Improving Access to Birth Control
Company: Power to Decide
Role: Senior Manager of Marketing & Behavioral Insights
Timeline: September 2018 - February 2019
Type of Work: Generative, 0→1 product development
Methods: Focus groups, personas, usability testing
Tools: Usertesting.com
Bedsider
Bedsider.org is a free digital platform developed by Power to Decide to help young adults—particularly women aged 18–29—explore and compare birth control options.
Designed to support informed, confident decision-making, Bedsider empowers users through accessible, judgment-free content and a user experience tailored to real-world needs.
The Problem
More than 19 million women in the U.S. live in contraceptive deserts—defined as areas with limited or no access to publicly funded birth control services.
Accessing birth control often means navigating a web of barriers, including but not limited to transportation, cost, childcare, privacy, and stigma. These barriers disproportionately affect low-income and underinsured young people.
The Challenge
How Might We: Design a solution leveraging Bedsider.org that meets users where they are and removes the practical and emotional burdens of getting contraception?
The Objective
Design and develop a user-informed, web-based tool that provides accessible birth control grounded in user research with young women facing the greatest barriers.
The goal was not just to digitize access, but to build trust and reduce friction through intentional research-led design.
Drawing on my background in sociology, I led a user-centered, iterative research process informed by sociocultural and behavioral insights. I began with a landscape analysis and literature review to identify key markets and barriers, then ran dyad interviews with young people in two of the largest contraceptive deserts to explore how they navigate access to reproductive healthcare.
These interviews surfaced nuanced insights around trust, stigma, and systemic barriers, which directly informed early product concepts. We tested mid-fidelity prototypes through multiple rounds on UserTesting.com, using feedback to refine the brand voice, onboarding experience, eligibility criteria, and messaging ahead of the initial beta launch.
The Process
My Role
I played a key role in grounding the product in user insight, helping to bridge the gap between research and execution. I brought a behavioral and sociocultural lens to the project, helping frame research questions, surfacing key access barriers, and translating qualitative findings into product and content decisions.
I partnered cross-functionally throughout, as well as oversaw the concept and unmoderated usability testing that made the product more trustworthy, clear, and responsive to users’ lived experience.
The Team
This was a collaborative effort across multiple organizations:
ThinkGroup supported recruitment and facilitation of focus groups
Citizen Tech Collective provided product, design, and development support
In-house teams at Power to Decide, including policy, comms, and product stakeholders, ensured program and messaging alignment
Lyft, Nurx, Twentyeight Health, and PRJKT RUBY served as key partners providing free rides and contraception to participants who qualified
Research Questions
We set out to explore 3 key research questions that guided our design and testing decisions throughout the project:
1) What financial, logistical, and informational barriers prevent young people in contraceptive deserts from accessing birth control?
2) How can we build trust with users who may be unfamiliar with Bedsider or hesitant to share sensitive information online?
3) What product design and messaging strategies would reduce friction and empower users to take action?
Methodology
I used a mixed-methods approach across 4 interrelated phases:
Landscape Analysis & Literature Review
Identified high-need markets and surfaced common access barriers like cost, transportation, childcare, and clinic availability.
Dyad Interviews
Conducted in San Diego and New Orleans with young women (N=8) from diverse racial, insurance, and income backgrounds.
These sessions explored their current behaviors, unmet needs, and perceptions of reproductive healthcare.
Concept Testing
Used UserTesting.com to evaluate 3 early product concepts (N=10).
Participants were asked to articulate their understanding of the program, assess clarity and tone, and identify concerns.
Unmoderated Usability Testing
Evaluated the onboarding flow, eligibility language, and overall comprehension on both mobile and desktop via Usertesting.com (N=10).
Identified confusion around household income criteria, security concerns, and desire for more upfront clarity about what Bedsider.org is.
Artifacts
Persona of Target Audience
Wireframe of the Flow
3 Concepts: BCPass, BCBenefits, and BCNow
Prototype
The research directly shaped the product’s design, messaging, and rollout strategy, ensuring it met the needs of users facing the greatest barriers to accessing birth control. The tool launched as a beta test in California and Louisiana and was eventually scaled nationally. As of April 2020, the tool has awarded over 2,200 individuals with no-to-low-cost birth control.
The Outcomes
Key Insights
Trust is table stakes to engagement.
Participants needed clear, upfront context on who Bedsider is and how their information would be used before they were willing to proceed.
“Even after I qualified, I still wasn’t sure if it was really free. It would be helpful to have something that talks about why you’re giving it away for free.”
Barriers to access go beyond cost.
Participants highlighted challenges like transportation, time off work, childcare, and fear of judgment at clinics—especially in contraceptive deserts.
“I’m not sure what ‘household income’ means exactly. Do I count my roommates? It’s not really clear.”
Clarity builds confidence.
Plain language worked well, but terms like “household income” or “reimbursement” needed clearer explanations to reduce confusion and hesitation.
“Technically I should’ve returned to the doctor and followed up, but because of time, transportation, what I’d already spent, I didn’t want to have to spend more and wait more.”
Users want reassurance, not just eligibility.
Even when they technically qualified, participants wanted reassurance that they wouldn’t face hidden costs. It wasn’t clear why the program was offering free contraception.
“I’ve never heard of Bedsider so if there is a reputation that could be on the page somehow to know if this is or is not an organization with positive intentions that would be helpful.”
Impact
Launched a beta test of BCBenefits in San Diego and New Orleans, embedding research insights across messaging, design, and eligibility flows to improve trust and clarity. The program has since expanded nationwide and awarded over 2,200 benefits as of April 2020.
Shaped trust-centered design decisions by refining how Bedsider and BCBenefits were introduced, how eligibility was explained, and how users understood available support.
Improved clarity through messaging by identifying confusing terms and simplifying how benefits were explained making the tool more approachable and easier to navigate for first-time users.
Set the foundation for national rollout, helping define messaging that resonates with low-income users navigating barriers like cost, transportation, and lost wages.
Desktop design showing trust-forward messaging and eligibility guidance
Mobile design optimized for clarity, confidence, and action
Reflections
Coming from academia, this was my first hands-on experience with UX research in a real-world setting and it fundamentally shaped my career path. Collaborating with public health advocates, designers, and engineers, I saw how user research could clarify complexity and drive meaningful impact at scale.
Through this project, I developed a deeper appreciation for designing within real-world constraints and learned how to translate insight into action, shaping both product design and messaging. Most importantly, this work sparked my passion for the intersection of UX and social impact—a space I’ve continued to grow in ever since.