Creating a Design that Inspires Connection
Founded in 1980, TILL is a nonprofit that offers comprehensive residential, clinical, and family support services as well as vocational programs for people with disabilities throughout Eastern Massachusetts and Southern New Hampshire.
They are committed to working with people and their families to create meaningful lives, connected to their community, recognizing each person’s right to self-expression and self-determination in managing their lives.
The home page redesign emphasized streamlined navigation, a clean area for the branding, and a hero area to showcase inspiring photography and more concise messaging.
The overall UX/UI design incorporates a Row Based Design so the user is less distracted by competing content that a multi-column layout can contain. We implemented high-energy colors which are an important part of the TILL brand. Since TILL is active in the community, a dynamic pull of news and other content is displayed on the Home page as well.
Below is another example of a Row Based Design employing edge-to-edge photography, high-energy colors, and concise messaging that encourages user interaction. The diagonal shape reflects the logo which also incorporates a strong diagonal shape, conveying a message of movement in a positive direction.
Each page includes a flexible related content row at the bottom, providing engaging call-outs and links to explore relevant content. This de-silos page content and helps to increase the amount of time people spend on the site.
HIPAA Compliance
Increasing the number of people who complete the Services Inquiry form is a key goal and conversion metric for the site. Since the form submitted content is healthcare-related and includes potential patient information, we needed to ensure the new system was HIPAA compliant.
We implemented an information graphic with the form that showed the steps needed to complete it. This approach has proven to increase form submissions.
The submitted data is not stored in the website database and flows through a VPN behind TILL’s firewall into a local database where it is accessed internally. This is required to meet HIPAA requirements and was a complex development project including coordination with TILL’s IT department and web hosting provider. While a complex system, it has proven to be an effective solution for managing this type of information.
Careers With Purpose
The website also includes an extensive careers section emphasizing the benefits of working at TILL. The job board functionality makes it easy to filter by category, location, and type as well as application management features. An embedded video on a webpage can double site engagement. For job applicants, including a video on the Careers page is an informative, engaging way to learn more about working for TILL.
Results
The new site is easy to use and well-organized highlighting the extensive programs and services TILL offers. The design is brighter, and more colorful, with a cleaner and consistent layout emphasizing ease of use. The careers section is expanded with more information about the benefits of working at TILL and access to open positions. The services inquiry form is a stable and secure, HIPAA compliant method for receiving requests. These benefits along with substantially more site traffic and engagement make for an improved online presence for TILL and a solid foundation for growth in the future.
Statistics from Google Analytics from the first 6 months after the new site launched compared to the same period the year before show significant improvement. The site experienced increased traffic (up 23%), more visitors (up 46%), better engagement (53% more pages per session and 76% more time spent on-site).
