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Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 1

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION 03

1 | WHAT’S DESIGN FOR? 04

2 | BEGIN WITH BRAND 10

3 | GENERAL DESIGN PRINCIPLES 15

4 | DESIGN A STELLAR WEBSITE 20

CONCLUSION 25
Introduction
When you think about design, interior decorators with different color swatches or people

sketching new inventions might come to mind. While these are two examples of different types

of design in action, they’re not necessarily high priorities for social impact organizations.

But design actually impacts nonprofits at nearly every level of an organization. As such, every

single one of your team members can benefit from knowing the basics. And no matter your

cause, or the size of your design staff, you can use this knowledge to create stellar design that

helps you:

• Establish brand identity

• Build lasting relationships

• Boost engagement

• Execute programs

• Fundraise

In this guide, we’ll cover what design involves and how it shapes the perception of supporters,

partners, and the general public. We’ll then explore how a clear brand identity should influence

your design decisions and go over the basic design principles and guidelines you need to know.

Finally, we’ll dive into how to create an effective website to build trust, drive engagement, and

offer a great donor experience.

Ready, set… design!

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 3

1 | What’s Design For?
To excel at design, we need to start at the beginning and first answer, “what is design?”

Content precedes design. Design in the absence of content is not

design, it's decoration.”
– JEFFREY ZELDMAN

Is it just making things look good?

Not even close.

While the word “design” makes many people think of how things look, it’s more about the entire

experience than the aesthetics alone. Great design creates great user experiences. It can help

people understand what to do or how to use something.

When you walk into a coffee shop and immediately see which counter you should order at, that’s

design.

When you view a mobile website and you can access the site menu through a little lined button

in the corner, that’s design.

Good design makes it easy for people to find what they need and accomplish what they are

trying to do.

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 4

What Does Design Involve for Nonprofits?
By now, we know design can affect all kinds of things, but where does design come into play for

nonprofits?

WEBSITE

For most people, your organization’s website is where they go to get more information and

engage with your nonprofit. The design of your website can impact how much time visitors

spend there, what they learn about your work, and whether they take any action to help. Ask

yourself, “If a donor, funder, or journalist

came to our website for more information,

could they find what they’re looking for?”

Understand the first impression you would

make on various audiences in order to

ensure your site is designed to engage each

segment effectively.

EMAIL

Email is another channel that design can make or break.

Poorly designed emails get ignored or trashed and can even

lead people to unsubscribe from your messages. Smart email

design, on the other hand, can improve your click through

rates and encourage people to take action and learn more.

When it comes to fundraising campaigns, poorly designed

email appeals could even cost you money.

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 5

DIRECT MAIL

Just like email, the look, feel, and content of your direct mail will affect its performance. Without

eye-catching, activating design that has clear calls-to-action, the communications you send can

easily get tossed out with the junk mail.

FACILITIES/OFFICES

If your organization serves the public and local community, the design of your facilities can

impact participation, effectiveness, and the overall experience of your gatherings. Similarly, the

conditions of your workspace will affect your team. More and more organizations (for-profit and

nonprofit alike) are thinking strategically about their physical environment and using design to

communicate culture and boost productivity.

EVENTS

Physical setting, messaging, and other

elements all contribute to how your team,

supporters, and beneficiaries experience

an event you host. Like a website, a well-

designed event is easy to navigate and fun

to engage with.

Keep A Breast participates in lots of community events.

They design their presence to be eye-catching and fun!

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 6

What Does Design Impact?
DONATIONS

The fact is, design impacts your revenue. Whether it’s online, offline, or at an event, the way you

design a donor’s experience will affect if they complete a gift and if they choose to give again.

On average, gifts made to branded donation pages are 56 percent larger than gifts to generic

pages.1 If you want your supporters to give more, you need to design a page that reflects your

organization’s identity and creates a consistent giving experience.

Name Name

CC: CC:

Exp. Date: Exp. Date:

Submit Submit

Design also involves how many steps it takes to complete a donation. When you require donors

to navigate through several pages, your conversion rate is likely to drop off. That’s why you

should design donation and other paths to be short and simple.

