The YMCA of the Ozarks was the proud owner of one sprawling website, developed by several different people over seven or eight years time. As a family camping and conference center taking reservations on-line for both a summer resident camp and a lodge, the website is a critical marketing and revenue tool for this organization. With the goal of putting as much information out there about as many programs as possible, the site had grown unruly. And without any content management tools, the marketing staff felt locked into updating information according to the calendar, instead of according to customers’ needs. A strategy for sorting and targeting content had been long since forgotten by the time they came to us for help in streamlining the functionality and updating the look to coordinate with their new branding.

By taking the time to get to know their business, their customers, and their goals, we were able to design a new site with a thoughtful approach to information organization and delivery. Instead of throwing all content at all visitors, we built the site so that viewers see content related to what they’re interested in, avoiding fatigue. Built in the open-source Drupal framework, the website uses customized content management tools for the staff, allowing them to update as needed, upload photos and manage an updatable event calendar. And since a large percentage of their camp registrations are done on-line, we developed a completely new custom camp registration system, making the process quicker and easier than ever before.

“Project 13 was so easy to work with,” says Karen Politte-Corn, marketing director for the YMCA of the Ozarks. “We conveyed in some not-so-tech-savvy terms what we wanted, and they did a great job of interpreting those thoughts into a cohesive, clean and attractive design. Every time we hit a stumbling block they offered several effective solutions.”

The end result is an inviting and functional site that combines the newest technology with old-fashioned friendliness and warmth.