Online Donations: Usability Testing
Many thanks to Abny Santicola at Fundraising Success mag for pointing us to the latest usability testing on nonprofit websites by design guru Jakob Nielsen.
Nielsen is the best at this. His methodology is to observe in realtime how visitors actually use websites, read e-newsletters, etc. I wish there were a Nielsen of direct mail usability!
In this study, Nielsen looks specifically at the effectiveness of nonprofit websites at eliciting online donations. People were observed navigating sites of 23 groups like Environmental Defense Fund, Habitat for Humanity, Red Cross, and the National Gallery of Art.
Here are what Nielsen calls "donation-killers":
- 47% were usability problems relating to page and site design, including unintuitive information architecture, cluttered pages, and confusing workflow. Amazingly, on 17% of the sites, users couldn’t find where to make a donation. You’d imagine that donation-dependent sites would at least get that one design element right, but banner-blindness or over-formatting caused people to overlook some donation buttons.
- 53% were content issues related to writing for the Web, including unclear or missing information and confusing terms.
This is a very detailed report costing $98. But even if your nonprofit is only raising $1,000 a year online, you’ll find insights that will easily pay back your investment. You can visit Nielsen’s site here to get a good overview of the kind of analysis and recommendations that are provided in the report.
Jakob Nielsen, you deserve a raise!
Tom Belford
4 responses to “Online Donations: Usability Testing”
Behavioral Science Q & A
Integrating an individual giving appeal with other communications from a charity can have both positive and negative effects, and the outcome largely depends on how it’s executed. Advantages of Integration Brand Consistency: Maintaining a consistent appearance and messaging across all communications can reinforce the org’s brand identity and strengthen brand recognition and trust among your […]
Read Full Answer
I’m not aware of any in-market tests specifically comparing recurring vs. gift frequency language. I suspect the answer might not be the same with all gift frequencies, nor with all people. It sounds like a great opportunity for you to test and find out what works for your audience. Based on the literature, here’s a couple […]
Read Full Answer
Based on what we know from existing data, those renewal notices can actually be pretty effective in getting people to donate. They tap into our psychology – creating a sense of urgency, reminding us of past support, and using personalization to make the message hit home. They’re playing on our natural tendencies to feel obligated […]
Read Full Answer
Interesting question. I had a quick look at the testing done on this topic. On the positive side, in all cases, over half of donors decide to cover the fee. In some cases, it goes as high as 65%. Not a negligible percentage at all. Here’s another test from iRaiser showing consistent results (see point […]
Read Full Answer
There’s just one thing to consider when designing a supporter journey: the supporter. More specifically, you need to take into account: Who the supporter is i.e. their identity, which is the reason they support this cause, and their personality, which describes the way they “see” and process the world. These will determine the kind of […]
Read Full Answer
I’m not an expert in this but a quick search surfaced this article on the effect of tax reforms on 2019’s charitable giving. The researchers didn’t find a reduction. Actually, they observed an “increase in charitable contributions in 2019, even with the lower tax rates and the dramatically smaller number of taxpayers who itemize their […]
Read Full Answer
Usability testing is one of the more under utilized things you can do to improve your online results. It doesn’t require a lot of resources or costs to do even basic testing. I highly recommend Steve Krug’s book “Don’t Make Me Think” which is written for a non-technical audience.
The Nielsen report covers a lot more than just online donations. It really give a good breakdown of some nonprofit website design best practices.
Some good nuggets in the report include:
– Fixing a process with even minor usability problems might increase donations by 10%.
-The most frequently mentioned turnoffs was a lack of or unclear description of an organization’s mission, goals, objectives, or work.
– Confirmation pages are critical on both e-commerce and donation sites. However, non-profit and charity sites must include a confirmation page as part of the donation process, which should include a receipt for tax purposes. Additionally, a receipt should be emailed to the address provided during the donation process.
– Some charities, especially those that support medical research, treatment, and support, should allow users to specify an individual to make their donation in honor or memory of.
– On the confirmation page, thank users for their donation. It doesn’t need to be elaborate, but a simple recognition is appreciated. Also, it’s nice to reiterate how the money will be used.
The report should pay for itself if you try just a few of the recommendations.
I had a slightly different take on the same source site, for what it may be worth: http://happydonors.com/?p=293
Thanks for the great link to the report. It’s worth noting that A/B testing is always critical for usability. Slight changes in locations of buttons, color schemes, or work flows can lead to significantly different results.
[…] — the best advice/commentary blog for nonprofits out there — recently commented on the Nielson Norman report I just cited. Blackbaud’s Steve McLauglin posted some comments on this including […]