1
Network for Good. The Digital Giving Index. http://www.networkforgood.com/digitalgivingindex/

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 7

AUTHORITY AND TRUST

The design of any aspect of your organization’s outward-facing operations will influence how

people perceive your nonprofit. For example, if you have a clunky, out-of-date website, visitors

probably won’t think that you are an adaptive, innovative organization. If attendees of your

5K run/walk don’t know where to check in and can’t find the restrooms, you’ll likely seem

unprepared and unprofessional.

When asked to describe why they mistrusted a website, 94

percent of comments were directly related to web design
elements, while only 6 percent referenced specific content.”

One study asked a group of individuals to assess how trustworthy they found certain health

websites.2 The researchers found that, “When asked to describe why they mistrusted a website,

94 percent of comments were directly related to web design elements, while only 6 percent

referenced specific content.” This makes sense, considering that people tend to form an opinion

about sites in only 50 milliseconds.3 Keep in mind that people make up their minds about your

organization long before they start reading and actively consuming your content.

The way people interact with and experience your organization will affect what they think of it.

Good design sends the message that your nonprofit is professional, trustworthy, and effective.

2
Forbes. “Understanding The Full Impact Of Web Design On SEO, Branding, And More.” http://www.forbes.
com/sites/drewhendricks/2015/02/11/understanding-the-full-impact-of-web-design-on-seo-branding-and-
more/#30ab776f2027
3
Behaviour & Information Technology. “Attention web designers: You have 50 milliseconds to make a good first
impression!” http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01449290500330448

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 8

COMMUNITY AND RELATIONSHIPS

Anyone who engages with your website,

programs, communications, or events will

draw conclusions based on how they are

designed. This determines whether they

continue to work with you, whether they

spread your message and recruit new

supporters, and essentially whether they

help you or not. Your community is built

not just on your face-to-face relationships

with people, but on the everyday

interactions they have with your brand.

What’s more, great design can help attract new supporters and create intrigue around your

cause. Many organizations have gained popularity in recent years by designing merchandise,

communications, and an online presence that make people want to learn more.

Chapter 1 Summary
• Design is not about making things look good, it’s about creating an intuitive experience that
nurtures your relationships with supporters.

• Nonprofits must prioritize the design of their websites, communications, facilities, and events
in order to effectively engage supporters.

• The way you design these elements will impact your fundraising, reputation, and community
as a whole.

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 9

2 | Begin With Brand
Design isn’t just about creating a good experience. While you want to provide an experience

that is intuitive and enjoyable for your audience, you also want to communicate what your

organization is all about.

Consider the process of gift-giving. Whether or not a gift is well received depends on the two

parties involved. The best gifts are not only a good fit for the person receiving them, but also a

reflection of the relationship the giver has with them.

While good design anticipates the needs and wants of your audience, the best design also

incorporates your brand and the way you want people to relate to your organization. For

example, any organization’s blog should be easy to read and understand. But the fonts you use,

the images you incorporate, and the length of the posts can convey more about your brand.

Is your content serious? Playful? Academic? Emotional? When you demonstrate this to your

audience, they learn what to expect from you and what kind of relationship you have with your

community.

With a strong understanding of your organization’s brand and community, you can design an

experience that strengthens your relationships and helps mold your nonprofit’s image.

Define Your Brand, Define Your Design

To work your brand into your nonprofit’s design, you first have to understand it. In this section

we’ll walk through some important considerations to help you define your brand.

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 10

WHO YOU WANT TO BE

To integrate your brand into your design, the first step is to pin down what your brand embodies.

If you had to describe the essence of your organization in just three words, what would they be?

Let’s use the fictional organization Penguin Research Preserve (PRP) as an example.

After reviewing their history and discussing their future, the team at PRP decided that the three

words they want to describe their brand are “empowering,” “adventurous,” and “transparent.”

With these descriptors in mind, they continue defining their brand in the following examples.

WHO IS YOUR AUDIENCE?

Your organization’s audience will also influence the way your brand and design work together.

