Acadiana Therapeutic Riding Organization (ATRO) faced challenges in attracting steady donations and volunteers, both critical to caring for their retired horses and advancing their mission of improving strength, mobility, and emotional well-being for riders. Their outdated website and inactive social media accounts made it difficult to connect with potential supporters.
I stepped into the role of UX/UI designer and social media strategist, leading a full-scale transformation of ATRO’s digital presence. This included a website redesign, logo creation, and an engaging social media strategy that highlighted ATRO’s impact and built stronger emotional connections with its audience.
Increase Volunteer Engagement: Highlight opportunities to participate and make a difference.
Boost Donations: Streamline donation options for consistent financial support.
Answer Common Questions: Provide essential information online to reduce the burden on staff.
Build Emotional Connections: Showcase the bond between riders and horses through compelling visuals and stories.
Maintain Cost Efficiency: Work within the constraints of the existing site builder to keep redesign costs low.
Website Redesign
Human Connection: Captured new photos of ATRO horses and riders, focusing on moments that demonstrate the therapeutic bond they share.
Improved Usability: Enhanced the website to answer FAQs, reducing the need for phone inquiries.
Donation Accessibility: Integrated ATRO’s PayPal account into the site, enabling both one-time and recurring donations.
Logo Update
Recreated ATRO’s logo from an old letterhead photo, giving the organization a fresh visual identity.
Used the logo across the website, promotional materials, and custom coffee blend labels for an annual fundraising event.
Social Media Strategy
Collaborated with a lead volunteer to develop a posting schedule and content plan.
Increased activity and engagement on social media, helping ATRO surpass 1,000 followers on Facebook.
Donation Strategy
Researched effective donation platforms used by local animal shelters.
Proposed solutions that ultimately led to integrating PayPal links across the website and social media.
Stronger Volunteer Base: The redesign and increased social media presence led to a surge in volunteer sign-ups, supporting ATRO’s mission more effectively.
Consistent Donations: Linking PayPal enabled a steady stream of income, reducing reliance on a single annual fundraiser.
Heightened Engagement: ATRO’s Facebook page gained more visibility and interaction, creating a broader network of supporters.