People still ask what you actually do.
Programs, initiatives, and years of updates can leave visitors unsure what your organization does or where to begin.
Nonprofit Web Design
A nonprofit web design agency built around your mission
Red Clay Creative designs and builds websites for nonprofits with complicated content, overlapping audiences, and a lot to explain. We bring Digital Strategy, Content Strategy, UX, design, WordPress development, and accessibility together so people can find what they need and your team can keep the site useful as things change.
Your website should reflect the organization you are now, with room for what comes next.
Website and strategy work for Whitman-Walker
At a glance
Quick takeaways before you dig deeper
Start a nonprofit website redesign with audience and content decisions. They shape the navigation, page layouts, and paths to action.
Decide who writes, approves, enters, and migrates content before the work begins. Every page needs an owner.
Plan accessibility from the first wireframe, with a clear testing approach and an agreed conformance target.
Define launch and ongoing support together, including redirects, analytics checks, staff training, and maintenance responsibilities.
Look for relevant work. Our Whitman-Walker project shows how research and content decisions can help a complex organization explain itself more clearly.
Trusted by
Experience with organizations that have a lot to say
A nonprofit website needs to serve people with different needs, priorities, and reasons for visiting. Our work with organizations including Whitman-Walker, Chamber Dance Project, and Rebuilding Together DC • Alexandria has brought us into those conversations, from clarifying a complex mission to finding the right way to present it online.
In Their Words
Red Clay Creative is like no other web design company I’ve worked with. They’re easy to communicate with, will answer questions night and day, and they put themselves in the customer’s shoes. Red Clay will take the time to understand crucial details of the particular industry you are working in. You have a partner on your side.
CHRIS VOUDRIS
Managing Partner | VH Brands
Your organization has grown.
Has your website kept up?
More programs. More audiences. More to explain.
Somewhere along the way, your website stopped being an asset and became a liability.
People still ask what you actually do.
Programs, initiatives, and years of updates can leave visitors unsure what your organization does or where to begin.
Finding help takes too much digging.
Donors, community members, partners, and people seeking services struggle to find their next step.
A simple update becomes a project.
When simple changes are difficult, information falls behind and your team spends time working around the website.
Finding help takes too much digging.
Donors, community members, partners, and people seeking services struggle to find their next step.
A simple update becomes a project.
When simple changes are difficult, information falls behind and your team spends time working around the website.
A clearer experience for your audiences and your team
We define success around your organization’s priorities. These are the kinds of improvements a thoughtful website project can work toward.
A clearer message
Help visitors understand who you are, what you do, and why your work matters.
Easier next steps
Make it simpler to give, get involved, find services, or start a conversation.
Connected programs
Show how your services and initiatives fit within the bigger story.
More useful content
Give people the answers they need in a structure they can follow.
A more confident team
Create a clearer approach to keeping everyday website information current.
People still ask what you actually do.
Programs, initiatives, and years of updates can leave visitors unsure what your organization does or where to begin.
Finding help takes too much digging.
Donors, community members, partners, and people seeking services struggle to find their next step.
A simple update becomes a project.
When simple changes are difficult, information falls behind and your team spends time working around the website.
One connected team from strategy through launch
We connect the decisions behind the website with the experience people see. Together, we define what the site needs to do and shape the right scope for your organization.
Start with your priorities
Understand what is working, what is getting in the way, and what your audiences need. Discovery brings your team’s priorities together in a shared direction for the website.
What takes shape:
Discovery findings and website priorities
Content people can follow
Give your mission, programs, and next steps a clear place. We review and organize your content, refine the message, and plan pages around the questions your visitors bring.
What takes shape:
Content plan, site map, and page direction
Design that feels like you
Turn your brand into a website that feels recognizable and easy to explore. Page layouts connect your story, imagery, and key actions across desktop and mobile.
What takes shape:
Website designs and reusable page layouts
A website your team can use
Bring the designs to life in WordPress, with an editing approach suited to the people who maintain your site. We work through the features and connections your project needs before building.
What takes shape:
WordPress website and agreed website features
Access and visibility
Consider how people find and use the website as part of the project. Accessibility and search priorities help guide content and design decisions, with the review and testing scope agreed at the start.
What takes shape:
Agreed accessibility and search review
A considered launch
Prepare the website and your team for the move from project to everyday use. Launch support and training help make the handoff clear, with care and hosting options for what comes next.
What takes shape:
Launch plan, training, and support options
A clearer experience for your audiences and your team
We define success around your organization’s priorities. These are the kinds of improvements a thoughtful website project can work toward.
A clearer message
Help visitors understand who you are, what you do, and why your work matters.
Easier next steps
Make it simpler to give, get involved, find services, or start a conversation.
Connected programs
Show how your services and initiatives fit within the bigger story.
More useful content
Give people the answers they need in a structure they can follow.
