Case Study
America's Blood Centers (ABC), alongside the Association for Blood Donor Professionals (ADRP), set out to solve a problem hiding in plain sight: despite widespread public willingness to donate blood, no neutral, donor-focused destination existed to guide people through the process. Existing resources were fragmented and branded to individual blood center networks. DonatingBlood.org was conceived as an open solution - a single, agnostic hub representing all U.S. blood donation centers, where any donor anywhere could get informed, find a location, and take action.
Most blood donation organizations’ communications are focused on their blood centers. This open concept was the first public collaboration between ABC and ADRP along with the Red Cross and the Association for the Advancement of Blood & Biotherapies (AABB). The cooperative campaign was agnostically branded as DonatingBlood.org, and provided users with the latest critical information about donating blood, as well as the centerpiece feature — a zip code-based Blood Donation Location Finder that included blood center locations for all participating US blood donation agencies, regardless of branding or affiliation.
The locator required careful thought: with hundreds of blood centers across the country, each serving different zip codes with a mix of fixed sites and mobile drives, the challenge wasn't just displaying the data, it was in how to display it fairly. Yoko Co developed a custom scoring and randomization algorithm that weighted results by proximity and site type, preventing any single national network from dominating every result simply by virtue of scale. We also supported the data collection effort, enabling centers to upload their own data via a collaborative spreadsheet, which was then checked for accuracy, the imported and run through the algorithm on demand to render a ranked, de-biased list for every zip code entered.
The site also includes a searchable Media Resource Library - a filterable archive of downloadable assets organized by media type (video, image, audio, document) and content tags, designed to serve journalists, advocates, and educators with a single, easy-to-navigate destination. A National Blood Inventory Tracker, provided by a third-party partner, was embedded directly into the site. Donor impact stories, educator resources, and a distinct navigation architecture serving three distinct audiences - donors, media, and educators - rounded out a site that needed to feel welcoming and non-clinical despite the gravity of its subject matter.
- Built a first-of-its-kind national, brand-agnostic blood donation platform on behalf of America's Blood Centers and ADRP
- Developed a custom zip code-based Location Finder with a randomization and scoring algorithm to ensure equitable representation of blood centers across networks
Zip-code and GPS-driven location finder allows users to find blood drives near them, with a randomization algorithm to ensure equitable representation across networks
The America's Blood Centers newsletter allows browsing of past articles, and a streamlined sign-up process for user subscriptions.
Working with Yoko Co was a joy from start to finish. They listened to our requirements and understood our needs and delivered above and beyond what we expected. Their team is attentive and dedicated to making the customer feel valued. If you are looking for a highly skilled team, Yoko Co is the way to go!
Leslie Maundy
Director, Membership Services & Events
America’s Blood Centers