When you understand who is viewing your content and engaging with your nonprofit, you can

tailor the design of your communications and website to attract support and strengthen their

commitment.

For example, Penguin Research Preserve knows a few things about their audience.

• Most of their audience is female.

• The average PRP supporter is between the ages of 30 and 60.

• Their audience is interested in science, the environment, and animal rights.

When PRP creates a fundraising email or markets a community event, these details can help

direct their approach.

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 11

Keep in mind, however, that you can also use design as a tool to purposefully appeal to new

audiences. While you shouldn’t sacrifice the integrity of your brand, you can still adopt some of

the characteristics that a new audience prefers. For example, PRP could incorporate a stronger

social media presence into their website in order to engage younger audiences.

HOW YOU WANT PEOPLE TO FEEL

How you want your audience to feel is a huge concern when you define your brand and make

design decisions. The three descriptors you decide on will say a lot about how you want people

to feel.

At PRP, for instance, the word “empowering” suggests that they want members of their

community to feel that they help make a difference—that their support has the power to create

change. From the word “adventurous,” we can tell that PRP wants to make their supporters feel

like they are exploring a fascinating cause. Finally, the word “transparent” tells us they want

supporters to feel integrated into PRP’s operations and like they can trust the choices and actions

the nonprofit takes to fulfill its mission.

It’s a good idea to outline how you generally want people to feel about your organization, but

you should also consider this at the micro level. If you send an email to alert your community to

some legislation that threatens your mission, you should consider how you want the reader to

feel, and by extension, the action that you want them to take as a result. In fact, each of these

questions about your brand can be applied to particular campaigns and actions.

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 12

Create Your Style Guide
With your brand defined, you can set some internal guidelines for certain elements of your

organization’s design. From marketing to programs, many of your team members will face

decisions related to your design and how it reflects your brand. Established standards and best

practices will empower them to make the right choices and represent your organization as you

want to be seen.

LOGO

Make sure everyone has access to your nonprofit’s current

logo in a variety of sizes. You will need this when creating

fundraising pages, promoting yourself online and in print,

and for creating emails and other communications.

COLORS

Your logo probably includes one or two colors that your

brand uses for most things. Make sure the exact codes of

these hues are available to your team, just in case they need

to create a document, fundraising page, or anything else on

behalf of your nonprofit.

FONTS

Designate a couple of approved fonts to be used on your

website, blog, or other communications. Standardize your

font choices to maintain a consistent image and voice with

your audience.

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 13

LANGUAGE
PRP Preferred
The words you use to describe and explain your work Language
are also an important part of your brand. Do you speak • Penguin

in casual, everyday language or are you more formal? Do • Donors

you call donors “donors” or “supporters” or “contributors?” • Natural Habitat

Specify your nonprofit’s preferred terms and general rules • Team Members

of thumb to create a consistent voice and cut down on • At-Risk Species

confusion, both among team members and your audience.

Compile these elements into a style guide and make it easy to access for your whole team.

You can add information as needed, but even if you just start with a few clear guidelines it will

help your staff to make simple design decisions that reinforce your brand and appeal to your

audience.

Chapter 2 Summary
• Great design takes into account the identity of the organization, the characteristics of its
audience, and the desired feelings and relationship between the two.

• Determine the core descriptors you want your nonprofit to embody and use them to guide
design choices.

• Create a simple style guide with the specifications for your logo, colors, fonts, and preferred
language. Share it with your team to empower them to make smart decisions.

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 14

3 | General Design Principles
Although your nonprofit should have branded design elements that are uniquely yours, there

are still some basic design principles that all professionals should be familiar with. These

guidelines will help any professional make some of the day-to-day decisions to create great user

experiences.

Keep it Simple for Your Audience

Whether it’s an email, an event, or your website, simplicity in design is key to curating a great

user experience. And regardless of how you’re interacting with your audience, your top priority is

to deliver your message and move people to take a specific action.

