Agile TYPO3 Development Brings WWF Germany’s Mission to Life Online

WWF Germany, one of the world’s largest and most experienced conservation organizations, faced the challenge of needing a powerful and easily manageable website to support their mission. They required a content management platform that would allow many different editors to create new web pages quickly and easily, while also providing a flexible backend with various individual modules to display appealing, high-performance content. Additionally, WWF Germany needed a flexible, data protection-compliant donation solution to handle their diverse range of donation products.

BRANDUNG, a full-service digital agency with extensive TYPO3 expertise, was selected to meet these challenges. Through an agile development process, BRANDUNG implemented a TYPO3-based solution that not only met WWF Germany’s immediate needs but also positioned them for long-term success.

The project included a complete website relaunch, custom extensions, and integrations that leveraged TYPO3’s robust features and BRANDUNG’s technical prowess.

TYPO3’s enterprise-level content management capabilities proved ideal for WWF Germany’s complex needs. Learn more about how TYPO3 can power large-scale, mission-critical websites at typo3.org. 

BRANDUNG employed an agile development methodology to ensure WWF Germany’s evolving needs were met throughout the project. 

Working in two-week sprints, the BRANDUNG team collaborated closely with WWF Germany, who acted as the product owner in the agile process. Weekly joint meetings allowed for progress reviews and discussions of new requirements. This continuous analysis of project status and website performance enabled rapid adaptation to shifting priorities and emerging needs. The agile approach ensured swift implementation and iteration of features, resulting in a final product that closely aligned with WWF Germany’s mission and operational requirements.

A cornerstone of the project was the development of custom TYPO3 extensions to support WWF Germany’s diverse donation needs. In total, BRANDUNG developed 7 custom TYPO3 extensions, each serving its own unique purpose. BRANDUNG created a sophisticated Extbase-driven extension that seamlessly integrated RaiseNow/Tamaro-based donation processes into TYPO3. This powerful system supports approximately 200 different donation products and forms, using custom YAML-driven configurations for flexible product setup. 

The Model-View-Controller (MVC) architecture enhances performance by caching most actions, including forms and success messages. Integration with multiple analytics providers (Google and Econda) enables comprehensive donation tracking. Various entry points into the donation process, including sliders, tiles, and gamified maps, provide engaging user experiences. This flexible system empowers WWF Germany to manage and customize their donation products independently.

To meet WWF Germany’s need for appealing, high-performance content display, BRANDUNG developed 51 different custom content elements. These include three stage layouts with optional Vimeo-based video loops, six custom teaser elements, and seven different gallery types. Custom form-framework elements were also implemented which tightened the security of all existing form elements. Examples included Sepa-BIC and IBAN, file uploads with a virus scanner and file size limit validator, ISO-conform street numbers and local/international telephone numbers.

BRANDUNG implemented PDF download elements and custom form components with enhanced security and validation. To ensure visual consistency, they also developed a special color scheme concept that makes colors defined in Sass (a CSS preprocessor) immediately available to editors in the TYPO3 backend. These tailored elements equip WWF editors with powerful tools to create engaging and visually striking web pages that effectively communicate their conservation message. Editors have the ability to choose a new background, CTA or font color while adhering to the set color scheme by the UI experts. 

Custom Content-Elements 

• Donation sliders
• Donation tiles
• CTA buttons for donations
• Donation certification selection 
• Ecard creator
• Gamified react-based donation maps

In selecting a content management system for their digital transformation, WWF Germany prioritized long-term stability and scalability. TYPO3’s proven track record of providing sustained support and regular updates made it an ideal choice for WWF's ambitious online presence. The decision to use TYPO3 was rooted in both past experience and future-oriented thinking.

“One of the main goals of this project was long-term support of at least 5 to 10 years, but preferably more, without any major relaunch. There aren’t many content management systems on the market which allow you to seriously promise such a long period of stable availability while still being able to upgrade the underlying software codebase. The use of TYPO3 was not just a natural choice but more or less a mandatory decision due to the lack of comparably stable systems,” said Niels Struckmeyer, BRANDUNG Managing Director.

This strategic decision ensures that WWF Germany’s digital platform will remain robust, adaptable, and cutting-edge for years to come, supporting their critical conservation efforts well into the future.

The collaboration between WWF Germany and BRANDUNG has resulted in a powerful, flexible, and user-friendly TYPO3-based website that effectively supports WWF’s conservation mission. The agile development process, custom extensions, and tailored content elements have created a platform that not only meets WWF Germany’s current needs but is also positioned for future growth and adaptation.

To explore how TYPO3 can provide a robust foundation for your organization’s website, regardless of size or complexity, visit typo3.org and discover the power of enterprise open-source content management.

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