask and donors will select a teacher, send the gift, and remove the posting.
4. A Resource Library where teachers can find other groups or places that they can get help from.

Donors have a few opportunities:

1. Search for a teacher who has a need for a specific item the donor has to give (i.e. an old VCR). To do this they must use the donor search tool.
2. Post up the DonorOffer items as described above.
3. Donate directly to us and we will use the money to run the business.
4. Donate directly to us and we will send it to a teacher we select.
5. Start a ClassroomFriend group and get friends and family together to help local schools.
6. Use the NotifyMe feature to be notified by email if a teacher from a selected school asks for help.

The concern is that there are many facets to the teacher and donor experience. So much so that I'm worried teachers and donors will get lost and not use the site to it's fullest potential.

I have over 35,000 teachers registered so they do get it. The problem is I have far fewer donors which is why I added the ClassroomFriend and DonorOffer facets.

QUESTION: So, how do I clarify the experience for both segments (teachers and donors) without necessarily sacrificing any of the features - which each address specific needs. I tried separating the teachers and donor’s entry pages but, am getting a bit blurry-eyed and am losing my objectivity. My biggest concern is the donor experience. Teachers have come in droves and I will never have a problem finding a teacher in need.

Your critique and suggestions, especially insofar as the GUI goes would be more than appreciated. I just left my full-time business to run this thing full time. I am quite passionate about the mission and am looking forward to making a difference in the lives of potentially millions of kids lives.

I'm also looking for local volunteers to do a user study to see how people interact with the website. The results of that work will be combined with any critiques I can get to hopefully really come up with an effective site.

Thanks for your consideration!
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Frank Hurtte on 7/1/2006 at 10:47 AM Member
    I love the site.. I spent a few minutes checking it out..

    I did a local sampling... it looks like it is well used when a single teacher has success getting things donated.. and no success otherwise.

    I am going to sign up as a local volunteer. we need to drive this thing forward.
  • Posted by jpoyer on 7/2/2006 at 3:31 PM Accepted
    J,
    I like the way you separated the donors and the teachers section in the body section on the front page. The thing that I found a little confusing is that you have two distinct categories. You have the teachers, and the people that are trying to help the teachers. So you have, donors, classroom friends, volunteers, supporters, but they are all really people/companies that are trying to help the teachers.

    You might consider redesigning the menu buttons a little to allow for a category, such as "Help a Classroom" (since you already use that terminology), "How to Help" or something like that to give these items an umbrella section in the navigation to all the pages. Similarly to the approach that employment websites take, section for employers, section for job seekers. The distinction is very clear, and it allows users to easily navigate to the section which applies to them. [with the exception of the your listing of companies supporting the efforts, because that section needs to have top billing like you have it]

    If you can use a pop out menu in your navigation scheme, this will allow you to still have those items in your main navigation, without giving so many categories that makes it a bit overwhelming for someone on the donor/helper side. ... You also have enough area on your main page to highlight these programs (like the classroom friend thing) without adding as a main category on your common navigation. Similar to how you have the newsletter sign-up ...

    Overall, coming from a family of teachers and lifelong learners, I agree that this is a much needed service.
    I remember many, many times my mother pulling money out of her pocket (out of my dad's pocket, ha ha) to buy things for her classroom. I am definitely going to pass your site link along to her.

    Hope this helps, anyway :)

    Best,
    Jennifer
    XPRT Creative
  • Posted by whimziequiltz on 7/3/2006 at 8:53 AM Member
    Are you getting a lot of potential donors visiting your site but leaving because they find the website difficult to use or are donors not visiting the site at all? Like some of the other posters, I didn't see major problems with your site, but I can see how getting the word out to potential donors could be difficult. Maybe the solution isn't improving the website, but improving outreach to business groups, community groups, etc.
  • Posted by Deremiah *CPE on 7/3/2006 at 1:51 PM Accepted
    jhall,

    GREAT CONCPET...
    I use to raise scholarships for college students using a similar format but this was before the days of being able to put the concept online. We woud except donations from major corporations and it was my responsibility to contact these organizations. Upon receiving a donation we would make those products available on a list to schools.

    IT APPEARS...
    your users (the teachers) are driving the experience which is why you have so many more options for the teachers.

    Try to think in terms of letting the donors drive the business. In other words obtain a bigger net for catching donors in the development of your website experience. Coupled with this, try marketing your concept to the donor end experience versus the other way around. Remember there will always be room for end users like teachers who have needs.

    FOCUS YOUR CONCEPT...
    on the donors and the benefits your organization can bring them.

    LET'S THINK ABOUT CREATING DRIVERS FOR THE DONORS END OF THE EXPERIENCE...
    Your site is pretty nice. It seems you're more concerned about how donors might perceive the experience since they have less opportunity than teachers to be involved and that's okay. I currently have involvement with teachers, children and donors and I think your site is very effective. I will need to go back and look closer at your site and think in terms of how you could really create drivers for the donor end of the experience.

    HERE'S ANOTHER IDEA FOR YOU TO THINK ABOUT...
    I'll share one thing with you I've seen some websites create more of a sense of separation by using the home page as a place to seperate visitors to their respective places on the website. This can be done by having two major buttons upon which you can enter the site (like two doors of entry one for teachers the other for donors). This is not necessarily the best way to do it but it might be a great way to track your visitiors and even see how they might choose to cross over to the other experiences. Remember there are no real problems only a failure to be creative. Invent your opportunity and create your future. Is there anything else I can do for you?

    Your Servant, Deremiah, *CPE, (Customer Passion Evangelist)

    PS
    don't forget to evangelize your donor with Passion if you want more involvement from the donor. They've got to feel the LOVE!
  • Posted on 7/5/2006 at 10:02 PM Accepted
    Great initiative!

    I just want to build on what Deremiah has said, because I believe he's hit the nail on the head. You need to determine the drivers for your donors, then build an experience that satisfies these drivers.

    To do so, you'll first need to answer this question: Why would someone want to donate products to schools? Possible answers could include:
    1. Because it makes me feel good (self-fulfillment)
    2. Because I want to help children / teachers (philanthropist)
    3. Because I know that this is a cause near and dear to people's hearts (external-fulfillment)

    So, based on these drivers, what experience can you offer donors that will be relevant to a self-fulfiller, a philanthropist, and an external fulfiller? One suggestion is to create a forum whereby teachers can post pictures and letters to donors (donors can still remain anonymous) thanking them for their contribution. By doing this, you complete the experience cycle - once a donation is sent, dialogue and feedback is promoted, further involving the donor (this will also keep donors coming back to the site). A person seeking self fulfillment will feel good about what they have done, a philanthropist will see how they've made a difference, and a person seeking external fulfillment can show others how they've made a difference.

    I hope that you keep us posted on your progress.
    I wish you the best of luck!
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