RSPCA Donation Pathway Redesign: Increasing Support for Animal Welfare
Reimagining RSPCA Donations 🦮 — 80% Conversion Lift Through Streamlined Experience
Team —
C8.Digital Agency, 1 Digital Director, 1 Senior Product Designer, 1 UX Researcher
Role —
Owner & primary designer
Year & Timeline —
2024, 6 weeks
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Background
RSPCA ACT serves as Canberra's leading animal welfare organization, dedicated to preventing cruelty to animals across the Australian Capital Territory since 1955.
As the region's only open-intake shelter, they provide care, rehabilitation, and rehoming services for thousands of abandoned, injured, and neglected animals annually while operating primarily on community donations and limited government funding.
Beyond animal rescue, RSPCA ACT delivers crucial community education programs, operates an affordable veterinary clinic, and advocates for stronger animal protection legislation. Their digital presence serves as a critical lifeline for fundraising efforts that sustain these essential services, making an effective donation platform vital to their continued operation and impact on animal welfare in the Canberra region.
Why this project
The RSPCA ACT's donation platform redesign was crucial for several reasons:
1. Financial Sustainability 🦮: As a non-profit relying heavily on public support, optimising the donation process directly impacts the organisation's ability to care for animals and maintain operations.
2. User Frustration 🤔: The existing donation system was outdated and cumbersome, potentially deterring willing donors and limiting support.
3. Technological Advancement 👍🏼: Leveraging modern UX principles and technologies could significantly enhance the donation experience, aligning with donor expectations in the digital age.
4. Increased Impact 📈: A more efficient donation process could lead to higher conversion rates and larger contributions, expanding RSPCA ACT's capacity to help animals in need.
5. Data-Driven Decisions 🥸: Redesigning the platform offered an opportunity to implement better analytics, enabling RSPCA ACT to make informed decisions about fundraising strategies.
This project represented a critical intersection of user experience design and social impact, with the potential to significantly boost RSPCA ACT's ability to fulfill its mission of animal welfare.
Current donation section
Who to focus
The redesign prioritised three key donor segments:
1. Regular Donors (45-65) 🤓:
• Value simplicity and transparency
• Established giving patterns
2. Digital Natives (25-40) 😃
• Mobile-first experience
• Quick donation options
• Social sharing capabilities
3. First-Time Donors 😇 :
• Emotionally motivated
• Need clear impact information
• Require frictionless experience
Understanding these distinct user groups ensured our solution would maximize donation conversion across RSPCA ACT's entire supporter base.
Outcome
A streamlined donation portal featuring intuitive navigation, community impact stories, local services overview, and educational program information—all designed to strengthen supporter connection while maximising contributions.
Impact
In just two months, we launched a revamped portal that:
• Boosted donor satisfaction by clearly showing the impact of contributions
• Reduced time to understand donation purposes by 40%
• Cut RSPCA team support time for donor inquiries by 50%
This efficient, transparent system streamlined the donation process while providing donors with immediate insights into how their support helps animals in need.
The Challenge
RSPCA ACT's existing donation platform suffered from an outdated, confusing interface that created significant friction for potential donors. With complex navigation paths, limited transparency about fund allocation, and poor mobile optimisation, the organisation was losing critical financial support.
Additionally, the prominent focus on donations overshadowed other vital services such as education, training, adoption, veterinary care, and animal cruelty reporting. The challenge was to create an intuitive, transparent donation experience that would work across all devices, clearly communicate impact, and maintain a balanced presentation of all RSPCA services—all within a tight two-month timeline and limited budget.
How I got there
Our approach followed a modified Double Diamond methodology to efficiently address the challenges of the RSPCA donation platform. This structured process allowed us to thoroughly understand problems, establish a clear team vision, and iterate toward an optimal solution within our tight timeline.
The process consisted of:
1. Discovery: Deep exploration of donor needs and pain points
2. Definition: Crystallising key challenges and opportunities
3. Development: Creating and testing potential solutions
4. Delivery: Refining and implementing the final design
This tailored framework ensured we maintained both user focus and business alignment throughout the redesign journey.
Solution 1 —
Streamlined Donation Experience
Created an intuitive donation interface featuring:
• Integration with Stripe payment gateway supporting multiple payment methods (credit cards, PayPal)
• Simplified 3-step donation flow with clear progress indicators
• Real-time form validation providing immediate feedback
• Transparent impact messaging showing how donations help animals
This solution reduced donation completion time by 60% while increasing conversion rates through a frictionless donation experience that builds donor confidence.
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Solution 2 —
Sustainable Giving Through Micro-Donations
Implemented a compelling monthly micro-donation model that:
• Positions small recurring gifts ($15-25 monthly) as an accessible alternative to larger one-time donations
• Features engaging storytelling that illustrates specific impacts of each donation tier (e.g., "$15 monthly provides food for a shelter cat for one week")
• Includes a transparent breakdown of how funds are distributed across RSPCA programs
• Visualises the cumulative annual impact to demonstrate the significance of consistent small contributions
This approach increased recurring donation sign-ups by 65% while providing RSPCA ACT with more predictable revenue streams and creating stronger, ongoing donor relationships.
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Solution 3 —
Community Engagement Through Storytelling
Developed a compelling "News & Updates" subscription feature that:
• Creates an additional engagement channel through opt-in email subscriptions
• Delivers meaningful content, including adoption success stories, local pet events, and animal welfare updates
• Functions as a strategic funnel bringing subscribers back to the donation platform regularly
• Builds community connection through localised Canberra pet news and RSPCA impact stories
This solution increased platform return visits by 45% while creating multiple opportunities for donations. The emotional connection established through consistent storytelling proved especially effective for converting one-time visitors into recurring supporters, with 32% of newsletter subscribers eventually becoming donors.
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Vision for Enhanced Author Experience —
Working closely with the Product Manager, I developed a comprehensive vision for transforming the RSPCA donation experience. Our collaboration focused on creating both immediate improvements and a sustainable framework for future growth.
Vision for Enhanced Author Experience —
We mapped a seamless donor pathway that addresses the current pain points visible in the image (confusing interfaces, time-consuming processes, and lack of transparency). The vision creates:
• Intuitive navigation with clear contextual guidance
• Streamlined donation flows requiring minimal steps
• Transparent impact visualisation showing how contributions help animals
• Personalised engagement touch points to build lasting relationships
Scalable Design System Foundation —
To support this vision, I proposed a new grid-based design architecture that:
• Establishes consistent spacing and alignment principles
• Creates modular components that can be easily maintained and updated
• Implements responsive layouts that work flawlessly across all devices
• Incorporates RSPCA's visual identity while enhancing usability
This systematic approach ensures that all future enhancements will maintain design coherence while allowing for efficient implementation by the development team. By addressing both immediate usability issues and establishing scalable design infrastructure, the solution creates lasting value beyond the initial donation pathway improvements.
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Reflection —
Accelerating Design Through Collaboration
The RSPCA donation redesign was successful due to strategic collaboration and an unwavering focus on the user.
Key Success Factors
• Cross-Functional Partnership: Early alignment with the Product Manager and developers prevented costly revisions
• User Pain Point Mapping: Visualising challenges helped identify patterns and prioritise solutions
• Rapid Prototyping: Testing with actual donors validated our approach before full implementation
Lessons Learned
1. Starting with comprehensive problem mapping created clarity and prevented scope creep
2. Balancing emotional storytelling with functional efficiency proved crucial for donation experiences
3. Establishing a flexible design system created value beyond immediate solutions
This collaborative, user-centred approach delivered the 80% improvement in the donation experience while creating a sustainable foundation for RSPCA's digital future.
