Creating User Friendly Websites for Non-Profit Organizations

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This morning we spoke with Olga Howard from Beaconfire Consulting. Olga is an Information Architect and Usability consultant based in Arlington Virginia. The focus of her work is in helping non-profit organizations, such as Big Brothers / Big Sisters, design and build web services and online marketing programs.

The challenges of working with non-profit communities are discussed and how creating a solid Information Architecture and User Experience for this sector is just as important, and in some cases more critical, when compared with the Private and Government sectors.

You can find Olga at creative experience design, as well as the company Beaconfire for whom she currently works.

The focus of our conversation focused on the presentation she gave at World Usability Day around her work in building the Big Sisters / Big Brothers website.

I also discussed the fantastic re-design of the Children's Bridge Foundation website and how this non-profit organization who helps orphans in China has embraced many of the key usability points made by Olga.

We talked about the upcoming IA Summit being held in Las Vegas in March 2007.

Olga will be at the Usability Professionals Association conference in Austin, Texas in June 2007.