Since 2012, Cheshire Community Foundation (CCF) has awarded over £9 million in grants to more than 1,400 charities and voluntary groups across Cheshire and Warrington. They offer advice and support to various donors, helping them invest in local communities where funding is most needed.

The Brief

CCF had the same website since 2012:  It was clunky, challenging to navigate, difficult to edit, and overcomplicated the grant application process for those they’re helping support. They didn’t have the in-house skills needed to make the necessary changes to their site, such as updating imagery, and they also had a relatively tight turnaround time.

Instead, they wanted a site that’s attention-grabbing, user-friendly, and better reflects their brand. It was also imperative they had the ability to easily update onsite content and images being displayed, and for the back end to be simple enough for non-tech-savvy individuals to edit seamlessly. Based on their goals, turnaround time, and budget, we determined that a SUDZ WordPress website build would provide them with everything they wanted and more.

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Initial PreparationsAfter discussing CCF’s needs with them and determining that a SUDZ site would be the best option, we then worked on a site map detailing the pages of the new website and its structure. Doing this enabled CCF to understand exactly what pages would be on their site in which order, and also helped them visualise how a user may navigate the new website. We had regular meetings with the client throughout this process to ensure all bases were covered and that their new website would include the most important information about their business. The next step was prototyping.
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PrototypingDuring this stage, we determined and set up the information architecture, defining what links and media would be on each page, and the number and type of pages to be designed and built. Once this was approved by CCF, we then began working on the design prototype. Essentially, we created high-resolution interactive designs a few pages at a time. These designs were shared with CCF for their feedback, and we tweaked them to their liking. It’s at this stage that CCF was able to get a true feel for their new website, how the finished site would look, and how users would be able to interact with it, without us having to build the site in its entirety first.
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Final DesignThe existing CCF website was dull, clunky, and certainly didn’t reflect the positive feelings their work creates. They’d also recently had a full rebrand, and their website needed to showcase their new and improved brand identity. Their new website had to be vibrant, and bold, and emit feelings of happiness and positivity - a true visual representation of how CCF is brightening up the communities and charities they support. As a starting point, we considered the existing brand colours, which were blue, yellow, and grey, and opted to also include a vivid pink that jumps off the screen and compliments the other colours.

CCF had an incredible collection of images that they were keen to incorporate into their new website design of many of the people they’d worked with over the years. However, they weren’t suitable for use on a website. Therefore, our design team spent some time curating these images so they could be used as one of the main design elements.

Another key component of the design was to highlight some of the key things about CCF on their homepage in a way that’s easy to digest and shouts about their amazing work. One of the ways we did this was by including two sections where we showcase the amount of money CCF has awarded to charities, and the impact the funds awarded have had.

‘Apply’ Section Rework

One of the main areas of the CCF website that needed our focus and expertise was the ‘Apply’ section. This part of the site is where users can apply for funding. However, the existing process was more complicated than necessary.

Additionally, CCF also found it challenging, with the existing setup, to manage any applications that came through. Instead, they needed a system that could easily allow them to view and update the progress of applications, and ultimately help them process applications at a faster rate and help more charities. Additionally, CCF also found it difficult to manage the grants that users are able to apply to. Therefore, they needed to be able to quickly add new grants to the site and ensure that users can easily submit applications. We also needed to sync these uploaded grants and live applications to CCF’s CRM. We focused on user experience, ensuring it was a smooth and easy-to-follow process for those that wished to apply. We also rebuilt the backend of the grant publishing process to make grants easier to apply for, and to make it easier for CCF to add new grants to the site.

Speak to our Development Experts

Our developers will delve deep into what it is you require from a website, and answer any questions you may have. We’ll then determine what development tier is best suited to your needs.

Discover Our Designs

Our in-house designers will design a new website, one page at a time, and walk you through exactly what your new site will look like. They’ll liaise with you throughout the process to ensure you’re totally happy.

Watch Your Website Come To Life

Once the design and suggested functionality have been determined, our expert development team will get cracking on bringing your website to life. Once completed, we’ll then make any tweaks.

Don’t Just Take Our Word For It…

Here’s what our clients have to say about us:

"We are incredibly happy with the completed site and Soap Media have brought our vision into reality with very little compromise. This has been reflected by the response of our clients and colleagues alike for whom the feedback has been equally positive. We had regular email updates throughout the development of the website with both our Development Account Manager and Senior Front End Developer also willing to discuss issues/ideas in further depth using Google Meet regularly. Any questions or queries were responded to promptly and informatively by email. Soap Media's ability to bring our vision into reality alongside their accommodating and willing attitude towards our ideas, regardless of the potential technical issues to overcome to achieve them, was very impressive and has led to the creation of a unique and exceptional web presence."

AnonymousSubmitted via Clutch

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