Wounded Warrior's Initiative
Improving the donor experience.
Role
Client Liaison, UX designer
Year
2026
Timeline
4 months
Tools
Figma • Adobe • Google Forms
01 • THE BOTTOM LINE
Canadians are donating less.
For organizations like Wounded Warriors Canada, this decline creates a serious challenge. Our challenge was to rethink the donor experience without losing the trust and credibility of an established non-profit.
Our research found that users want to feel their contributions matter and that their donations make an impact.
03 • SPEAKING WITH THE USERS
We interviewed over 30 users, with age ranging from 16-50.
We aimed to find out whether people donated. If so, why or why not, along with their opinions about donating. Most of the users we interviewed were students or postgraduates looking for work.
INTERVIEW GUIDE
OUTCOMES
22+ of users
Donated to a non profit within the past year
81% of users
Report that financial pressures like debt, rent, inflation, and job insecurity prevent users from donating.
50% of users
Are emotional-driven donors, influenced by stories, videos, and personal testimonials.
USUABILITY TEST
I conducted a usability test and found the donation process was confusing and difficult to navigate.
We donated $20 to understand how the donation process works. We learned that the current donation process seems geared more towards people who already know the organization, such as friends or family of warriors, or those who have previously participated in its events.
JOURNEY MAP - DONATION PROCESS
TAKEAWAYS
Most users are emotionally driven users.
Current donation process confuses or discourages users
Lack of donor appreciation and community
04 • SUGGESTED SOLUTION
Redesigning the donor experience
Through our research, we found that we needed to create an experience that not only reassured users that their donations were making an impact, but also helped them feel that their contribution truly mattered. We decided to redesign the Wounded Warriors website and add touchpoints to improve the donor process.
WEBSITE SUGGESTIONS
Create a clearer visual and informational hierarchy.
Wounded Warriors has a lot of great information, testimonials, and statistics hidden behind dropdown menus. We suggest bringing this to the main pages so donors and warriors can see what they do immediately.
HOMEPAGE REDESIGN
Include complete and enhanced forms
A common pain point across our research was that we needed more donor personalization. Our users didn't want to donate because they wanted to know where their donations went, and they wanted to feel like they mattered.
DONOR EXPERIENCE
We suggest a rebuild of the overall donor experience.
We found that a big part of keeping donors was making them feel valued and that their contributions mattered. To do this, we made a structured donor timeline that includes welcome packages, personalized thank-you letters, and impact stories.
ONE TIME DONORS
Every donor will receive a welcome letter and postcard thanking them for donating to the section they chose. The sample letter below shows what a letter would look like if you donated to the PTSD service dog program.
MONTHLY DONORS
Monthly donors will also receive a thank-you letter and a postcard, along with some personalized merch from Wounded Warriors. Each package costs under $20 to produce, using Wounded Warriors’ existing merchandise costs as a guide. Rather than incentivizing donations through gifts, our goal is to foster a stronger connection between donors and the organization by making them feel valued, recognized, and connected to the impact of their contributions.
MILESTONE 1- FIRST DONATION
MILESTONE 2- 6 MONTHS
THE DREAM TEAM :)
