SUMMARY
From 2018 to 2019, I re-designed the main Maslaha website and sister sites, updating the sites to modern design standards.
A NEW ERA FOR THE MASLAHA TEAM
After a successful year, Maslaha began working on numerous exciting projects across the country that contributed to their organisation's mission. However, they needed a better method to showcase these projects to the world.
I was called in to work on the website transformation, bringing the interface up to modern design standards, and make the user experience more appealing for both, B2B and B2C purposes.
Showcase the projects Maslaha has carried out, highlighting the need and Maslaha's solution, as well as providing transparency on project sponsors.
Optimise all media for the web, ensuring they do not interfere with website loading times and/or search engine optimisation and rankings.
Make full use of the website to demonstrate how Maslaha works and its approach to projects, as well as additional services they offer, such as research.
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THE AIMS
The aim was to bring the Maslaha sites to the level of sophistication found in large charities, such as Macmillan and Islamic Aid, but still have a grassroots touch to it. We set out with three main objectives:
The old Maslaha sites ran a very different interface that was very word-heavy. It was important for the Maslaha team to use content-focused responsive web design for the new sites with fast loading times.
This involved wire-framing the sites around this concept. We planned the architecture of information to allow for easy, intuitive RWD, while the design team made use of SVG graphics to guarantee faster load times, even with the slowest of internet connections.
PLANNING
As we were close to completing the initial draft of the main site, I began working on the sister sites, I Can Be She and Caring For Your Heart. These sites are pioneering projects hosted by the Maslaha team.
As they were Maslaha-run projects, it was vital that was communicated throughout the customer journey and experience. We executed this by using similar colour palettes and information architecture akin to that of on the main Maslaha site.
THE SISTER SITES AND FINAL THOUGHTS
The website transformation project came to completion towards the end of 2019, and the website is updated periodically by either myself, or internal Maslaha staff.
I believe the customer journey map and organisation of information went well, as the new site is refreshing to use in comparison to the old site. The content-focused approach works well with the Maslaha site and sister sites, and makes full use of the negative space around those elements.
Looking back on the project, I would have pushed to give the Maslaha sister sites more of an identity of their own as standalone project spaces. I would also make iterative improvements to the design of the main site, such as matching the colours of the header and footer, to make the experience more dynamic.
