CDOAMS Website Redesign and Development
Catholic Diocese of the Australian Military Services
CDOAMS's exisiting website needed a redesign and rebuild to enhance both functionality and user experience through a strategic and collaborative approach which also included developing custom features and ensuring cross-device compatibility.
Objectives
- Enhance Website Navigation and User Experience: Streamlining the site’s structure for intuitive navigation and making content easily accessible to users.
- Redesign to Reflect Brand and User Needs: Refreshing the website to better represent CDOAMS’s brand identity while addressing specific user requirements.
- Integrate Custom Functionalities: Developing unique features, including PDF digitisation for forms, donations, and password-protected content, content separations for chaplains and other users to provide an improved experience.
- Optimise for Compatibility: Ensuring the site functions seamlessly across all devices and browsers, meeting diverse user needs.
Challenges
CDOAMS's previous website had several usability and structural challenges, particularly with its Information Architecture (IA), which created barriers to a smooth user experience. The primary goal of the redesign was to make the site responsive, user-friendly, and visually aligned with CDOAMS’s mission and organisational objectives. Additionally, digitising the PDF forms posed a challenge, as they required both a functional design and usability improvements. Finally, integrating a donation form with a secure payment gateway presented another critical hurdle to enhance the site’s functionality and support CDOAMS’s fundraising initiatives effectively.
We commenced the project with a discovery phase to define the project scope, deliverables, and success metrics. This involved collaborative sessions with key stakeholders to understand user needs, organisational priorities, and core functionalities. Insights from these discussions informed an initial IA, which went through multiple iterations and validation to ensure alignment with user expectations and navigation standards. This thorough process laid a strong foundation for creating a responsive, intuitive website.
Solution
The project was executed through the following key steps:
- Information Architecture Redesign: Based on user research and stakeholder collaborations, we restructured the site’s IA, ensuring logical navigation pathways and categorising content for easy discovery.
- Design and User Experience Optimisation: The team designed a of low-fidelity wireframes for key pages, following CMOA’s brand guidelines. These were iterated based on user acceptance testing (UAT) feedback, focusing on usability, accessibility, and visual appeal.
- Chapels map-view: A map view of chapels across Australia was added featuring a list of chapels organised by states. This enhancement allows users to easily locate nearby chapels and search for specific ones based on their needs. The categorised listing and map integration streamlines the user experience, enabling quick access to information.
- Development of Custom Functionalities: To address CMOA’s specific needs, we implemented features like pdf digitisation, password-protected content, Quality assurance and training and cross device and browser compatibility.
- PDF Digitisation: Redesigned the pdf forms to ensured smooth transition and submission of the forms.
- Password-Protected Content: Ensured secure access to designated materials for chaplains.
- Quality Assurance and Training: Rigorous UAT testing both internally and with clients was conducted to ensure accessibility and performance across devices. Training sessions for CDOAMS team to ensure they can manage content independently if and when required.
- Cross-Device and Browser Compatibility: The site was optimised for a responsive, consistent experience across various devices and browsers on both iOS and Android, enhancing accessibility and broadening reach.
The redesigned CDOAMS website was launched successfully, meeting and exceeding project goals through a collaborative approach that prioritised user experience, brand alignment, and custom functionality.
The enhanced navigation and responsive design significantly increased user engagement, with improved page views, accessibility to content , and a streamlined content discovery experience. Accessibility was a central focus, ensuring compliance with standards and accommodating diverse user needs.
Stakeholders were highly satisfied with the design, easy content management, and alignment with CDOAMS’s brand identity. Custom features, like digitised PDF forms and Payment gateway integration for donations, simplified operations and boosted productivity, making the site more efficient for both users and the internal team.
Overall, the CDOAMS website project was a resounding success. Through transparent communication and a user-first approach, we delivered a responsive, accessible, and user-centric website that met CDOAMS’s objectives.
