With over 1.5 million NGOs in the U.S., your website must stand out.
An outstanding NGO website design can grab your visitor’s attention, allow potential supporters to learn about your charity, and inspire them to support your goals.
This post will cover the elements of an outstanding NGO website and tips for designing your site. We’ve also included four excellent examples of non-profit website designs.
Not sure where to start?
Our team at Arch Web Design can help incorporate elegant and interactive elements that attract and convert your online donor community.
We work with 5 clients at a time and offer a 2X conversion guarantee, so you can be sure we’re committed to helping you grow.
Schedule a free discovery call with us today, and let's work closely to expand your reach and increase your donations.
How is NGO Website Design Different?
Unlike traditional businesses, website design for charity organizations is different in the following ways:
- The site must look professional and credible to attract the desired audience — volunteers, partners, or donors.
- Users should quickly locate different features, such as the donation and contact buttons, volunteering page, events calendar, and fillable forms.
- Non-governmental organizations’ websites must create a great first impression to capture visitors' attention for longer and hopefully encourage them to donate to the cause.
Critical Components of an Effective NGO Website
Every non-profit organization's web design varies depending on its goals. However, these are the 7 common elements every NGO website should have:
- Donation and Contact Buttons: To encourage interaction, make it easy for people to donate to your cause by highlighting the ‘donate’ button with a bold color and font. Also, visible and functional contact buttons should be included.
- Updated Blog: An updated blog section can attract new donors and educate interested parties.
- Social Media Buttons: Social media is an indispensable marketing tool. Add social media and sharing buttons to your site for shareable content to maximize your reach.
- Visual Design: Incorporating excellent visuals—graphics, images, and videos—into your website can go a long way toward grabbing people’s attention.
- Gallery or Campaign Portfolio: An updated gallery or portfolio creates credibility and transparency, encouraging new donors to support you.
- Impact Stories: Adding an impact segment on your website is a sure way to attract people to partner with you or even volunteer to work in your NGO.
- Search Functionality: A search bar, auto-complete search, or predictive search saves your visitors’ time, allowing them to find specific information quickly and engage with your site more.
NGO Website Design Tips and Techniques
What makes the best NGO website design? In addition to the above elements, consider these four tips to create your non-profit site:
1. Ensure Your Site is Easy-to-Navigate
Ensure your NGO website is intuitive, making it easy for users to navigate.
Features like a search box, visible fonts, and drop-down menus enhance visitors' experience and reduce bounce rates. Additionally, you can include a contact page and an events calendar with details about upcoming events.
2. Make Your Website Fast
Another critical aspect of designing a non-profit website is enhancing its load speed.
Compressing image files, removing unnecessary code, fixing slow-loading pages, and using caching can optimize your Webflow page’s performance.
3. Have a Mobile-Optimized Website
With 95.9% of people globally accessing the web via mobile phones, your website must be optimized for mobile.
Implement responsive web designs and incorporate medium-sized pop-ups. You can adjust images and fonts to look great across all screen sizes. Test your site on smaller screen sizes to see how it looks, or opt for a dedicated mobile app.
4. Optimize for Search Engines
Optimizing your NGO website for search engines allows you to reach new audiences, create brand awareness, and generate more leads.
Some SEO strategies include using relevant keywords, incorporating engaging images, using internal links, and creating high-quality blog content.
NGO Website Design Examples for Inspiration
Want inspiration?
Here’s our list of charities with excellent non-profit websites and our favorite web design features:
1. American Red Cross
The American Red Cross is popularly known for responding to emergencies and disaster relief in the US.
Some features that make their web design great include:
- A search button
- Prominent and consistent red color
- English to-Spanish translation feature
- Social media buttons at the bottom of the home page
- Red Cross Store to buy various products and supplies
- Noticeable CTAs like the ‘Give Now’ with a sense of urgency
- An intuitive, simplistic design with dedicated pages like the Get Help page for anyone needing immediate assistance
2. Feeding America
With a noble mission of fighting hunger, Feeding America has been ranked number one in Forbes's Top 100 Charities.
