Special Olympics Delaware (SODE)

Multitude of new features reduce strain on non-profit's resources

I absolutely love the calendar with the list of events, location, and dates. What a great way to put it all together so you can get your information at a glance and be able to plan ahead…

Cathy Blanco, 40-Year Volunteer

Business Challenge

When we launched Special Olympics Delaware's (SODE) site in 2007, the non-profit's primary goal was to provide news and event information for supporters. Building off of the site's success as a centralized news service, SODE enlisted the help of Bright Orange Thread to create a new site that addressed the needs of their volunteers, athletes and their families. Goals for the new website included:

• Increasing online event registration.
• Facilitating volunteer sign-up and training.
• Allowing volunteer program directors to contribute content without relying on SODE members.

Our Solution

Bright Orange Thread worked closely with SODE to identify site features that would enable all visitors—supporters, volunteers, athletes, program directors—to complete the tasks important to them:

• The Events Calendar offers visitors options to list events by current month, current week, or categories.
• The new Program Locator provides athletes and their families with a more efficient search of the 100 statewide programs available.
• SODE staff share editorial control with Program Directors. Directors can manage their program's information—such as pictures, news, and event descriptions—from anywhere without the aid of SODE staff.
• Online Certification for Class Volunteers tracks volunteers through the process of becoming a certified Class A volunteer. Steps such as submitting a secure Online Volunteer Application and Team Volunteer Orientation (a 30+ page tutorial and quiz) are now completed online.

Impact

Visitors of all kinds praise the new site's convenient online features. Becoming a volunteer is easier than ever, and event planning is simplified for supporters, athletes and their families. Program directors are now able to manage their own program or event information on the site, which allows SODE members to focus more of their time and resources fulfilling the organization's mission.

An overwhelming amount of positive feedback from satisfied users led SODE to select Bright Orange Thread as their 2010 "Outstanding Small Business."

We are honored to have SODE as our pro-bono client, and we look forward to growing our relationship with them. Read about SODE's experience working with Bright Orange Thread.