Alliance for HOPE International
We helped Alliance for HOPE International digitally unite their programs—including our long-term partners, DomesticShelters.org—in the fight against domestic violence.
About Alliance for HOPE International
Alliance for HOPE International is one of the leading social change organizations in the United States. Their mission is to establish and nurture regional/local communities of safety, hope, and healing for those impacted by domestic violence.
Our longtime technology partners at DomesticShelters.org joined Alliance for HOPE International in May 2023, bringing us along for continued support. We cherish our time helping these organizations digitally unite to better represent the essential offline work they do.
Services
Information architecture
Brand design
Deliverables
Content management system
Website
Learning management system
Donation platform
Location directory
A unique B2B website
Alliance for HOPE International represents several organizations joining together in a shared mission. To understand the new website's purpose, we first had to understand the banner organization and its programs.
The purpose of the programs within Alliance for HOPE International is to provide education, support, and resources for shelters, camps, and programs at a local (usually regional or state) level, though there are subtle differences between them:
- The Family Justice Center Alliance, Camp HOPE America, Justice Project, and VOICES Survivor Advocacy programs help establish new projects, camps, and/or support groups at a local or regional level.
- DomesticShelters.org provides free information, resources, and other tools for those experiencing and working to end domestic violence. It is the world’s leading online information repository on this issue.
- The Training Institute on Strangulation Prevention provides continuing education and resources for professionals who may work with strangulation crimes, including law enforcement, medical, legal, and advocacy workers.
We refer to this website as “B2B-ish” because while the Alliance for HOPE International website is primarily intended to help and unite related organizations, it also has an essential consumer-facing element. The consumer-facing side exists in large part due to the profoundly personal and sadly ubiquitous nature of domestic violence and must be handled with delicacy.
Single-domain strategy
To help Alliance for HOPE International present a unified web presence that includes all associated programs, we brought their individual websites together using a single domain strategy. While each program maintains its own unique web presence, it is now united under the Alliance for HOPE International domain, which improves access to resources and lifts all programs in search engine results.
One of the challenges organizations face when they join together is aligning priorities, ideas, branding, and people. In many ways, bringing them together digitally under a single domain symbolizes their cohesion within Alliance for HOPE International.
Massive content migration
Naturally, when organizations of this size join together, they bring a lot of material to the table. As such, migrating all of the content from each existing program’s site to the new Alliance for HOPE International website was no small undertaking.
Over 10,000 redirects from old domains to the new single domain later, and users can now access all resources and tools from a single online location. We also migrated their media libraries and set up routing for the media files to maintain links to PDFs in their existing resources during the transition.
The trove of content now contained through the programs united at allianceforhope.org provides thousands of resources for those working in or experiencing domestic violence and boosts the domain’s topical authority and search engine results ranking.
Tailored information architecture
The volume of content and the number of sources from which it came meant that the Alliance for HOPE International website’s information architecture needed to be very carefully considered and designed. We conducted several rounds of stakeholder interviews to compare audiences across programs to determine what content needed to surface for each unique audience and what content needed to be universally accessible. We used journey maps to identify ways to guide users to additional helpful resources based on their entry point to the site.
The result is an extra-large sitemap that combines programs under the Alliance for HOPE International umbrella. The higher domain combines and provides relevant information from the programs in appropriate, helpful ways. For example, all trainings, webinars, resources, and news from all programs show up on the Alliance for HOPE International website, while each program still maintains a smaller website where content is carefully curated for its users.
Brand design refresh, keeping “hope” front and center
As part of the unification process, we helped Alliance for HOPE International update its appearance. The organization wanted to capture the concept of “hope” with seriousness and professionalism and without veering into dreariness. This sounds simple in theory, but design like this requires a great deal of creativity and many revisions to strike just the right balance.
