Yes, We Do Reaching Women Online Meg Houston Maker Director of External Information Services Dartmouth College site: megmaker.com blog: engagingexperience.com email: [email_address]

Fundraising Sites

About me

Customer-centered design

Customer-centered design tries to “optimize the user interface around how people can, want, or need to work, rather than forcing the users to change how they work.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User-centered_design

“optimize the user interface around how people can, want, or need to work, rather than forcing the users to change how they work.”

Customer-centered design impact is measurable Factors contributing to sales (or donations): • Sales conversion from the search function • Cross-sell conversion that occurs between online pages • Increase in percentage of transactions completed • Decrease in abandoned shopping carts Source: Scott Hirsch, “User Experience Accountability: Assessing Your Impact on Business Results” http://adaptivepath.com/publications/essays/archives/000276.php

Factors contributing to sales (or donations):

• Sales conversion from the search function

• Cross-sell conversion that occurs between online pages

• Increase in percentage of transactions completed

• Decrease in abandoned shopping carts

For example, take the Staples.com redesign • 67% more repeat customers • 31-45% reduced drop-off rates • 10% better shopping experience • 80% increased traffic • Increased revenue Source: Human Factors International, 2001

• 67% more repeat customers

• 31-45% reduced drop-off rates

• 10% better shopping experience

• 80% increased traffic

• Increased revenue

Or, take the redesign of Dartmouth’s online gift workflow From five steps to two…

From five steps to two…

Old DCF - 1

Old DCF - 2

Old DCF - 3

Old DCF - 4

Old DCF - 5

New DCF Gift Form - 1

New DCF Gift Form - 2

New DCF Gift Form - 3

28% reduction in abandonment rate

28% reduction in abandonment rate

Customer-centered design

Customer-centered design

Customer-centered design

usable + useful + delightful = an engaging experience

“ If web sites are to become consumer destinations, they will have to provide a memorable, quality experience… by identifying all the points of contact between the consumer and the site and defining how to deliver the right emotional experience at each one of those points of contact.” Marc Gob é, Emotional Branding

“ If web sites are to become consumer destinations, they will have to provide a memorable, quality experience… by identifying all the points of contact between the consumer and the site and defining how to deliver the right emotional experience at each one of those points of contact.”

Marc Gob é, Emotional Branding

Who’s online

Are you online?

Who’s online? As of 2005, 67% of all adults, including 68% of men 66% of women Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project.

As of 2005, 67% of all adults, including

68% of men

66% of women

Who’s online? Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project. Green represents statistically significant difference. 80 81 Parent 57 61 Non-parent 56 62 Unmarried 75 72 Married 21 34 Age 65+ 66 63 Age 50–64 79 76 Age 30–49 86 80 Age 18–29 % Women % Men

Who’s online? Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project. Green represents statistically significant difference. 66 72 Other 60 50 Black 66 67 Hispanic 67 70 White % Women % Men

Who’s online? Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project. Green represents statistically significant difference. 95 90 Income $75K + 87 84 Income $50–75K 76 66 Income $30–50K 48 49 Income < $30K 89 89 College degree % Women % Men

Activities enjoyed equally Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project. 42 40 Buy tickets for events 8 11 Create a blog 19 18 Donate to a charity 41 41 Do banking 47 44 Get info on a college 55 53 Look up phone/address 65 61 Make travel reservations 66 68 Buy a product 91 90 Use a search engine 75 80 Get info on hobbies % Women % Men

Activities where men lead Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project. 6 20 Trade stocks, bonds, or funds 18 30 Do an online auction 35 42 Pay bills 33 56 Get financial information 27 59 Check sports 69 75 Get news 75 82 Research product or service 74 82 Check weather % Women % Men

Activities where women lead Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project. 34 25 Get religious or spiritual information 35 31 Develop/display photos 66 50 Get support for a medical issue or personal problem 74 58 Look for health or medical information 94 88 Send email 87 82 Get maps or directions % Women % Men

Email Over 90% of internet users use email Women and men get about the same volume Speed and convenience are reportedly email’s most appealing qualities But, women and men use and value email differently… Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project.

