The organization
Women as One | U.S.-based Nonprofit | SaaS & Education | ~10 employees
Summary
Built a modular messaging system and applied it through a phased website and communications revamp improving clarity, inclusion, and cross-channel consistency without a full rebrand.
The challenge
Following community and board feedback, Women as One recognized that its website and communications materials were not effectively communicating the value of its educational programs, award initiatives, and SaaS platform. The content was U.S.-centric, structurally confusing, and lacked clarity for global audiences and potential sponsors.
Full rebranding was not an option. Instead, the organization needed a strategic overhaul of messaging and structure, starting with the website and expanding across all materials. This shift was essential to improve program accessibility, increase global engagement, and better support future fundraising and partnership outreach.
The solution
Rather than a traditional redesign, this was a full communications realignment using the website as the foundation to implement a modular messaging system that would scale across all content, collateral, and outreach tools.
Brand messaging & content
- Rewrote core messaging for each initiative: educational programs, platform, research, and advocacy
- Created a consistent value proposition format for all programs, tailored to multiple audiences and regions
- Shifted tone from U.S.-centric and overly technical to inclusive, global, and accessible
- Humanized content through testimonials, award recipient profiles, and founder voice
- Launched blog to share stories, updates, and program highlights in real time
- Added metrics and proof points to demonstrate impact to donors and partners
UX, UI & structural design
- Restructured the entire sitemap to reflect core initiatives and reduce friction
- Designed flexible templates for program pages and new landing pages (e.g., awards, Talent Directory)
- Improved visual language through cleaner layout, reduced palette, and accessible design
- Created a unified imagery and icon library to support consistent design use
- Built hub pages for key themes (e.g. Radiation Safety, Research) to centralize resources
- Showcased people behind the work, team, board, advisory to build transparency and trust
Systems & knowledge management
- Created reusable design components and messaging frameworks for future updates
- Integrated internal feedback, program survey data, and analytics into each iteration
- Applied messaging system across communication materials (slide decks, brochures, outreach templates)
- Developed guidance for internal use to keep messaging consistent post-implementation
The process
I began with a comprehensive audit of the existing website, communications materials, and user feedback. This included qualitative insights from program survey responses, focus groups with participants, and advisory board feedback. These inputs shaped the content strategy, messaging tone, and prioritization of structural fixes.
Spotlight on discovery insights: the data that shaped our strategic messaging and UI/UX overhaul
Before & after
🩵 Impact
- 4× increase in website average session duration, improving engagement and lead quality
- Boosted visibility of key strategic educational initiatives and the SaaS platform
- Strengthened organizational position with corporate members and funders through clearer impact storytelling
- Unified brand voice across digital, print, and outreach collateral
- Laid groundwork for a future visual rebrand with scalable content and structure in places
- Positioned the organization for scale, without needing a full rebrand or technical overhaul
