Yale Alumni Association

Our goal was to enable visitors to seamlessly engage with the association and each other, whether they want to connect with a classmate, sign up for a tour, register for a reunion or volunteer at a service event. To get there, we had to refashion the structure of the site. We started with an analysis of the back-end design, created databases to allow members to better connect with relevant people and events, and mapped out a site structure to reveal and organize the breadth of YAA offerings. We created a platform for dozens of groups and clubs to facilitate direct connection between users. For example, an alum moving from Boston to San Francisco can now go to the site and easily connect with Bay Area alumni.

We reorganized content to follow a bite > snack > meal approach, offering avenues to entice and engage audiences at different levels of interest and commitment. Throughout this phase, we kept in mind that no alum in search of an event or offering should have to click too many times to find relevant information.

On the front end, we created a clear, consistent and intuitive user interface that responds to input and offers clear navigation pathways for multiple audience needs. The site now provides guidance to additional resources, streamlined access to tools and resources supporting higher engagement.

We balanced a clean, modern design with the ability to incorporate  archival images of campus landmarks “then and now” that resonate with alumni and elicit a sense of nostalgia. We created a new tagline and integrated new branding and language that emphasized the association’s mission to bring alumni closer to each other and the university.  

Cognizant of the YAA’s role in empowering alumni not just to participate but to co-create a diverse alumni experience, we gave groups the ability to create their own microsites. This feature is especially useful for the many reunions that different groups organize every year.