Here are a few tips to achieve this and keep it simple…

• Minimize the steps toward action. If someone clicks on your “donate” button, they should
be sent directly to a donation form. Don’t make them click through another page. Every
additional step you create is an additional opportunity for people to walk away before they
commit to act.

• Use common language, not jargon.

• Use distinct blocks of content that let

the viewer focus on one thing at a time.

• Don’t drown your audience in text.

You can always link out to further
information. Bullet points, images, and
videos are helpful ways to break things
City of Hope’s website uses different color blocks and
up and keep people engaged. headings to delineate different ideas and sections

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 15

Pictures and Imagery
While design involves much more than pretty pictures, images are an important element in your

website, emails, and more.

Here are some best practices to keep in mind:

• Use larger, high-quality images. When you have a lot of small pictures it can be confusing
and look messy. People may not understand what the pictures have to do with each other or
know if they should be viewed in a certain order. Use one or two high-resolution images to
really make an impression on your audience.

• Use the rule of thirds. A great way to look at an image is through a three-by-three grid. The
human eye is drawn to images divided in thirds. Place the focal point of your image on one of
these intersections for an engaging, visually appealing composition.

This image from PCI is cropped so that the focus is at one of the intersections
of the three-by-three grid.

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 16

• Adjust the color and brightness of images to fit with the rest of your content or reflect
your branding. With some very simple editing techniques, you can adapt almost any picture
to fit your color scheme.

Blood: Water adjusted an image from the field to match their brand and allow
the audience to focus on the text.

• Keep a look out for great impact images from your work, but don’t be afraid to also take
advantage of free-use images. There are plenty of pictures you can download and use for
free on sites like Pixabay, Unsplash, and Pexels. You can also use free editing software, like
Pixlr, to adapt them for your needs.

• Remember that great images evoke emotion. Think about the story your images can tell.
Perhaps you want to show the shocking reality of the problems your beneficiaries face or the
transformative power of your programs. Step back and ask, what would an outsider feel and
understand after looking at this image?

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 17

Colors, Sizing, and Placement
COLORS

Color is a powerful tool for conveying emotion. While people can have their own subjective

impressions of colors, experts have associated some with certain moods and ideas.

Look at the color chart below and ask whether the hues your organization uses are creating the

impression you want.

Balance Excitement Friendly Optimism Peaceful Trust Creative

Neutral Youthful Cheerful Clarity Growth Dependable Imaginative
Calm Bold Confidence Warmth Health Strength Wise

SIZING

The way you size text, images, and other content is another

important consideration. Different sized text, for example,

can show the relative importance of different information or

separate one distinct idea from another.

PLACEMENT

Location, location, location. It’s not just important when it comes to real estate. Where you place

certain elements in a message or on your website impacts how much attention they get. For

example, when you overlay an image with text you should be aware of what you are covering up.

You don’t want the placement of your text to undermine the effectiveness of your picture.

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Chapter 3 Summary
• Simplicity and ease-of-use are your top priorities when it comes to design.

• Use larger images that tell a story or evoke emotion. A few high-quality images are more
effective than many small pictures.

• The color, sizing, and placement of your content and design elements affect how they are
perceived. Use them as tools to strengthen your message.

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 19

4 | Design a Stellar Website
For the modern nonprofit, an online presence is extremely important, and that all begins with a

strong website. The first action most people take to find out about an organization or business

is checking out their website.4 This is where donors, funders, beneficiaries, job-seekers, and the

media go to learn about your organization, so you want to put your best foot forward.

Many of the design principles in the last chapter can be applied when designing your nonprofit’s

website. For example, “Keep It Simple” is still a good rule of thumb. Research by Google found

that audiences preferred websites that appeared less complex.5 Simply put, your goal is to create

an intuitive experience that helps people find what they need.

Elements of a Nonprofit Website

While every organization’s website is different, your organization’s should use design to highlight

a few key themes:

• Your cause or the problem you work on

• Your programs and solutions

• How people can get involved and help

Along with these elements, make information about your nonprofit’s history, leadership, and

finances available for interested visitors.

