It feels good to lend a helping hand – just ask the thousands of volunteers in Brown County. Likewise, it feels good for Packerland Websites to lend a helping hand. To recognize the important work of nonprofit organizations, Packerland Websites gave away a free website in its Give Back to Nonprofits contest. The Volunteer Center of Brown County won the contest, and the center’s upgraded website is live.
Volunteer Center Impacts the Community
Volunteers are the heart of a community, and the Volunteer Center matches over 10,000 volunteers with Green Bay-area nonprofits every year. Talk about making a big impact in the Green Bay community! The Volunteer Center wanted an efficient, effective way to share information with volunteers and nonprofit partners. Mission accomplished!
Upgraded Website is Appealing & Effective
“The new website is not only aesthetically appealing but it allows for quicker response times and the ability for people to get the information they need in an efficient manner,” said Ruth Paquin, of the Volunteer Center.Ruth worked with Miranda Schlise-Gomez, one of Packerland Websites’ developers, to create a user-friendly website.
“Miranda was great to work with,” Ruth said. “She was knowledgeable, creative, and responsive to our needs. Our new website had a lot of components to integrate from our old site, and she formulated ways to do this efficiently.”
5 Big Changes for the Upgraded Website
Here’s a closer look at the Volunteer Center’s upgraded website.
- Modern Look – Visually appealing pages invite visitors to browse and take action. To modernize the front page, Packerland Websites changed the small image rotator into an eye-catching full-screen image.
- Well-Organized Pages – User-friendly site navigation helps visitors find what they need with ease. Packerland Websites streamlined site navigation in several ways. First, we removed nonessential pages from the website’s main navigation page. Next, we formatted the nonessential pages as posts. Finally, we categorized the posts to make them easy to find.
- Faster Load Speed – A website that opens quickly serves as a welcome mat for visitors. Essentially, a quick-loading website says, “Come on in. We’re happy you’re here!” To ensure the website will load as fast as possible, Packerland Websites hosts the website on a fast, local server. Additionally, we optimized photos and streamlined site navigation for a quick upload.
- Upgrade website to WordPress – WordPress is the platform of choice for Packerlands’ websites. Previously, the Volunteer Center had little control over site files and content on Wix. With WordPress, the center owns its site files. Files are readily available for backups, moves, and changes. After being trained by the Packerland Websites staff, the Volunteer Center has the know-how and freedom to shape its website.
- Improve Brand Presence by Blogging – The Volunteer Center uses its blog to tell its story, thereby branding and advertising its organization. Blog articles are shared on the organization’s social networks, and the links lead back to the upgraded website. This increases website traffic. As a result, more people will know about the Volunteer Center and how it helps the community.
Creative Way to Promote Volunteerism
“Being a small nonprofit, we understand the need for effective branding and awareness,” Ruth said. “Packerland Websites has been instrumental in providing us a creative and visually appealing outlet to assist our partners.”
Packerland Websites’ owner Bill Koehne said the upgraded website has far-reaching impact. Because the Volunteer Center works with 180 nonprofits, the new website creates a ripple effect.
“We’re not just helping a single nonprofit organization but also a community of nonprofits. That’s exciting for us,” Bill said.