Responses by Jesseca Dollano, digital design lead, Red Antler.

Background: FOLX is the first holistic healthcare platform designed to remove the barriers and stigmas from the queer and trans medical experience. The site serves LGBTQIA+ folks by providing a seamless experience to access hormone replacement therapy, sexual healthcare and expert 1-on-1 telehealth visits with FOLX providers.

Design core: The FOLX brand comprises bright, energetic and bold colors along with a library of custom graphic illustrations. Together, these elements not only destigmatize the narrative around healthcare in the queer and trans community, but strengthen and celebrate its intricacies. For instance, introducing a flood of color on hover states, pairing the ornamental syringe with the product name and using our cheeky finger graphic as a guiding device on a large scale all bring a sense of both acknowledgment and playfulness to the experience.

When we were designing the site, we wanted to keep content at the forefront and encourage exploration. This enabled members to focus on what matters: the community and its needs. To that end, we utilized a modular card style throughout the site, from the product detail pages (PDP) to the onboarding flow so that any transactional behavior would be simplified. We also built a flexible template for “The Library,” FOLX’s ever-growing resource hub. It’s easy to maintain on the back end, yet dynamic in a way that promotes engagement and discovery in a direct, digestible manner.

Favorite details: While FOLX functions primarily as a healthcare platform, we are proud to be able to celebrate and support the diverse members of the LGBTQIA+ community at the brand’s core. As a member lands on the homepage, they are immediately greeted with a carousel of portraits that hero queer and trans individuals as their authentic selves. What might otherwise have been a highly complex healthcare plan is instead thoughtfully organized into digestible lists and cards on the FOLX site, and is coupled with a colloquially written onboarding experience. The specific plans are often paired with a “get started” call to action to provide ease of use and seamless access to providers.

Challenges: Striking a balance between an expressive, functionally sound healthcare platform and a medical site that did not look or feel traditional. With its bright colors and expressive graphic elements, the FOLX brand lends itself easily to exuding confidence, but we doubled down on this notion for the brand’s digital expression and prioritized a seamless, inclusive user experience that would build trust and eradicate gatekeeping. This is apparent throughout the site as technical information is paired with our custom icons and straightforward product photography. Muted backgrounds are mindfully incorporated within the site’s transactional modules, and all content is intentionally typeset in a single typeface for legibility and clear communication.

Special technical features: The PDP is built with the journey of each individual in mind. Members are encouraged to build a plan most suited to their needs, from the product type down to specific dosage requirements. We incorporated a secondary sticky navigation bar that houses anchor links and a dynamic call to action that updates pricing based on the member’s selections. Primary calls to action will also guide you to set up an appointment with one of FOLX’s providers. This experience gives members the flexibility to explore the site while feeling completely supported and guided by FOLX throughout their journey.