The Joyful Heart Foundation website serves as an important online platform for raising awareness about sexual assault, domestic violence, and child abuse while providing support resources for survivors. As the organization’s primary digital presence, the site is designed to educate the public, share information about the foundation’s programs and initiatives, and encourage people to get involved through donations, volunteering, and advocacy. Because many visitors may arrive while seeking urgent help or sensitive information, the website must present content in a clear, accessible, and intuitive way. However, evaluations of the site’s structure and usability found that some aspects of the design and navigation make it difficult for users to quickly locate important information, particularly resources for survivors.

To better understand how users interact with the website, a variety of user experience research methods were used. These included interviews, surveys, persona development, card sorting, heuristic evaluation, and moderated usability testing. Each method helped identify how users approach the website and what they expect to find when completing common tasks. Personas were created to represent different types of users, such as survivors seeking support, family members or friends trying to help someone affected by violence, and individuals who simply want to learn more about the organization. These personas helped ensure that the evaluation considered the needs of a diverse audience and highlighted how different users navigate the site.

The research revealed several usability challenges. While participants were generally able to complete tasks such as donating or learning about the organization’s mission, they often had difficulty locating survivor resources. Many users expected a clearly labeled “Get Help” option in the main navigation but instead had to search through several sections before finding the information they needed. Navigation labels were sometimes unclear, and certain sections required excessive scrolling, which slowed users down and created confusion. Additionally, inconsistent terminology across sections such as news, campaigns, and updates made it harder for users to quickly understand where to find the information they were looking for.

Despite these challenges, the website also demonstrated strengths. The donation process was relatively straightforward, with a visible call-to-action that allowed users to quickly find the donation page. Once users navigated to the correct sections, information about the foundation’s mission, programs, and advocacy efforts was accessible and informative. These aspects show that the website has a strong foundation but would benefit from improved organization and clearer pathways for important tasks.

Based on the findings, several improvements were recommended to enhance the website’s usability and accessibility. One of the most important changes is the addition of a prominent “Get Help” button in the primary navigation and homepage to ensure that survivors can immediately locate support resources. Simplifying navigation labels and organizing content into clearer categories would also align the website with user expectations. Additional improvements include strengthening visual hierarchy so that key actions like donating or volunteering stand out more clearly and consolidating similar sections such as news and campaigns. Implementing these changes would make the website easier to navigate and better support the needs of survivors, advocates, and the broader public.

Overall, the evaluation highlights the importance of user-centered design for nonprofit websites that address sensitive and urgent issues. By improving navigation, simplifying content organization, and prioritizing access to help resources, the Joyful Heart Foundation website can more effectively serve its audience. Enhancing usability not only improves the user experience but also strengthens the organization’s ability to fulfill its mission of supporting survivors, raising awareness, and promoting healing and justice.