Mothers’ Milk Bank Austin

Helping babies thrive, drop by drop.

Quick Overview

The Background

Mothers’ Milk Bank Austin, one of the largest nonprofits in the world dedicated to the cause, believes in the power of human donor milk to save fragile babies’ lives. When we first met their team, they were in need of novel ways to solicit more milk donors in their area to support their mission. We began researching. And learning. And thinking. And planning. Ultimately, we delivered a year-long communications plan and a reimagined website to help them and the babies they serve to grow into the future.

milkbank.org/

Research

With a clear goal to increase local donors, we first set out to learn everything we could about every audience group that mattered.

Strategize

We put our insights to work by developing a yearlong communications plan and designing a website to support it.

Launch

We built and launched the new MilkBank.org, a revitalized destination to further their worthy mission.

01

A Researched Approach

The Milk Bank’s primary goal was to get more local milk donors, as it is more economical and attainable to process their donations. With that goal as our north star, we developed a comprehensive research plan to learn who our target market was, where they look for information, and how to best communicate with them. A straightforward task on the surface, however, Austin is one of the most rapidly evolving metropolitan areas in the country and the complexities were undeniable. Enthusiastically, we accepted the challenge.

Our Research Methodology

Here were our biggest research takeaways.

• Austin is changing. And fast.
• There were opportunities to speak to moms at all stages of their journey.
• Mothers and expecting mothers trust their doctors more than anyone else.
• Milk Bank needed a more consistent (and proud!) visual and messaging strategy.
• There were holes in Milk Bank’s own data that needed to be plugged.

Where the Milk Bank’s and new moms’ journeys intersect

The pregnancy and motherhood journey is long and changes drastically from one milestone to the next. To make the most impact, we zeroed in on when potential milk donors were most likely to give when crafting the community outreach plan.

02

A Plan to Reach the Community

Our big research takeaways became tactical strategies in the Community Outreach Plan we developed. Because the Milk Bank had a lean marketing team, we intentionally structured the plan in phases: What can we do for some quick wins, and what can we work on slowly throughout the year? After all, a plan is only valuable if it gets done.

A phased approach to nonprofit marketing

1

Short Term

For quick wins, we equipped the Milk Bank team with a strategy to launch paid social and paid search campaigns, as well as a tactical list of activities like updating their Google Analytics to set them up for more informed marketing in the future.

2

Medium Term

For this phase, we recommended planting the seeds for a successful website redesign via user testing, as well as optimizing their in-person depot donation experience.

3

Long Term

The website redesign came into greater focus in the long-term phase of this plan with steps to build the site strategy and architecture. In addition, we included recommendations on expanding their reach via an influencer ambassador program to reach new donors.

03

A Mission-Driven Web Design

Web design is about making information beautiful and understandable, as well as making that information, and the brand that publishes it, compelling and trustworthy. Donating breastmilk can be a sensitive topic for a number of reasons. The site we designed for Mothers’ Milk Bank Austin aimed to break down barriers, and create an experience that feels comfortable and encourages people to donate for the greater good.

How can Milk Bank’s website advance their mission?

Our user testing revealed that the Milk Bank’s former site inadequately described what potential milk donors could expect from the donation process. Moreover, getting that process started also proved to be a challenge for many users who tested the site. These two insights, plus a list of other crucial findings, gave us a solid foundation to build a better user experience in a reimagined site.

A new, more trustworthy look

Strong design doesn’t just look pleasing to the eye, it inspires a sense of trust in the audiences it serves. The design direction we chose for Milk Bank’s website draws notes from their existing logo while pushing it more into modern design trends.

04

Web Development That Works

Successful web development is more than just building a website that doesn’t break. The site we built for Mother’s Milk Bank Austin is an example of how development and design are both stronger when they work in sync. Not only does the final build work, but it’s also filled with small moments of delight for visitors that reinforce brand’s mission, and encourage visitors to explore.

Small animations, big impact

Throughout the site, we built in micro-animations and other rollover states to help the site match the vibrancy of Milk Bank’s brand, while encouraging users to interact with important resources.

Going the distance to help donors

Mother’s Milk Bank Austin encourages donations both at their main facility and at donation depots set up throughout their target regions. To make it even easier for donors to contribute, we built an interactive map that connects people with the best donation location for them.

05

Launching the Brand

To drive engagement to the new website and increase donations, Push10 created a campaign concept that highlights specific experiences shared by breastfeeding new Moms. The woman-to-woman headlines create a sense of solidarity and compel Moms to support one another.

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Templeton Prize

Brand Strategy and Visual Identity Design // UX Strategy // Web Design & Development