Our Methodology
Field Notes & Patterns |
How Hello Impact studies nonprofit communication online.
The Two Components
Field Notes capture single communication decisions across nonprofit websites, campaigns, and donation flows — exactly where they happen. Each note documents what was observed and what it signals to visitors.
Patterns connect those observations into something broader, revealing recurring approaches across organizations and what they suggest about how the sector communicates.
Together they build a cumulative picture of nonprofit communication as it actually exists, not as it is assumed to be.
Field Note: Habitat for Humanity’s website page for their Design Your Door promotion and traveling exhibit, April 2026
The 5 Lenses We Study Digital Footprints Through
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Explain the Work
How organizations clarify their mission, impact, and approach.
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Invite Participation
How audiences are encouraged to engage, give, volunteer, or take action.
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Build Trust
How credibility, transparency, and legitimacy are communicated.
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Reduce Barriers
How organizations make engagement accessible and intuitive.
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Create Belonging
How people see themselves reflected and valued in the work.
What We Look At |
Field Note: No Kid Hungry Instagram post using a text-first graphics for more casual voice, March 2026
Observations span the key environments where nonprofits communicate online, including homepage and first-interaction design, social media and campaign landing pages, digital storytelling and narrative framing, calls to action and donor journeys, visual storytelling and imagery, campaign messaging, trust and credibility signals, and how impact is translated into public language.
Current observations are drawn from nonprofits working in four issue areas: hunger, housing, education, and environment.
Follow the Work |
New Field Notes and Patterns added regularly as observations are made.