Oxfam Ireland: streamlining CRM and donations for an effortless UX
When Oxfam Ireland's site was migrated from Drupal 7 to Drupal 10 it also underwent a redesign. Its striking new website underpins its strategy and makes it easy for users to find information, make donations and volunteer.
Background
Although it was part of the international brand, Oxfam’s Irish site looked very different to the other Oxfam sites.
The objective behind its revamp wasn’t just to bring the Ireland site in line with the corporate brand, to ensure the brand had a single unified look and feel, but to also allow Oxfam Ireland to more effectively communicate its own brand story and strategic objectives.
The old site was still running on Drupal 7 which was nearing end-of-life. It had grown over time and was no longer meeting the needs of Oxfam Ireland adequately. It was not intuitive, difficult to navigate, and wouldn’t have achieved the desired accessibility standards.
As well as upgrading from Drupal 7 to Drupal 9, there were more than 400 content pieces that had to be migrated. These included blogs, press releases, and files.
Approach
Migration approach
Oxfam's content editors prepped the new content according to the content plan, and the existing content, such as blogs that had been earmarked for migration, was automatically migrated by Annertech's tech team.
Editing interface
Oxfam Ireland was one of Annertech’s first projects to use Layout Builder, which allows content designers to design pages in a flexible way using a drag and drop interface. As you build a page, the WYSIWYG editing interface allows editors to add new sections and blocks.
Layout Builder allows content managers to be flexible and adapt their layout to suit the content.
Design features
The simple, clear typeface conveys the message effectively without detracting from the incredible images that are used for maximum impact throughout.
The landing pages use striking hero images to drive home their message. All the landing pages feature a mega menu that situates the reader perfectly. On desktop, this is a drop-down mega menu, but on mobile the menu is a list that appears when the user clicks on the hamburger menu. This allows users to easily navigate their way around the site, no matter what device they are using.
Oxfam's new website is responsive and extremely easy to navigate.
The new website needed to be user friendly and modern, and – above all – accessible. It formed a big part of Oxfam Ireland’s communication strategy, so the pressure was on to deliver an engaging, striking website that is easy to navigate. The design brought the site into line with the global Oxfam look and feel, yet allows it to tell its own stories.
The “impact stories”, which had the most incredible imagery, formed the basis of the new design. The structures that house “impact content" were custom-built for the website, and allows the stunning imagery to anchor the content.
The information on the site was restructured and pared down into three main sections/pages:
- Oxfam in action – campaigns
- Get involved – volunteer, donate, speak out, shop
- News/stories – impact
A colour-coded content tagging system created an easier way to navigate the site.
Oxfam's colour-coded types of content help the user situate themselves within the site.
Integrating donations and CRM
Oxfam Ireland uses its fundraising efforts to provide life-changing long-term development projects, life-saving humanitarian assistance, and campaigning and advocacy to tackle the root causes of poverty and injustice.
A key priority is to contribute to the development of and support the delivery of a digital strategy for Oxfam Ireland’s trading network. The new website communicates its work and needs to the users, supports the bricks and mortar shops, and helps drive the NGO’s e-commerce work.
The donation and newsletter sign-up processes have been integrated into Oxfam Ireland's new website so that it’s quick and easy for users to donate money or get involved.
Crucially, the website had to be integrated with Oxfam Ireland’s donation system. Another important part of Oxfam’s strategy is its message, and getting its message out to the right people.
It was important to integrate the website with their customer relationship management software to ensure a smooth user experience for those wanting to volunteer with Oxfam or stay abreast of what the organisation is doing.
Now, not only is it incredibly easy to donate to Oxfam Ireland, but signing up to volunteer or to receive newsletters is also a simple process.
We've been an Annertech client for 10 years now and have an excellent relationship with the team. Our previous website was still running on Drupal 7. We needed to migrate all the content over, and update not only the system but also the design, bringing it in line with our new global brand and accessibility standards. We've noticed an uptick in meaningful user engagement with lower bounce rates and higher on page time, which indicates that the new website is hitting the right notes with our audience.
– Colin Carey, Head of Digital, Oxfam Ireland
Results
oxfamireland.org showcases the diverse and inclusive work of the organisation in fighting poverty and injustice around the world. It features stories, videos and interactive tools that highlight the voices and experiences of the people and communities that Oxfam supports, as well as the donors and volunteers who make it possible.
The website enables users to take action on campaigns and causes, such as climate change, gender equality and humanitarian emergencies.
By engaging with different audiences and stakeholders, the website aims to create a broad impact that can inspire change and transform lives locally, nationally and globally. Oxfam’s team members love the new layout experience, which is simple yet flexible and displays the content with impact.
As a content editor, the website is very easy to use. The new layout experience is brilliant – it is simple yet flexible – and we are thrilled with the result.
– Colin Carey, Head of Digital, Oxfam Ireland
The new Layout Builder tool allows pages to be designed in a flexible way using a drag-and-drop interface. This helps the team to deliver the stunning, engaging content that allows the website to get its message across its three main sections
The website forms an important part of Oxfam Ireland’s strategic plan. It makes it easy for individuals to donate, find a shop or get involved. Not only is the website a platform for online donations and links to its 46 shops across Ireland, it is also a powerful tool for raising awareness, mobilising action and showcasing the positive impact of its work.
Key numbers
Because Oxfam Ireland’s website was designed and built with accessibility as the priority it is fully responsive, and works perfectly on all devices. The website performs excellently, scoring a GTmetrix Grade A.
Following the website’s launch, the engagement rate for users from organic search traffic has increased by 74.31%, there has been a 163.4% increase in organic search traffic and a 61.7% increase in direct traffic.
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