IssueVoter’s Redesign: The WHY
To close out our series, we’ve asked Maria Yuan, the Founder of IssueVoter to share why the redesign began in the first place.
The new site will launch in the next 48 hours! So, head to issuevoter.org today, and then again next week to see how it’s changed!
Meet Maria Yuan, IssueVoter’s Founder
1: What did you embark on this redesign for IssueVoter? Can you describe the process?
It’s been a long time coming! Since practically day one, 5+ years ago, I’ve wanted to add a lot of information to our website, including:
- FAQ to answer commonly asked questions
- details describing our partnerships
- our free lesson plan for teachers to download
- sharing what Sustaining Members (Monthly Donors) get
- showcasing our impact with everyone!
- showing who else is behind IssueVoter, on our Advisory Board
- and more…
For a long time, we focused on IssueVoter’s bill content and functionality and didn’t have the resources or time to add this necessary content. For a long time, I knew our design wasn’t the most consistent and wanted that updated.
I’m excited to share how it all came together!
We were so lucky when Julia reached out and we were on the same wavelength, wanting to simplify the design. What started as “let’s tweak things” became a big undertaking that we all worked on for over a year. Emogene handled our copy, Heather led us through a branding workshop, and created our new logo and all the characters you see on the site and store. Finally, Paul and his team made the site come to life.
You’ll be surprised to see how different one of our first new logo options was from what we have now!
Truly Meant to Be
We were so lucky when Julia reached out and we were on the same wavelength, wanting to simplify the design (e.g., we were using too many shades of blue font, we weren’t being consistent with our text sizing). What started as “let’s tweak things” became a big undertaking that we all worked on for over a year. Little did I realize then that we would have an entirely new design for the site, all thanks to Julia taking the initiative and contacting me!
Soon after Julia reached out, Emogene reached out and we definitely needed an expert with words. Working with Emogene was magical — I would describe something in 4–5 sentences, and she’d simplify it to a heading or one concise phrase. As our copywriter, Emogene helped make the site clear, concise, and actionable. The timing was serendipitous.
Our old homepage looked like this:
The design evolved over time with an earlier in-progress version looking like this, with gold accents:
To the current version, featuring a new motto and new stacked logo:
2: How did IssueVoter develop its new logo and motto?
This was a fun process that included taking a step back to consider our brand and brand voice. Thankfully, Heather, one of our Advisory Board members, had extensive experience and led us through a branding brainstorming session.
We also took a brand archetype quiz and learned that IssueVoter was a combination of the Sage and several other archetypes.
Julia brought additional questions for us to consider like: What pain points do you solve? What kind of personality do you have? What are you not? How do you make your audience feel? Why does your audience trust you? What’s your story? What’s your history? How does your nonprofit play a role in people’s lives? What are words that describe IssueVoter?
Also, as we started to look at the site design, we realized that the current logo’s font was not used anywhere else. Furthermore, it was a serif font and the font for our body text was sans serif. We looked through hundreds (no exaggeration) of fonts and in the end, kept the same font for our main body text. We did find a new font for all of our headers!
This also kicked off a process of re-thinking our logo. As you probably know for any organization, the decision to change the logo is no small one.
A New Logo
When it came to designing the logo, we also evolved from this:
All constituents can use IssueVoter, so we didn’t want to limit our impact by defining the universe as “every voter”. And while individuals may use IssueVoter every day (we’re always free and open), Congress is not in session every day.
To this:
I didn’t want to use a checkmark, because so many “voting organizations” have it in their logo. I was very opposed to using purple as an accent color as well; I think it’s overdone.
There were MANY iterations in between. We got feedback from others’ often through surveys. The new logo evokes the U.S. Flag and has a subtle nod to a checkmark in the “V”.
Everyone liked our shades of blue and red, so we kept our main two brand colors the same! However, we evolved our color palette for buttons and text that makes the new website look cleaner, more modern, and less biased.
In the past, people noted that we used red and green shading for the “opponents say” and “proponents say” sides, but we didn’t want one side to be perceived as “good” or “bad”. They summarize what each side is saying and are not “pros” and “cons”. In other words, what “Opponents say” could be a “pro” or a “con” depending on which side you are on!
As for the motto, we did a lot of iterations and surveying and landed on:
Your Voice.
Real Impact.
Beyond Elections.
And of course, we wouldn’t have a working website without our software engineers! And for that, we have Paul and his team to thank. They were incredibly hard-working, organized, responsive, and patient with us throughout the process.
It is really incredible how much just 3 volunteers and a small software team were able to accomplish! It still hasn’t quite hit me.
3: How can people get involved to volunteer with IssueVoter now?
It’s easy! Simply express you interest here.
All our volunteering happens remotely and on your schedule! We have all kinds of volunteers, so no matter your skills and interests, we’ll likely have an area that needs your help.
One of the things I’ve loved the most about our volunteers is their dedication. Many have been volunteering with us for years, so it’s really nice when we get into a nice groove working together.
4: With the new IssueVoter logo complete, I’m sure people are itching to get new merch. What is your favorite merch item with the new logo?
Heather also designed all the characters you see on IssueVoter and our store! Along with the new logo and website, we’re excited to also introduce you to the brand new IssueVoter shop!
At the store, you can choose from all the same bill categories you see on IssueVoter.org — everything from Civil Rights to the Environment, Natural Security to Science, and everything in between! Pick the issue that matters most to you, the issue that you speak up for.
If you want something a little more unique, you can also choose from an adorable cast of illustrated characters! You can choose both your issue and your character, to make your merch entirely unique to you!
Once you’ve picked your issue & your character, you’ll find a wide array of products to display any and every issue that matters most to you! You can wear your issue with pride, knowing you’re taking a stand, supporting our work here at IssueVoter, and hopefully sparking a conversation about the issues and laws that affect all our lives. So go on, find something you love, and speak up for the issues you care about!
Happy shopping & thank you for your continued support of IssueVoter!
5: Bonus Question: What’s Next?
So much more. We have big goals to make making voices heard even easier and more accessible!
We grow our impact by growing 3 areas: product, programs, and partnerships.
A lot of what you’re seeing today is part of our product improvement and we hope to launch an app in the fall! Monthly donors will get early access!
Further we are hoping to translate IssueVoter to become multilingual.
On the programs side, we would love to develop civic education programming and access to our free lesson plan for all parents and teachers.
We also enable partners, like nonprofit organizations and colleges/ universities, to offer IssueVoter to their community and gain a customized experience. So, we hope to connect with many new partners this year and always.
And that’s where you come in:
We are very proud of our organization’s past and are even prouder of the future our organization will create with your help. Your time, your introductions, your using IssueVoter, and your support from tax-deductible donations are all meaningful and exactly what keeps us going year after year.
Thank you for your continued support of IssueVoter!
Rapid Fire Questions!
How do you get your news?: Online News or Twitter
Online
What do you enjoy more: Blogs or Podcasts
Creating: Podcasts
Consuming: Blogs
Morning News or Nightly News
Neither
How do you vote?: Absentee/Early or Election Day
Early
IssueVoter Bill Alert or IssueVoter Score Card
Both! Bill Alerts enable you to be heard between elections and the Scorecard makes you a more informed voter.
IssueVoter is a non-partisan platform making civic engagement accessible, efficient, and impactful. Stay up to date with legislation and make your voice heard! Sign up for IssueVoter to keep track of Congress from your inbox!
