Earthwatch's Digital Transformation Journey
Earthwatch, is dedicated to fostering a deep connection with nature through partnerships with communities and organisations. They provide programmes, education and online tools that empower individuals and communities to address the climate crisis and find a balance with nature.
The Challenge
Earthwatch approached That Web Person with an awareness that their website was not realising its full potential. However, the urgency to assess and revamp their site was intensified by their impending migration from their current content management platform, Joomla. With less than six months to launch a new website, Earthwatch aimed to identify immediate improvements while laying the groundwork for a comprehensive content strategy overhaul and a complete website redesign.
Objectives
Earthwatch's main objectives were to:
Identify Quick Wins: Discover immediate improvements that could enhance the website's performance and user experience.
Improve User Experience: Enhance the website's overall user experience to encourage engagement, including donations and newsletter sign ups.
Simplify Ongoing Maintenance: Streamline website maintenance processes for efficient updates and content management.
Our Approach
That Web Person quickly commenced a comprehensive website audit and a SWOT analysis, which provided critical insights into the existing challenges and opportunities.
Audience Insights
Our audience insights were derived from a competitor analysis, bolstered by additional data obtained through a short-run user research survey. This research enabled us to identify industry best practices and areas where Earthwatch could differentiate itself.
Challenges Identified
Our analysis pinpointed six key challenges:
How to effectively represent the breadth of Earthwatch's work, both planned and achieved.
Strategies to enhance user engagement, including increasing donations and newsletter sign-ups.
Management of outdated content, such as team member information and closed projects.
Strategies for managing new content, including projects and partners.
Ongoing website maintenance to keep the site current.
Managing their relationship with their micro-sites and addressing issues related to duplicate content.
Recommendations
In light of the challenges identified, our recommendations led us to conclude that Earthwatch's resources and time would be best invested in a comprehensive website redevelopment project, as quick fixes were too numerous and less effective.
Our focus shifted towards improving Earthwatch's information architecture to optimise audience engagement and user journeys. This strategic foundation would serve as the foundations for their forthcoming website redevelopment.
This thorough groundwork streamlined the project’s costs and timeline. This approach provided Earthwatch with a clear roadmap, ensuring that their unique needs and objectives took precedence in their project’s direction. They could shape their website’s information architecture, identify audience information crossovers and minimise assumptions.
Key Achievements
Our partnership with Earthwatch yielded significant achievements:
A comprehensive website audit evaluated its performance, content quality, user engagement, and technical aspects, resulting in a roadmap for improvement.
A competitive analysis identified best practices and areas where Earthwatch could distinguish itself within their industry.
User-centric research provided insights into Earthwatch's audience, allowing us to better cater to their needs and preferences.
User experience (UX) design guidelines were established, enhancing navigation, layout, and interaction design for an improved user journey.
“Working with Reena has been an absolute joy. She has approached our complex project with professionalism and positivity and has played an instrumental role in the success of the website launch. Reena’s work to identify our audiences, their interests and their digital touch points helped us to shape the information architecture of our new website and to present a complex set of interconnected information in a user-friendly manner. I would highly recommend Reena and I look forward to working with her again.
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Conclusion
Earthwatch's digital transformation journey benefitted greatly from strategic planning and a user-centric approach. By prioritising user experience, content quality, and efficient maintenance, Earthwatch’s website now works better and harder. It’s easier for people to find what they want and it’s simpler to manage.
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