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United Way 211 Iowa

App Development

Get the 411 on United Way’s 211 Iowa App

United Way of Central Iowa’s mission is to provide helpful information and resources to the residents of Iowa. Their referral system connects people to health and human service programs, community services, disaster and governmental programs and much more.

The 211 Iowa team came to Blue Compass with hopes of turning their list of valuable information and assets into a free app for community resources that Iowa residents could use from anywhere if they had access to a smartphone. 211 Iowa, the United Way app, is a one-stop source of information for Iowa residents. Our mobile app designers created a layout that’s easy to use so people can find the services they need, when they need them.

Custom Mobile App Development That’s Resourceful For Users & Providers

While our goal for this mobile app development project was to help users in Iowa communities, we also wanted to ensure the app would provide value for United Way’s team. Our app developers recommended Google Tag Manager (GTM) implementation to track actions in the app. GTM not only provides usage insights for community resources used within this app, but it also gives the 211 Iowa team data about which locations people are looking for information and if there are resources available that meet search requests. For example, if a person searches for food pantries in western Iowa, we can see the number of search results for that area or if there are no resources listed. Utilizing this helpful data allows 211 Iowa the opportunity to find additional resources for Iowa communities.

Mobile App Design & Development

Considering the user experience when creating a mobile app design is a unique challenge as smartphone screens are small and vertically-oriented. Our designers used color to coordinate the different types of resources and thought through every single frame in the app to provide a flawless experience. Blue Compass’ mobile app developers for this nonprofit project made 211 Iowa available to both Apple and Android users, and used cross-platform mobile app development skills to make the app for community resources available on all devices.

Third-Party Integration

The main idea for the 211 Iowa app was to make United Way’s list of resources easy to access when on the go. To accomplish this and ensure the information is always up-to-date, our web development team set up API integration capabilities. API, or application programming interface, allows data from a third-party list to be available via the app in real time. This means when their team adds a resource or service within the community to their list, the app will automatically include it under the designated category.

GTM & Analytics Implementation

Data is one of the most powerful aspects of websites and digital marketing. Having the proper tracking mechanisms in place allows your organization to collect information about the users you interact with online and provides helpful digital metrics. Our mobile app development team set up a robust GTM and Google Analytics strategy so the 211 Iowa team could review their app metrics and make decisions backed by data. This gives the 211 team the opportunity to improve resources available for those in need.

ADA Compliance

Ensuring a mobile app follows American Disability Act (ADA) compliance standards is important for the user experience. Our team kept ADA standards in mind while designing the app and ensured all aspects of the design, animation, and content was compliant.

Blue Compass’ App Development Expands Our Digital Reach to New Communities

The 211 Iowa app has proven to be beneficial for the community and is frequently recommended by healthcare providers when patients are looking for local support. Additionally, the data tracking allows the 211 team to see which resources are most popular and where Iowa residents are reaching out for more help. The success of the 211 Iowa app prompted numerous United Way organizations in surrounding states to reach out to our team for a similar app that would provide resources for their communities. Our team enjoys projects involving mobile app design and development for nonprofits, especially when our projects really have a positive local impact!

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