A more confident team
Create a clearer approach to keeping everyday website information current.
Turning complex questions into clear decisions
We work through five phases, with clear decisions and review points along the way. Your team brings the knowledge of the organization. We help turn that knowledge into a website people can use.
01
Discover
We interview stakeholders, review content and analytics, and establish audience priorities. Together, we agree on a strategy brief and scope. Your team participates in interviews and an alignment session so the project begins with shared priorities.
A shared set of project priorities
02
Plan
We develop the sitemap, content model, priority journeys, and wireframes for key templates. Your team reviews how information is organized and approves the architecture before design begins. This is where we check that the proposed structure makes sense beyond the people who work inside the organization.
A clear website and content plan
03
Design
We create the visual direction, key templates, and reusable components, with accessibility considered throughout. Your team reviews how the design handles real content and approves the system before development.
Approved designs for the website
04
Build
We develop the WordPress site and agreed integrations, coordinate content entry and migration, map redirects, and run accessibility and quality checks. Your team reviews the working site and content against the agreed scope. Content responsibilities are assigned during discovery, so nobody discovers in week nine that 400 pages have no owner.
A working website ready for review
05
Launch
We verify redirects, check analytics, complete launch QA, and train the people who will run the site. Together, we confirm launch readiness and the support arrangements that follow. Your team leaves with a live website and a clear understanding of how to use it.
A launch and handoff plan
Featured work
Whitman-Walker
Helping a complex organization tell a more connected story
Whitman-Walker has been a client since 2021. Our work spans brand strategy, Digital Strategy, Web Design & Development, graphic design, SEO, and Google Ads.
The relationship began with a question about how the organization explained itself. Whitman-Walker’s work spans care, advocacy, and research. Its website needed to help people understand those connected roles and find the information relevant to them.
Working with Spotted MP, we conducted research and interviews with leadership, board members, and key stakeholders. That work informed the brand messaging, clarified how the organizational pillars supported one another, and led to a strategy for bringing two websites together. Understanding those relationships gave the website work a clear direction.
Thoughtful work starts with a close partnership
Our team brings curiosity, collaboration, and care to the decisions behind your website. We want to understand the work you do and help you present it with purpose.
Strategy before screens
We start with the reason behind the project, so design choices connect to your mission and priorities.
Room for your perspective
We value your team’s experience and work with you to turn different viewpoints into a shared direction.
Clarity in the details
We work toward simple, intuitive experiences, even when the organization behind them is complex.
Built around your organization
Your audience, content, and goals shape the work. The result should feel like a natural expression of who you are.
Questions about nonprofit website design
What should a nonprofit website include?
Start with a clear explanation of your mission, useful information about your work, and an easy next step. That might mean finding services, donating, volunteering, or attending an event. The right structure depends on who you serve and what those people need to do.
How does a website redesign work?
We begin by understanding your organization and the problems you want to solve. From there, the project moves through planning, content, design, development, review, and launch. The scope and approval process are agreed around your team.
What platform do you build websites on?
WordPress development is part of our website design service. We discuss your current platform, editing needs, and required features before recommending an approach. If your project involves another platform, we can review that need with you before defining the scope.
Can the website connect to our donation, event, or other tools?
Bring your existing tools into the early conversation. We can assess what needs to connect, how people should move between those tools and your website, and what the project requires. Specific platforms and connections are confirmed during planning.
How is accessibility addressed?
Accessibility is part of our website design and development service. We discuss your audience and requirements, then agree on the project’s accessibility goals and review process. Design, content, and features all affect access, so these decisions need attention throughout the project.
What happens to our existing content and search traffic?
A redesign is a chance to decide what to keep, improve, combine, or retire. We agree on content writing, entry, and migration responsibilities before the build. Changes to page addresses and search considerations also belong in that plan; the exact work depends on the project scope.
How much does a redesign cost, and how long does it take?
The answer depends on the size of the website, the condition of the content, the features required, and your team’s review process. We start with a conversation about those needs so the proposed scope, budget, and timing reflect the work involved.
What happens after launch?
Launch support and training are available within our website services. For ongoing needs, we also offer care plans, hosting, and digital strategy support. We can help you decide what fits, from keeping the website maintained to planning larger improvements over time.
Ready for a website that moves your mission forward?
Your website is part of a bigger picture. Whether you’re planning a redesign or deciding what comes next, we can help connect your website, communications, and organizational goals. Tell us what’s changed, what’s getting in the way, and what you want to make possible. We’ll work toward a clear direction together.
Let's Work TogetherSupport beyond the website
Digital Strategy
Bring your website, content, and marketing priorities into one practical plan, with ongoing support for the decisions ahead.
Content Strategy
Clarify what to say, how to organize it, and which information helps your audiences take the next step.
Care Plans & Hosting
Choose support for keeping your website maintained, hosted, and ready for everyday use after launch.