Westchester Land Trust

Land-use organization needs to nix the insider talk on its site and engage visitors more directly.

September 2008 By Sarah Durham and Dan Gunderman

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For instance, there are only a few images around the site that feature people working or enjoying the land. But these photos highlight the human benefit of land preservation much more effectively than a stunning landscape can.

For a good example of photography demonstrating benefits, WLT might look at the Land Trust Alliance Web site (www.landtrustalliance.org). The Land Trust Alliance is a national network of local land trusts, of which WLT is a member. It does a great job of humanizing the work of a land trust through images (and more) on its Web site. It has pictures of farmers, bird watchers, hiking children and the occasional straight-up nature shot without people, clearly demonstrating who benefits from the organization’s work.

Similarly, the language on WLT’s Web site could be more outsider or audience-centric. Right now, it’s a lot of “we do this” and “we do that.” Instead of telling visitors (donors, residents, farmers, neighbors) what it does, WLT should consider language that demonstrates how they can benefit from its work — for example, by enjoying the parks it’s helped create.

In fact, WLT’s Web site is most successful on pages where it puts its focus squarely on its audience. In the “Visit a Preserve” section, the language shifts and speaks to visitors directly (“If you prefer a big, wooded preserve with long trails …”). The accompanying photo features an educator and children clearly benefiting from WLT’s work. Bravo!

Try this
To ensure that fundraisers are connecting to the needs of their audiences online, try this simple exercise. First, make a list of the questions clients, donors, the media, policy makers or other audiences might have when they visit your site — e.g., “How can I make a donation?”, “Where can I find information about that trail I want to hike?” or “Should I make a gift to this organization my board member friend told me about?”

Then assess the site against these questions. How easy are they to answer? Will audiences find what they’re looking for quickly and meaningfully? Nonprofit organizations help people. Keeping those beneficiaries in mind when creating any communications materials, including Web sites, is the surest way to demonstrate the value of your work to that other vital nonprofit constituency — donors. FS

Sarah Durham and Dan Gunderman are founder/principal and director of copywriting, respectively, at New York-based consultancy Big Duck.

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