FORCE Cancer Charity has been supporting those diagnosed with cancer and their families since 1987. With humble beginnings in a small room at Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital and a team of volunteers, FORCE now offers support through group sessions, counselling, complementary therapies and classes with a fully employed team of incredible medical professionals.
Paul and the team really understand what we need from our website - they work with us; make valid comments and suggestions and do not push us to do anything we are not ready for. They have basically guided us through change and helped us realise what potential there is for our website.
No pressure, no pushing - just good collaborative working.
Sarah Daniels
Force Cancer Charity, Exeter
A fixture in the local community, the team at FORCE have never lost sight of their roots. For over 40 years they have retained their core belief that all people deserve the best possible treatment and support following a cancer diagnosis. The charity remains committed to improving patient care, funding innovation and supporting the local community.
The team at Priority Pixels were absolutely thrilled when FORCE first approached us. We’ve been working with the team for the last two years, helping support their online presence with improved website hosting and regular maintenance, as well as offering guidance and support on SEO and other digital activities.
The Covid-19 pandemic had a big impact on FORCE. Face to face meetings stopped overnight and clients could no longer access vital support services. FORCE quickly adapted and embraced the digital tools available to them. This shift meant the website was being used more than ever and its limitations quickly became apparent.
FORCE asked Priority Pixels to rebuild their current website from scratch. Visually the site needed a refresh and a more modern, interactive user experience. The original website was built using a page builder and was jam-packed full of plugins and unnecessary code and scripts. As a result, the site was slow to load and wasn’t particularly user-friendly. It was imperative this be corrected with the new website.
The new website needed to be SEO ready. A bespoke build would allow for a lean site, only using code absolutely necessary. This would allow for a fast loading website and a better user experience. All on-site SEO would also be taken care of as part of the build.
E-commerce and donation portal
A functioning e-commerce store and payment portal were also required. Security and simplicity were key.
As always, the team at Priority Pixels got to work straight away. Working closely with FORCE, we first agreed on the sitemap ensuring pages were easy to find and navigate too for end users.
We then set about agreeing on page structures. Creating reusable blocks that would allow FORCE to manage all of their own content going forward. Plain text blocks, sliders and accordions were included to cover all the different types of content that would be added to the site.
The UI design of the FORCE website needed a drastic overhaul. FORCE branding was used throughout the design, making use of bright colours to draw attention to certain elements of the site, such as calls to action (CTA’s) linking to important information.
A fresh design was created, with an improved menu structure that was easy to navigate and clearly organised. By creating a functional, user-friendly design, visitors can navigate the site more efficiently, helping them find the information they need much more easily. This even helps SEO by improving the bounce rate of the site.
Our talented web developers used HTML, JQuery, CSS and PHP to completely rebuild the site from the ground up.
A safe and secure e-commerce platform was built that allowed FORCE to fundraise through the sale of its branded products and other goods. By centralising the e-commerce store, the new design enables visitors to the site to find the information they need as well as better understand the benefits of FORCE products and services.
A button was also added to the site where supporters can donate and sponsor the charity. This button is linked to Virgin Money and simplifies the donation process.
The FORCE website needed to be SEO ready for launch. All on-site SEO activity was completed for launch, ensuring the site was in a good place as it could be SEO wise. Meta titles and descriptions were completed along with over 600 301 redirects. We also optimised the site for both desktop and mobile, compressing imagery and minimising the number of scripts and plug-ins used. This immediately sped up the site, improving load times which should over time improve the bounce rate.
We know how daunting the digital world can be; whatever your project, no matter how big or small, we're here to help. Give us a call or drop us an email and we can arrange a suitable time to meet or have a call to discuss your exact requirements.