Here’s what makes their website remarkable:
- A navigation bar at the top of the site with a search tool and a ‘Need Help’ button
- Professional videos and images that communicate the message of the charity
- A simplistic layout and mobile responsive design
- Clear and bold CTAs with multiple giving options
3. Save the Children
Save the Children aims to help vulnerable children worldwide. Their website design is nothing short of remarkable.
Check out some of the vital website features:
- High-quality visuals that appeal to the site’s visitors
- A short and sweet ‘About us’ that communicates clearly
- A bold ‘Donate’ button is visible on all pages
- A search button to save time
- Social media buttons
- Fast loading speed
4. Charity: Water
Another NGO on our list is Charity: Water, which aims to help residents in developing countries access safe drinking water.
Some of the site’s standout features are:
- The stories of beneficiaries
- Clear and well-positioned CTAs
- Statistics highlighting their impact
- Professional images on their landing page
- Clean, minimalistic website design that is easy to navigate
- A ‘Give’ button that sends the message home with a water drop icon
Inspired to create a website for your NGO?
At Arch Web Design, we can help you design (or update) your non-profit site. We’re experienced in AI-driven design solutions that align with your charity goals. We only work on 5 projects simultaneously, ensuring we meet your specific needs.
Schedule a free strategy session to transform your NGO website.
Steps to Build a Website Using Webflow
Don’t know how to build a website without coding?
Follow these 5 steps for designing a non-profit website with Webflow:
1. Plan Your Site Structure
Before designing your NGO website, create a proper site structure with all the necessary categories and subcategories.
A sitemap will help you visualize the final look of your website and how your users can easily navigate from one page to the other.
2. Get a Webflow Template
With over 1,500 templates on Webflow, you have plenty to choose from. If you’re on a budget, choose a free charity template to get you started.
Here’s how:
- Under Webflow’s marketplace, click the ‘templates’ section. Then, navigate to the ‘free templates’ area and choose one that appeals to you.
- Click 'use for free' to be directed to the dashboard. You can name and create your site there before proceeding to the designer.
- To use a premium Webflow template, follow the same steps but choose ‘premium template’ from Webflow’s template marketplace.
- Narrow your search by navigating to the ‘Category’ menu and selecting ‘Non-profit.’
3. Create an Account
Once you’ve chosen your template, Webflow will prompt you to create an account by filling in details like your email address, name, and the type of website you want.
When the account is ready, you can customize your website.
4. Personalize the Design
Webflow makes it easy to personalize your website's look and feel. Upload and incorporate your visual brand elements, including colors, fonts, logos, images, and videos.
Donors love to have multiple options to give! So, make it easy for people to support your cause by integrating multiple payment processing systems and donation options, such as recurring monthly programs or matching gifts.
The systems should be streamlined, secure, and fast.
5. Optimize Your Charity Website
To get the most out of your website, you must use different strategies to rank in search engines and ensure your audience finds you.
Optimize the page titles, meta tags, URLs, alt text, and meta descriptions. You can also incorporate keywords and search terms for which you want to rank.
Also, avoid common mobile SEO mistakes and optimize your images, ensure your pop-ups are helpful, and ensure your mobile web pages load faster.
Quick Tip! While designing a website with Webflow doesn’t require any coding knowledge, working with an expert like Arch Web Design guarantees 2X conversion.
So, take the first step towards building a high-converting NGO website and book a strategy session today — for free!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Let's answer some commonly asked questions about NGO website design:
What Type of Website Typically Advocates a Cause?
A great advocacy website is easy to navigate, has obvious CTAs, looks credible, and has an interactive design for two-way communication.
Users of different devices and users with disabilities should be able to access and use the site easily.
How Much Does it Cost to Build an NGO Website?
The cost of building a charity website depends on several factors, including the template, the website design company, built-in integrations, and custom designs.
Book a call with us, and we’ll evaluate the specific features you need on your website and develop a custom quote.
What is the Best Color for NGO Website?
The best color for a non-governmental organization's website should match your mission.
For example, The American Red Cross opted for bold red, which best shows urgent emergency aid.
