This is the second part of The Internet is for Everyone blog series. Learn more about web accessibility here.

Everyone has imperfections. There’s no denying it – none of us is perfect and in one way or another, we all use tools to navigate our ever-changing physical and digital environments – even as you’re reading this! Our abilities change over time and affect our daily lives and activities. 

Any Australian organisation that offers goods or services on their website is subject to the Disability Discrimination Act. This act requires that people with disability have the same functional access as any other person within our communities. So, as people who create, manage or own websites, it is our responsibility to work collaboratively to create equal digital opportunities for all. 

But how do we get started?

When thinking about website accessibility, we should always refer to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). This is a best practice framework based on four primary principles known as POUR:

Perceivable

At the basic level, web-based content needs to be presented in a way that is comprehended easily. This means providing text for people who cannot hear, audio for people who cannot see and content that is consumable by people who use assistive technology.

Operable

For a website or digital application to be accessible, it should be operable regardless of the tools people use to view it. Animations and rich media should be configurable, and time limits for specific online tasks should be generous. As we all make mistakes, websites and applications need to be forgiving, patient and act as an extension of our digital capabilities.

Understandable

Websites must be designed in a way that they are easily understood, including by people with cognitive, physical, cultural and linguistic differences. Provide clear guidance for all users. They can use this to navigate specific online processes (i.e., event registration, online purchases).

Robust

Within limitations, it is important for websites to be functional across various platforms. While users cannot expect websites to work on an outdated web browser, they should work across web, mobile and on assistive technologies. The best way to ensure digital compatibility is to follow internationally recognised standards and restrictions regulated by the W3C.

Whether your organisation is a multinational company or a social enterprise, a school or local government, having a website places significance on how we communicate as people and individuals. It’s crucial that you make your site accessible.

If you are new to website accessibility and want to know more about WCAG, download our eBook to find out more.

Welcome! This is the first part of The Internet is for Everyone blog series.

Websites are for everyone.

In a rich, diverse world like ours, there are numerous different ways that people access the web. Our senses influence our experiences and affect our ability to interact with the web too. As creative, marketing and web professionals, it is our responsibility to design and develop websites and apps that include all people.

This is where understanding the need for accessibility and the related requirements for web come in.

Over 1 billion people worldwide have a disability. With 15% of the world’s population having some sort of disability, it makes up the world’s largest minority group.

Being able to use and interact using the web is fundamental to everyone’s daily lives. We need it for banking, finding local services, work and these days, social interactions. Accessibility is the culmination of good design, content and web development. Over the coming weeks we’ll be sharing the insights we’ve learned over the past 11 years of creating accessible sites – from design to development.

If you’re eager and want to know it all now – you can download our latest ebook The Internet is for Everyone here.

This article is the fourth instalment of the fundraising ebook series. You can read our previous blogs here:

We all want to create the most successful fundraisers possible to achieve the best outcomes for our causes. When it comes to success, planning and process pay off!

While every campaign runs differently, there are some core steps in developing fundraising campaigns that remain fairly consistent.

Step 1 – Develop personas of the people you want to target

A persona is a profile of an imaginary person who represents a segment within your potential audience. It gets you thinking about your objectives and campaign ideas from the point of view of your customers and supporters. Personas have names, demographic information, interests, giving levels, goals and motivations.

Step 2 – Identify key motivators for each persona group

Think about each group and their primary motives. What affects their decisions to donate or get involved with your campaign?

Step 3 – Develop messaging to align with those motivators

Craft your messaging and creative to appeal directly to these groups of people and what would compel them to donate.

Step 4 – Assign relevant calls to action for each motivator

Always be specific when creating a call to action, from the ‘ask’ messaging you’ve developed, assign a relevant call to action to each that reflects the campaign objectives.

Step 5 – Channel strategy

Develop a channel strategy that relates to those personas, messages and calls to action. This should consider platforms such as direct mail, social media, web, email, events, radio etc as relevant to your personas. Think about how you could alter your creative based on targeting, for example, a variation of your ad that would appeal to women vs men.

Step 6 – Timeline

Map out the campaign timeline, ensuring there are measures to keep the audience engaged throughout the duration of the campaign.

Step 7 – Develop collateral

Create the relevant marketing materials – landing pages, emails, social graphics, direct mail pieces etc.

Step 8 – Soft launch

Launch your campaign initially to your existing donors. This is your community so it makes sense to give them the first preview before it’s launched into the wider world.

Step 9 – Hard launch

Then it’s time for the hard launch, this will be the easy part because you’ve already developed a channel strategy and timeline!

Step 10 – Keep the communications flowing

Give updates on progress, regular thanks and share stories of your supporters. When others see why they’ve chosen to participate, it might encourage them to do the same.

From there, it’s a matter of optimising based on those reports you’re keeping a close eye on! (Tip: check out our webinar on analytics to make sure you’re tracking your online metrics effectively).

Try to apply this framework to your next fundraising campaign, adapt it to your needs and create a checklist to ensure each and every campaign you run is well planned and has the best chance at success.

Find out more in our ebook….

We’re looking for a brilliant and highly motivated Senior Web Developer who will excel in this vital role within our Adelaide studio.

We need a top notch Front End Web Developer. This role will involve pushing WordPress to its limits, building stylish, accessible websites. You’ll be a valued member of our digital team, working closely with designers and account management to create excellent digital platforms for our clients.

If you are a Senior Web Developer, you should have…

• 3+ years of professional web development experience in an agency environment
• Thorough understanding of HTML, CSS and JavaScript
• Significant experience with WordPress theme creation, configuring plugins and customisation
• Experience using modern workflows in WordPress development
• Experience working with WooCommerce and integrating other systems into WordPress
• Strong grasp of accessibility techniques and cross-browser compatibility issues
• Understanding of web application development processes
• Proficient in translating designs to pixel perfect markup
• Experience with server administration

If you’re excited by this opportunity, please contact Nick at [email protected] for a confidential discussion.

About Freerange

Freerange Future is a digital agency for good. As a certified B Corporation we live our core values every day and work to make the world a better place. Over the last decade we’ve consistently created innovative, thoughtful and striking work that has made a difference and been recognised with global awards. Our close team works from Hub Adelaide and Hub Melbourne studios for charities, not for profits, social enterprises, government community engagement initiatives and corporate CSR programs.

We are also looking for a new Digital Account Manager. If you are interested in applying, please click here for more info.

We’re looking for a brilliant and highly motivated Digital Account Manager who will excel in this vital role within our Adelaide studio.

You will ideally have…

• 3+ years agency account management experience
• a track record managing innovative and successful digital, brand and marketing projects
• the ability to accurate estimates, coordinate resources and deliver winning proposals
• possibly client-side experience in the NFP or Arts sectors

If you’re excited by this opportunity, please contact Nick at [email protected] for a confidential discussion.

About Freerange

Freerange Future is a digital agency for good. As a certified B Corporation we live our core values every day and work to make the world a better place. Over the last decade we’ve consistently created innovative, thoughtful and striking work that has made a difference and been recognised with global awards. Our close team works from Hub Adelaide and Hub Melbourne studios for charities, not for profits, social enterprises, government community engagement initiatives and corporate CSR programs.

We are also looking for a new Senior Web Developer. If you are interested in applying, please click here for more info.

This article is the third instalment of the fundraising ebook series. You can read our previous blogs here:

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