While judging websites recently, I noticed a basic mistake taking place. It's one that Steve Krug vividly points out in his (still useful) book, "Don't Make Me Think."
Krug stresses that, when arriving at a website, a user should immediately be able to tell "What is this and what can I do here?" This seems to be a no-brainer, but it's surprising how many websites do not offer a short sentence explaining "what this is." (Perhaps we'll talk about the second question later.)
I've thought about why nonprofits sometimes do a poor job of answering the question, "What is this?" Here's what I've come up with.
First, website content is often written by non-profit staff people themselves. They're not trained in web strategy and the need to distill the "essence" of their work for a user is foreign to them.
Second, they are so close to the action that they assume everyone knows what their organization is all about. Even a long-standing organization like the Salvation Army needs to explain "what this is." (And I'm not sure that "Doing the Most Good" fits the bill.)
Second, nonprofits often see themselves as
so multifaceted that they can't
possibly be reduced to the essence statement that Krug asks for. This also leads nonprofits to describe all the "parts" and assume that the site visitor can pull it together themselves. "Parts is parts" might work to sell fried chicken. But it can confuse users and make it appear like your organization is all over the map.
Third, nonprofits often haven't taken the time to develop clear, concise and compelling message points. 'Nuf said.
Fourth, many nonprofits use their mission statement on their home page, thinking that this sums them up. Since I'm a strategic planning consultant who often helps organizations develop mission statements, you'd think I'd support this use of these important positioning statements. Au contraire. I don't believe that mission statements belong on home pages. Generally cobbled together by committees, mission statements cover the waterfront and provide important guidance for
planning. However they rarely (if ever) work as an essence statement on a home page.
For an example of Krug's rules carried out well, check out the winning website in the awards program I helped to judge:
www.water.org. It's very clear "what this is and what you can do there."
You'll have to find those that don't do this as well on your own.