The resulting design uses the original logo and works within the existing color scheme, but with a more modern touch. We also employed Instrument Sans, a contemporary and versatile sans serif font with a hint of human warmth, to help support the organization’s overarching message of hope throughout the site. This light brand refresh keeps hope front and center as the Alliance for HOPE International moves into the future with its new website.
Custom CMS & micro websites
Using a Laravel and Filament-powered CMS, we provided the Alliance for HOPE International programs with the ability to update and maintain their websites easily. Within the CMS, users can now find resources by the program level that grants them access, and shared resources are clearly labeled and assigned to programs.
As part of the CMS build, we also developed forms tailored to each program’s needs. Users can change the notification email recipient and view form submissions within the same instance.
Showcased mission impact
It is no secret that the work Alliance for HOPE International does is incredibly important. However, their old website did not necessarily showcase the powerful changes they have driven in the domestic violence sphere.
We helped them better display their impact on a unique page accessed from the top navigation under “about” across the site and referenced in calls to action throughout. Additional information and statistics demonstrating the impact can also be found on other pages throughout the site, such as the “about” page and “donation” page, in addition to the program-specific pages.
Mapping strangulation legislation changes
Every program within Alliance for HOPE International shares the goal of raising awareness and support for domestic violence victims. One of the most potent ways they enact change is by influencing legislative action, and some of the largest strides are within strangulation legislation.
To showcase the tremendous impact made in this area, we designed and developed an interactive map that displays strangulation legislation within each state of the US. The map is clearly labeled and accessible from the top navigation throughout the Alliance for HOPE International site. Once users click on a state, they can see the laws in place and supporting judicial cases in that state, providing valuable information for lawyers, lawmakers, and laypeople alike.
Thoughtful online learning management system (LMS)
Each program within Alliance for HOPE International has unique goals that the learning platform's educational materials must serve, some without overlap. For example, the Training Institute on Strangulation Prevention provides training for professionals in medical, legal, and advocacy areas on signs of abuse, and much of their training material must be siloed from other programs.
In the interest of time and budget, we ultimately retained LearnDash, an easy-to-use WordPress LMS plugin from their old website, and built new pages that provide course descriptions and easy registration links for learning. This allows their training materials to remain organized and housed as they have been in the past, but easily accessible from their new website.
Searchable location-based help
To simplify the search for Family Justice Centers, we created a page that includes both a list and a map of locations. By pulling data from the DomesticShelters.org API, this map is maintained in a single location and therefore up-to-date without duplicating data entry for the banner organization. The map is also searchable by zip code, city, or state to find the most appropriate location for the user.
Program-specific donations
Fundraising is an undeniable effort for nonprofits everywhere, and Alliance for HOPE International and its programs are no exception. To streamline their donation processes, we integrated with Stripe, a well-known payment processor, and designed custom donor experiences for each program and the banner organization.
Now, potential donors can identify the “donate” button from any location on the banner site or microsites and click into a beautifully designed and personable donation process from which to choose a single donation or subscription. And since each microsite has its own form, there is no confusion about where funds obtained online are to be allocated.
Safety valves for searchers
Recognizing the sensitive needs of many consumer searchers, the Alliance for HOPE International site includes a “quick exit” button in the top right corner that redirects to weather.com and does not allow back-navigation. Both of these safety enhancements conceal victims’ web activity from abusers.
Benefits & outcomes
Brand unification
Alliance for HOPE International presents a unified front for all programs while maintaining each one's extensive resources and unique offerings.
Impact visibility
The impact of Alliance for HOPE International and its programs is clearly showcased and celebrated in unique and meaningful ways.
Improved efficiency
The Alliance for HOPE International program teams are ecstatic about how easy the CMS is to use and how much time it has saved them.
Evolving professional engagement
We nurtured our working relationship with our long-term partners at DomesticShelters.org and Alliance for HOPE International.
Enhanced mission support
And finally, most importantly, we improved access for those in need of domestic violence services, making it easier to find help and hope.
