The Royal Parks Foundation website
The new site aims to provide greater coherence for the charity's activities
Organisation: The Royal Parks Foundation
Agency: tictoc
Spend: £16,000
The foundation supports London's eight royal parks, including Hyde Park and Regent's Park.
DEVELOPMENT
The foundation was established in 2003 and developed different websites for its various projects as well as a main site.
This is the first phase of a new site that aims to provide greater coherence for the charity's activities and be more commercial, fun and easy to use. An expert panel, which included a tictoc representative, oversaw the site's development and provided expert advice. Its suggestions included changing the url from the charity's name to supporttheroyalparks.org, thus providing a call to action.
DESIGN AND CONTENT
The visually engaging site, which was launched in September 2011, is clear and well signposted, with quirky features, such as the squirrel perched on a log across the top of the page, serving as a toolbar. The green and brown colours create a park-like feel and the shop is easy to use. Site visits have increased by 60 per cent and the amount of time spent by people viewing the site is up 46 per cent.
SPECIAL FEATURES
The "support the parks" tab allows visitors to adopt trees and wildlife. The foundation received a $1.25m donation from US grant-maker the Tiffany & Co Foundation last year and there is a section devoted to American supporters. Phase two will include resources for teachers, more video content and an audio app to enhance the visitor experience.
The Royal Parks Foundation says:
"The site reflects the personality of the parks and the charity, and gives visitors the opportunity to support them in fun ways."
SCORE
Navigation: 5
Accessibility: 5
Innovation: 3
Content: 3
