Online Optimism worked with us to completely overhaul our website and marketing materials. This was no small feat considering that our organization oversees three distinct programs and also has a presence of its own. We started with three separate websites, and marketing materials that changed fairly regularly and were not always cohesive. OO helped us unify our brand while still honoring each program’s distinct features and focus.
One of the ways in which OO helped us unify our brand was by combining all three websites into a single one, using color coding for each program. They also suggested that we use mega menus so that users could have an experience similar to being on separate sites without having to actually visit separate sites. Throughout the process of writing and refining the text for each page, OO’s staff supported us in finding and using consistent language and a consistent voice, and helped us create parallel structures for each program’s part of the website.
The process of revisiting all of our existing copy, and creating new copy, was time-intensive but it was time well-spent as we were able to then use that copy for our printed marketing material. OO’s staff helped us select, summarize and adapt the website copy for use in packets, one-sheeters and postcards. We can now be sure that we have a consistent brand presence across all programs and across all marketing materials.
One of our programs is a K–12 school and another is a post-secondary education program for young adults. It was incredibly helpful to have prospective student applications and other forms made into online application forms that can be filled out electronically and saved. These forms have allowed us to decrease our printing costs, and get applications to many different employees simultaneously. OO also helped us create private portals for parents to be able to access resources specific to them; our parents have really appreciated being able to access documents without having to look through their inbox or for a piece of paper they received days or weeks before.
More than anything, I appreciated the flexibility shown by all of the different OO employees that worked on our project. They were graceful in receiving our feedback and incredibly responsive. They seemed to really take the time to get to know our brand, our needs, and our vision; the longer we worked on our project, the more it felt like the OO team could anticipate our needs and preferences.
Lastly, it was incredibly helpful to have the OO team support this work by coordinating with photographers and printers on our behalf.