Earlier this year, Chattanooga-based Riverworks Marketing Group launched a competition to give away a new website and 12 months of hosting to one worthy nonprofit organization in the area. After several weeks of voting for 23 area nonprofits, the Chattanooga Theatre Centre prevailed in the contest. The new website, http://theatrecentre.com, has launched, giving CTC the opportunity to better showcase their brand and promote its 2017-18 season and year-round classes from a more mobile-friendly platform.
"One of the ways that good not-for-profits become great is when they can interface with other exceptional organizations in the community," said Todd Olson, executive director of the Chattanooga Theatre Centre. "CTC was lucky enough to win Riverworks’ contest, and the result is our bar has been raised so that we -- and our audiences -- are the better for it."
“Our whole team at the Chattanooga Theatre Centre is thrilled with the fresh, sophisticated website Riverworks has created for us,” said CTC Marketing Director Julie Van Valkenburg. “Our theatre was founded in 1923, and while we celebrate that history, we want to be contemporary, responsive, and relevant to our audiences. This website absolutely reflects that ideal and will help us up our game with current and new patrons.”
She said the new website allows CTC to take its efforts to the next level. It incorporates a more contemporary design, easier navigation, and responsiveness to adapt to an optimized presentation on whatever device it is viewed.
“Before we started working with Riverworks, our website was horribly outdated, and most any function a visitor to our site would attempt was frustrating," said Ms. Van Valkenburg. "It was also problematic to manage internally. The Riverworks site is easy to navigate, easy to manage, and reflective of our organization's needs.”
The full-service creative agency asked Chattanooga residents to nominate 501c3 nonprofit organizations after assessing in a review of its mission that more community outreach needed to be done. The campaign gave nonprofits an opportunity to educate the public about their services while rallying their supporters to vote for them on the Riverworks website.
While working on the design and functionality of the new website, Riverworks took the CTC team through an extensive discovery process to define CTC’s brand, key messages and target audience. This process helped define the strategy for the website’s hierarchy and user flow. Riverworks also provided training on how to update the website. The project encompassed various aspects of Riverworks’ services, including art direction, strategy, graphic design, and development of web services.
“What struck me in seeing the finished product is how much the team at Riverworks understands us,” Ms. Van Valkenburg said. “It's obvious that they educated themselves about the multiple priorities that running a theatre entail and built a website reflective of those priorities. We're so grateful for what Riverworks has done to help us put our best face in front of the community.”
Riverworks Marketing is planning to host the contest for nonprofits for a second consecutive year, opening nominations Jan. 1, 2018. Other competitors this year included the Chattanooga Community Kitchen, Reflection Riding Arboretum & Nature Center, the Kidney Foundation of Greater Chattanooga Area, Wally’s Friends, Chattanooga’s Kids on the Block, Pet Placement Center, Chambliss Center for Children, Chattanooga Room in the Inn, the Hart Gallery, The Chattery, Northside Neighborhood House, ChattaNeuter, Chattanooga Girls Rock, Center for Mindful Living, Art 120, Chattanooga Autism Center, McKamey Animal Center, Chattanooga Organized for Action, Barking Legs Theater, Camp Horizon, Downside Up Inc., and the Association for Fundraising Professionals Southeast Tennessee Chapter. Those groups and other 501c3 Nonprofits in Chattanooga are encouraged to try again.
“Riverworks was thrilled to dispatch our talented staff of graphic designers, copywriters and developers to create a website that empowers the Chattanooga Theatre Centre in its outreach to youth, donors, performers, ticket buyers and the community at large,” said Riverworks Co-Owners Steve and Jackie Errico.