When deciding upon a non profit organisation, or in this instance charity, a key thing I thought to focus on was something I personally can relate to, and may even be the target audience for. Originally, this idea first unveiled itself as trying to make the concept of my own non profit around art, giving artists a place to put their work out in the open without relying on general social media platforms. After careful consideration into the work load and extra work that would provide, along with the reliance on ideas already implemented on sites such as Instagram and Twitter/X, plus the existence of already existing art platforms, I decided against the idea, but will keep some concepts for future use if they prove useful.
The best step next was to look at non profit organisations based on art and other general concepts, to see if the ideas generated previously could be used here in some form or fashion. However, I found that the organisations had nothing I personally could not connect to or that sparked any more ideas that could’ve bore fruit. Nevertheless, it was best to keep looking as to not let the initial ideas die or be lost.
After a while, upon spending a fair amount of time looking, I decided that it was best to drop the idea of looking at art related non profit organisations and to take a step back, to see what else was out there that I could relate to. Upon searching through past experiences, I remembered that I had a lot of experience with a charity organisation called Matthews Hub.
Matthews Hub is a support service based around the idea of giving advice and support to autistic and ADHD people. This advice can range from stuff for younger generations such as education and social interaction, to more adult oriented problems such as housing, employment and health. It also provides help in getting a diagnosis for those who have yet to get one, and also advice and support with people trying to get PIP (Personal Independence Payment), which is a fund meant to help and provide extra payment to those in need and with difficulties living. Along with this, Matthews Hub also provides a place for people with autism and ADHD to meet each other and find new friends or just discuss between each other their own life experiences. This ranges to a youth group for those under 18, to an adult group for those who are adults, and soon to be an intermediate for those just becoming adults. Along with this are online groups, giving people who aren’t comfortable about meeting up in person, may be more introverted or have social anxiety a way of talking to other people, easing them into it. And also, they provide multiple different activities for those who might be more stressed by just talking and may need distractions. These activities can range from an art group, to cooking, to quiz nights and even just a gaming group.
In my own personal experience, I joined Matthews Hub in 2021, when I was just leaving secondary school. At that time in my life, mentally I was not doing the best so joined so I could have one of the team talk to me and teach me about my own autism. This provided me a chance to learn more about myself and also talk about my own interests with someone. This lead to being invited to the online groups and after building up the confidence, go to an in-person group. After some time, I eventually made friends with a few people, one of them ending up being one of my best friends, with another one coming around a year or two later. Along with helping with confidence, Matthews Hub also provided support once I became an adult and when I needed support getting the PIP fund. Currently, I am still in the online groups, showing up at adult events when there is time or if I need help, and my own mother has in now working with them as a professional councillor.
Upon reevaluating my own personal history with them, I decided to check their website only to realise that they don’t have much online reach. While they have the support of the local community and funds, they have very few online advertisements, in person there are barely any posters or spots where they advertise, and lastly while their website is very decent, it could use editing here and there. In terms of advertisement, the best I’ve personally seen is therapists and doctors recommending them after being told or reading about me being autistic. While this helps narrow down your target audience and is a reliable source of in person advertising, it is far from enough to rely on alone to get attention and help as many people as they can.
When looking at the target audience, it is very explicitly targeted toward autistic and ADHD people. usually these two things can be on the same person. However, there are those with just one, or may have both with Mental Disabilities on top (Example: OCD). While Matthews Hub is for all ages, I believe teenagers and young adults may need help the most as they are going into a new era of their life, so I believe the advertising and look should focus on them or their tastes. This does not mean that other generations will be forgotten though, as they have their own issues and problems which are of equal importance. However, it may also be good to target parents of autistic people, as they tend to be better at noticing these things as the person themself may be too nervous or anti social to take the risk.
The best way to market towards this target audience however is not through their current way of advertising, as not every kid with autism will see therapists and doctors may not recommend them. So the best way to change this is to make advertisements more focused on the online space. Specifically, an online campaign to get ads for Matthews Hub on sites like instagram, twitter/x, TikTok, etc. These areas are the prime target to get teenagers and young adults, as they themselves stick to phones for comfort and distractions from the real world. If someone were to see that there was a place for them to be themselves or learn more, then perhaps they would join. It is also important to try and target the parents of children who will also be online, as if they see an advert for a place for their child to be more social, they would try and convince there child, hence another member.
The design of the current website and logo is already quite decent, with a simple design and identity. Upon close inspection, it seems the website was designed with mobile in mind first, as the design works a lot once in that format while when it becomes pc format, the general layout and format of everything does not work as well and could use more pictures and a better shown overview. When it comes to redesigning this, the best thing to do would be to change this so it is more responsive.
However, it is also good to see what the competition are putting out there for the same audience, as they may have showcased their ideas and goal more clearly than Matthews Hub. From this, more ideas can then take root and add onto the initial ideas and design that the current site is going for. This can then also help with advertising and the online campaign, as we can then showcase a better identity and reach. When looking into the market, the two top competitors are Ambitions about Autism and National Autistic Society, both being organisations that span all of the UK, instead of Matthews Hub which is local to Hull. While this gives them a further reach, it also means there is a harder time for them developing a tight-knit community. This could be used to our advantage, as it gives a way to advertise ways of meeting each other and how people wouldn’t have to worry about travelling if they already live in Hull.
References
Matthews Hub, 2024, Matthews Hub, Accessed on 1/11/2024, https://matthewshub.org
Ambitions about Autism, 2024, Ambitions about Autism, Accessed on 1/11/2024, https://www.ambitiousaboutautism.org.uk/#:~:text=Ambitious%20about%20Autism%20%7C%20National%20charity%20for%20autistic%20children%20and%20young%20people
National Autistic Society, 2024, National Autistic Society, Accessed on 1/11/2024, https://www.autism.org.uk