UX Design and Web Development for Associations: Improving Member Engagement

Three neurosurgical professionals looking at an MRI of a brain

Today’s associations juggle recruiting and retaining members, boosting event attendance, and promoting and advocating for industry growth. Sandstorm helps associations achieve their website and technology goals through the development of unified website experiences that drive intrinsic value, encourage exploration and meet your member needs. 

How do we know? We've spoken to thousands of association members and would love to hear from yours. 

Challenge

AANS needed to introduce a refreshed brand, improve the user experience of their website, and transition to a more content editor-friendly CMS.

Solution

Through member interviews, we discovered a lack of awareness of relevant benefits. This insight drove the design of a personalized experience that highlights bite-sized offerings based on roles.

We developed an easy-to-use experience in WordPress and created integrations with:

  • Nimble AMS to pull in user information
  • Oasis LMS to pull in course information
  • PubFactory to pull in recent journal articles
AANS homepage displayed on a mobile phone with dark and blue colors.
Residents and Students resource page on a tablet
Patient site home page highlighting types of conditions
Home page on a laptop on a table next to a coffee and journal

More Association & Non-Profit Projects

With the launch of their Hermes Gold award-winning site, MEMA consolidated five associations and websites into a single entity and new brand. The Drupal site features drag and drop tools for content editors and a personalized experience for members.

MEMA homepage hero area with tagline
MEMA Events overview page
Strong by Association
Conferences, Webinars, Town Halls, and other Events
The CCIM Institute

The CCIM Institute wanted to involve users in improving their website, capturing insights to make it work better for everyone. They also aimed to simplify the member experience and encourage engagement for all career stages.

Homepage featuring 3 professionals in a commercial hallway
Diamond slider highlighting education and other association offerings
Mega menu with four columns
Interior page pattern with a checkered pattern of text and images
Find a course page with filters
Society for Vascular Surgery

We have partnered with SVS for over eight years and recently launched a new Drupal website informed by multiple tree tests and refined through Yes, And… design concepts and usability testing. The site features a personalized navigation based on audience, a scannable mega menu with clear visual hierarchy and a seamless experience with their AMS and across the ecosystem. 

Header area of SVS homepage with bold red and blue colors and a selector for audience
SVS homepage area highlighting upcoming meetings in blocks and a red swoosh hover state
SVS home highlighting practice management resources with a blue textural background
SVS homepage highlighting 3 journals and 3 othe rmember resources in a bold teal with graphic roulette wheel background
A list meetings in squares and rectangles
A patient condition page showing Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm with anatomical images and jump links to easily navigate content
National Association of Realtors

National Association of REALTORS has worked with our team for 15+ years, ranging from creative design, ad concepts, social media and digital marketing, newsletter and marketing collateral design, video and web design and Drupal development.

ABR Homepage with a person sitting near a bike and laptop
PSA flyer with headline: Is the price right?
"Today's Buyer's Rep" magazine cover
RSPS brochure case study

Association Insights

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