Conservation easements happen through relationship-building: landowners and land trust staff working together to understand goals, navigate complex processes, and create permanent conservation outcomes.
But before those relationships begin, there's a quieter research phase. Landowners talk to attorneys and accountants, ask others about their experiences, and visit land trust websites. What they find there, and how quickly they find it, shapes whether they'll take the next step.
Your land trust website needs to answer their questions clearly and make it easy to take the next step. A confusing website can end an inquiry before the relationship even starts.
The Self-Audit
Here's a quick exercise: Pull up your land trust's website on your phone. Imagine you're a landowner who just inherited 300 acres and heard about conservation easements from your estate attorney.
Can you quickly find:
- Understanding: What a conservation easement is, in plain language?
- Benefits: What are the advantages to conservation easement?
- Eligibility: Is my land right for this? Do you work in my area?
- Trust: Why should I work with you? Have you done this before? Have you done this before with properties like mine?
- Approach: What happens next? Who do I talk to?
How long did that take? Was it easy to understand? If you're honest, you might find that the information exists on your site, but it's scattered across multiple pages, buried under generic navigation, or explained in language that assumes the reader already knows the specifics around conservation easements.
What Landowners Need (And What Gets in the Way)
The best land trust websites make the path from curiosity to contact as clear as possible. Here's what that looks like and what often gets in the way:
Clear navigation vs. buried information. A prominent "Protect Your Land" or "For Landowners" link in the main navigation makes easement information easy to find. The alternative, hiding it under labels like "Programs" or "Our Work" means landowners have to hunt and many may give up.
Plain language vs. jargon. Lead with simple explanations: "You retain ownership. You can still use your land for farming, forestry, recreation. You can sell it or pass it to your children. What you're protecting is the land from being subdivided or developed." Terms like "affirmative easement" or "qualified organization under IRC 170(h)" might be accurate, but they don't help someone understand what they're actually considering.
Benefits clearly explained. Landowners consider easements for many reasons: protecting family legacy, estate planning, conservation impact, and financial benefits including income tax deductions and estate tax reduction. Your website should address these different motivations clearly.
Levels of information. Start with accessible overview content that answers basic questions without overwhelming. Then provide clear pathways to more detailed information for those ready to dig deeper: detailed process timelines, cost breakdowns, legal requirements, tax implications. Early-stage researchers shouldn't have to wade through complex details to understand the basics, but serious prospects shouldn't have to hunt for the depth they need.
Local examples vs. generic content. Photos of actual protected properties and testimonials from landowners you've worked with build trust. Stock photos of coastlines on a Midwest trust's site don't. Landowners need to see that you've done this before with people like them, in places like theirs.
Multiple contact options. Some landowners prefer forms, others want to call or email directly. Offer multiple options. Display a photo and name of the right staff contact with their phone number and email. Include a basic contact form that just asks for essential information.
All of this should work just as well on a phone as it does on a desktop. If your site doesn't work on mobile, you're creating another barrier.
Your mission is to protect land. Your website should help you connect you with landowners who want to protect their land.
At Bust Out, we provide digital strategy and design and build websites for conservation organizations, including our ongoing partnership with Land Trust Alliance. Want to discuss how your digital presence can work harder for you? Get in touch.