Over 90% of internet users use email

Women and men get about the same volume

Speed and convenience are reportedly email’s most appealing qualities

But, women and men use and value

email differently…

Women and men use email differently Linguist Deborah Tannen weighs-in: Women expect initial pleasantries Men use aggression and teasing as humor, but women often feel attacked Men are more likely to send jokes Men are more likely to think an email apology will suffice Source: Shipley and Schwalbe in “Send: The Essential Guide to Email for Office and Home”

Linguist Deborah Tannen weighs-in:

Women expect initial pleasantries

Men use aggression and teasing as humor, but women often feel attacked

Men are more likely to send jokes

Men are more likely to think an email apology will suffice

Women use email more than men to: Communicate with friends and family Contact others about getting together Share personal and non-personal news Share info about their jobs Share jokes and funny stories with friends and family Share their worries, especially health-related Seek advice Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project.

Communicate with friends and family

Contact others about getting together

Share personal and non-personal news

Share info about their jobs

Share jokes and funny stories with friends and family

Share their worries, especially health-related

Seek advice

Women value email more than men do for its: Cost-effectiveness Ability to strengthen ties to friends and family Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project.

Cost-effectiveness

Ability to strengthen ties to friends and family

Women value email at work because it: Improves teamwork Expands their circle of colleagues Makes them more available to coworkers Helps them stay current Liberates them from the office Provides moments of relief from work Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project.

Improves teamwork

Expands their circle of colleagues

Makes them more available to coworkers

Helps them stay current

Liberates them from the office

Provides moments of relief from work

ICT Typology Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project, “A Typology of Information and Communication Technology Users,” May 7, 2007. 61 39 Inexperienced experimenters 57 43 Off the network 48 52 Indifferents 57 43 Light but satisfied 59 41 Connected but hassled 48 52 Mobile centrics 50 50 Productivity enhancers 35 65 Lackluster veterans 30 70 Omnivores 55 45 Connectors % Women % Men

The emerging picture “ Men like the internet for the experience it offers, while women like it for the human connections it promotes.” — Deborah Fallows , Senior Research Fellow, PIP Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project. Green represents statistically significant difference.

“ Men like the internet for the experience it offers, while women like it for the human connections it promotes.”

— Deborah Fallows , Senior Research Fellow, PIP

The emerging picture Women: enjoy using technology to connect one-to one are not as experimental as men don’t want to be stressed or confused want to get the job done expect the tone to be familiar and friendly want a clear path to their goal want an engaging experience

Women:

enjoy using technology to connect one-to one

are not as experimental as men

don’t want to be stressed or confused

want to get the job done

expect the tone to be familiar and friendly

want a clear path to their goal

want an engaging experience

Real world shopping “ Women demand more of shopping environments than men do. Males just want places that allow them to find what they need with a minimum of looking and then get out fast. “ Women are generally more patient and inquisitive, completely at ease in a space that gradually reveals itself.” Paco Underhill , Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping

“ Women demand more of shopping environments than men do. Males just want places that allow them to find what they need with a minimum of looking and then get out fast.

“ Women are generally more patient and inquisitive, completely at ease in a space that gradually reveals itself.”

Paco Underhill , Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping

But, in hardware and software… “ Everywhere in the world of hardware and software, the sexes swap places : Men love to browse and wander while women are purposeful…” Paco Underhill , Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping

“ Everywhere in the world of hardware and software, the sexes swap places : Men love to browse and wander while women are purposeful…”

Paco Underhill , Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping

When men and women shop online “ Similarly, men and women switch sides when shopping the web: men spend lots of time surfing… while women go directly to their destination, click only enough to buy… and then log off.” Paco Underhill , Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping

“ Similarly, men and women switch sides when shopping the web: men spend lots of time surfing… while women go directly to their destination, click only enough to buy… and then log off.”

Paco Underhill , Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping

Online donations Data from Dartmouth College 2006 $2,659,208 raised online 6,616 online donors 4,232 male (66%) 2,177 female (34%) 1,033 newly acquired first-time donors

Data from Dartmouth College

2006

$2,659,208 raised online

6,616 online donors

4,232 male (66%)

2,177 female (34%)

1,033 newly acquired first-time donors

An engaging experience for women

Do you track online activity by gender? Where are the key leverage points in your communications program? What do you need to do to make your online gift forms more attractive to women? How can you use email more effectively for women prospects? What one thing can you do this month to make your site more welcoming to women? Other thoughts?

Do you track online activity by gender?

Where are the key leverage points in your communications program?

What do you need to do to make your online gift forms more attractive to women?

How can you use email more effectively for women prospects?

What one thing can you do this month to make your site more welcoming to women?

Other thoughts?

Thank you Meg Houston Maker Director of External Information Services Dartmouth College site: megmaker.com blog: engagingexperience.com email: [email_address]