Overview

ADAA (Anxiety & Depression Association of America) was rolling out a brand refresh and needed their homepage to reflect the updated direction without breaking from the existing site. Clean, modern, accessible — but still coherent with what was already there. I was brought in as the solo designer to execute this in 48 hours, working directly with the client to deliver a design-ready Figma file.

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The Problem

Their existing homepage felt dated. For a nonprofit, first impression and credibility matter — a visitor landing on an outdated-looking site might question the organization's relevance, even if the content was solid. The brief was straightforward: modernize without jarring.

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Research & Discovery

I reviewed three things: the brand refresh reference (showing the desired modern aesthetic), their current design system, and the content wireframe they'd already structured. Three findings shaped the work:

The new brand wanted generous spacing and clean typography. Their current site was tighter, denser. The microsite CTAs (like Women's Health) needed to feel distinct and standalone — not just another content block. And when the client showed me a NAMI example with clean image separation (no overlaid text), it clicked — readability over graphic efficiency.

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Design & Iterations

Day one: I delivered initial mockups with multiple section variations. This forced the client to see options rather than imagine them. Client feedback overnight: blue headlines, underlined CTAs, more breathing room, and text separated from images. Day two: I iterated fast. Two versions of the 3-block section — client picked the one with blog imagery. — much cleaner. — straightforward wins. By afternoon, the design was locked. Three feedback cycles, done.