4
Struto. “5 Revealing Insights on How Website Design Affects Business Success.” http://www.struto.co.uk/
blog/5-revealing-insights-on-how-website-design-affects-business-success
5
Google Blog. “Users love simple and familiar designs – Why websites need to make a great first impression.”
https://research.googleblog.com/2012/08/users-love-simple-and-familiar-designs.html

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 20

WHAT TO AVOID

Sometimes knowing what not to do makes it easier to do something right. Here are a few

guidelines for what to avoid…

• Big blocks of text – Unless it’s a blog post or a detailed report, it’s better to break up text into
bite-sized chunks. This helps people absorb information and not get bored or overwhelmed.
And breaking up text with headings and subheadings can also boost your SEO performance.6

• The endless scroll – Have a distinct header and footer for each webpage. When a webpage
never ends, it’s easy for users to get lost or have trouble finding the information they need. If
you need more room, link to a new page dedicated to that particular topic.

• Impersonal content and insider jargon – To make your work understandable and attractive
to a large audience of donors, you need to present information in an approachable way.
You may know everything there is to know about your cause, but ask yourself what your
supporters really need to know, and what language would resonate with them.

Along with these elements, make information about your nonprofit’s history, leadership, and

finances available for interested visitors.

6
Infomedia. “Tip of The Week: One Simple Trick Boosts SEO and Lowers Bounce Rate.” https://infomedia.com/
blog/copy-block-bounce-seo/

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 21

Resources for Website Design
Today, nonprofits have access to more resources than ever before that can help them create an

engaging website that grows support. While it’s worth it to invest funding in your website design,

free templates and platforms can be helpful when you’re getting started

Some helpful platforms and resources are…

• Squarespace

• Wix

• Weebly

• Wordpress

• Canva

• Invision

You MUST Be Mobile

More than half of consumer web traffic is now coming from mobile devices.7 If your website

doesn’t adapt to fit these screen sizes, you will turn off visitors and miss out on valuable support.

Millennials in particular are annoyed by sites that aren’t mobile-responsive.8 And since they

are now the biggest generation in the workforce and poised to become a huge philanthropic

demographic, you can’t afford to ignore them.

7
Marketing Land. “Mobile Devices Now Driving 56 Percent Of Traffic To Top Sites — Report.” http://
marketingland.com/mobile-top-sites-165725
8
Case Foundation. “The 2013 Millennial Impact Report.” http://casefoundation.org/wp-content/
uploads/2014/11/MillennialImpactReport-2013.pdf

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While a mobile-responsive site usually

requires some coding, here are a few

additional tips to make your site look great

on any screen…

• 16 point font is the standard baseline

for mobile design.9

• When adding pictures to your website,

consider how it will appear on a
smartphone screen.

• Use standard icons (such as a menu

button) to save space and simplify your
look.10

• Make CTA buttons that people can click

on a touch screen.

9
Varvy. “Use legible font sizes.” https://varvy.com/mobile/legible-font-size.html
10
CIO. “12 Tips for Creating a Mobile-Friendly Website.” http://www.cio.com/article/2377938/online-
marketing/12-tips-for-creating-a-mobile-friendly-website.html

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Chapter 4 Summary
• Your website is one of the most important channels for great design. It’s where people go to
learn about and engage with your nonprofit.

• Make sure you provide site visitors with information about your cause, your solutions, and
how to get involved.

• Investing time and money into your website can pay huge dividends, but there are also a
number of helpful free resources and platforms to help you get started.

• Your website MUST be mobile-responsive to avoid missing out on half of all web traffic.

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy 24

Conclusion
Most nonprofit professionals wear many different hats, so it pays to have a working

understanding of design, which comes into play in every department. When you understand

the power of design, it allows you to define your aesthetic and decide how to express it in your

everyday operations.

Design savvy also helps you create a great user experience, be it for your donors, beneficiaries,

or the public. And those experiences influence them to get more involved with your cause and

support your mission.

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 Design Your Movement
Check out our webinar on crowdfunding
campaign design to learn how easy it is to
make a beautiful page to drive support.
Watch Now

Design Basics for Nonprofit Professionals | © Classy