Local SEO Case Study

How Local Partnerships Helped The Birchtree Center Expand Its Reach

Introduction:

Nonprofit organizations often face unique marketing challenges. Limited budgets, a diverse audience, and the struggle to accurately represent a complex mission can make it difficult to reach the right people. This case study explores how a strategic partnership between Centrus Digital and Graphic Details, our web design partner, helped The Birchtree Center, a respected autism and ABA organization in Portsmouth, NH, broaden its reach and connect with a wider audience.  

The Client: The Birchtree Center

The Birchtree Center has long been a pillar of the Portsmouth community, providing exceptional educational programs and resources for schools, families, and individuals with autism and challenging behaviors. However, their reputation was primarily localized and focused on their day school. Many were unaware of the full spectrum of services they offered, notably their Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) approach and their Outreach Program, which extends throughout New Hampshire, southern Maine, and northern Massachusetts. Their existing website, while functional, didn’t effectively communicate the breadth of their services or reflect the modern, forward-thinking nature of the organization.

The Challenge:

The Birchtree Center needed to:

• Modernize their online presence: Their website required a fresh design to better engage visitors and accurately represent their mission.
• Expand their reach: They needed to connect with schools. families, and individuals seeking their services beyond Portsmouth and the Seacoast.
• Clarify their messaging: Their navigation needed to be optimized to clearly communicate the full range of services offered, emphasizing resources beyond their day school.

The Solution:

A collaborative approach was adopted, bringing together Centrus Digital and Graphic Details. This partnership allowed for a holistic strategy, addressing the visual appeal, site navigation, user experience, and search engine optimization (SEO) of The Birchtree Center’s website.

• Website Redesign Led by the team at Graphic Details: The Graphic Details Team focused first on understanding the user experience and client objectives before creating a modern, user-friendly website that showcased The Birchtree Center’s diverse programs and services. The new design emphasized accessibility, clear navigation, and compelling visuals, making it easier for visitors to find the information they needed.
• Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Led by Centrus Digital: The Centrus Digital Team conducted extensive keyword research to identify the terms potential clients were using to search for autism services and ABA resources in New Hampshire. This research helped inform the website’s content strategy, ensuring the language used resonated with their target audience. The SEO strategy included:
  • On-page optimization: Optimizing website content, meta descriptions, and title tags to improve search engine rankings.   
  • Local SEO: Focusing on location-based keywords to target individuals in Portsmouth and surrounding areas.
  • Statewide SEO: Expanding keyword targeting to include terms relevant to individuals seeking ABA services across New Hampshire.
  • Content Marketing: Making recommendations for valuable content, such as blog posts and resource guides, to establish The Birchtree Center as a thought leader in the field.

The Results:

The collaborative efforts of Graphic Details and Centrus Digital yielded impressive results for The Birchtree Center. Using Google Analytics 4 (GA4), the following improvements were observed:

• 34% increase in engaged sessions: This demonstrates that visitors were finding the website more relevant and engaging, leading to longer visits and increased interaction.
• 34% increase in engaged sessions attributed to the State of New Hampshire: This significant increase shows the effectiveness of the statewide SEO strategy, proving that The Birchtree Center was successfully reaching families and individuals seeking ABA services throughout the state.
• First-page SEO rankings for focus keywords in New Hampshire: The identified search terms, or “focus keywords,” that The Birchtree Center wanted to go after moved to a first-page ranking when they either previously had no ranking or were on the second page.

Conclusion:

This case study highlights the importance of local partnerships in helping nonprofits achieve their marketing goals. By bringing together the expertise of a web design company and a marketing agency, The Birchtree Center modernized its online presence, expanded its reach across the Seacoast and New Hampshire, and effectively communicated the full scope of its services. The data clearly demonstrates the success of the SEO strategy, showing significant increases in website engagement, especially from individuals throughout the state. This collaborative approach offers a valuable model for other nonprofits aiming to strengthen their marketing efforts and better serve their communities.

Does your website have challenging information design and organization? Centrus Digital is always pleased to recommend our trusted partner Graphic Details to tackle that job!