Seeing a Bright Future for Youth Mental Health

CLIENT

Ortus Foundation

INDUSTRY

Mental Health

THE CHALLENGE

Ortus Foundation was established in 2022 to create networks of change for mental health support and suicide prevention among youth and young adults. The young foundation sought a marketing partner to invigorate the brand, grow awareness and create meaningful connections both on- and offline.

SERVICES

THE OPPORTUNITY

Ortus creates networks of change to support mental health and suicide prevention for youth and young adults, particularly those living in the Intermountain West frontier.

The Ortus team was already hard at work building relationships, creating connections, funding research and supporting early-stage mental health companies.

The foundation was ready to expand its relationships and impact, and needed an updated brand, communications strategy and website to match its passion and capacity for change-making.

BRAND STRATEGY

A narrow focus within a broad category

Scores of nonprofits and foundations sit under the mental health and suicide prevention umbrella, including those with a specific focus on youth and young adults. Helping Ortus connect the right message with relevant audiences meant understanding the foundation’s unique characteristics and goals.

Bigmouth engaged the Ortus team, including founder Sabrina Gracias, in deep conversations about their individual and collective passions and motivations. The group’s personal ties to mental health and suicide prevention for young people, as well as their enthusiasm for funding nontraditional research and projects, stood out as true differentiators.

Together, we defined a brand strategy that positions Ortus as a conduit for change, uniting and funding like-minded advocates and experts who work in the mental health space. Our strategy allows Ortus to grow its network of influence and support while creating clarity around its role in the mental health and suicide prevention landscape.

KEY BIGMOUTH TACTICS

Developing vision, positioning and brand promise

Defining efficient marketing strategies and tactics

Through our research and conversations with the Ortus team, Bigmouth articulated the foundation’s work within four priority areas:

Youth mental health in schools

Research on groundbreaking solutions

Creating partnerships + connections

Funding early-stage mental health companies

BRAND EXECUTION

Rising to a creative challenge

Now that we understood what Ortus had to say, it was time for the Bigmouth team to explore the best way to say it—and show it.

“Ortus,” rooted in the Latin word for “rise,” captures the foundation’s hope and determination for improvement and change in our mental health crisis. This positive, action-oriented energy formed the basis of our creative inspiration and brand tonality: Bright, smart, fresh, elegant and soulful. A new color palette centered on citrus tones is young and uniquely Ortus; additional shapes and patterns allow for endless creative expression.

It was crucial that audiences understand Ortus’ function within the landscape: The foundation acts as a conduit, uniting and funding like-minded advocates and experts rather than directly providing mental health services.

KEY BIGMOUTH TACTICS

Aligning brand identity through a revised logo, broad color palette and enhanced photography and typography.

Creating key messaging that best communicates the Ortus brand and authentically connects with audiences.

Primary Colors

SUNRISE

SUNSET

DUSK

MIDNIGHT

Secondary Colors

RADIANT ROSE

BRAVE BLUSH

TRANQUIL TEAL

MINDFUL MINT

Typography

Photography

Photography was central to the visual identity—because when you’re telling human stories, the connection has to feel real. We established clear creative direction to ensure that no matter who was behind the lens, the images reflected real youth and young adults in honest, relatable ways.

INCLUSIVE

Real photos of youth from a broad spectrum of gender expressions, ages, races and ethnicities

AUTHENTIC

Unique, candid moments with an emphasis on joy, but room for seriousness of subject matter.

BRIGHT

A highlighted use of natural and warm lighting that contributes to the narrative and uplifts.

EMPOWERING

Photography that captures the realities of life while giving the subjects power in how their story is told.

INCLUSIVE

Real photos of youth from a broad spectrum of gender expressions, ages, races and ethnicities

AUTHENTIC

Unique, candid moments with an emphasis on joy, but room for seriousness of subject matter.

BRIGHT

A highlighted use of natural and warm lighting that contributes to the narrative and uplifts.

EMPOWERING

Photography that captures the realities of life while giving the subjects power in how their story is told.

An updated logo is an evolution of the previous Ortus logo, with an enhanced sunburst and bold fonts that evoke both warmth and professionalism.

Mental health and suicide prevention are inherently serious topics that must be treated with care and respect. They also are human topics that require a nuanced approach. Bigmouth wove the Ortus energy through our new brand voice and key messaging, focusing on positive, passionate, inclusive and hopeful language.

WEBSITE

A space for education and connection

Ortus was just two years into its work as a foundation. Now was the perfect moment to increase brand awareness and find opportunities to introduce itself to new people, while also solidifying relationships with existing partners.

While Ortus’ mission, vision and goals were specific and focused, its new website needed to appeal to a wide range of audiences: Collaborators, investors and those seeking funding or information.

KEY BIGMOUTH TACTICS

Redesigning the Ortus website to reflect their freshly defined identity, optimize user experience and allow for easy site updates.

User Experience

Bigmouth worked closely with Ortus on a redesigned site that better reflected the foundation’s identity, created action-oriented user journeys and supported the team in easy content and image updates.

The resulting site employs actionable language and engaging colors, patterns and photography that weave a story of expertise and inclusivity.

EVENTS

Turning interactions into partnerships

To achieve their goal of attracting new audience members to the foundation, the Ortus team needed a fresh set of tools that showcased their beautiful new brand, as well as the organization’s credibility and maturity.

Ortus, led by founder Sabrina Gracias, constantly connects with advocates around the world at conferences, events and through everyday conversations. Consistent brand touchpoints like business cards, email signatures, communication templates, and promotional items help the team create memorable impressions before and after meeting new connections face-to-face.

KEY BIGMOUTH TACTICS

Establishing Ortus’ credibility as a thought leader; creating consistent messaging; and leveraging partnerships to grow their network of change.

Guiding the Ortus team in demonstrating their passion for learning, sharing and connection via events, panels and conference support

Increasingly, Sabrina brings Ortus’ work to the stage at speaking events, including the foundation’s 2024 Mental Health Symposium in Jackson, WY. In support of that event, and Ortus events to come, the Bigmouth team built a toolkit that includes invitations, signage, name tags, slideware and more. A robust event booklet also guided attendees through the experience.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Centering community

A new social strategy focuses on Ortus thought leadership, the work of partner organizations and updates on the foundation’s learnings, relationship-building and funding efforts. Engaging visuals and storytelling, including videos, themed series, data-driven slideshows and personal narratives, help Ortus build awareness, create organic engagement and generate leads.

KEY BIGMOUTH TACTICS

Humanizing the Ortus voice through posts that emphasize personal stories and passions

Exploring ways to demonstrate collaboration, including sharing and partner posts

The bold new Ortus colors and imagery were tailor-made for making a splash on social media. Adding videos and reels to the mix helped capture attention and increase engagement, both with Sabrina’s vast existing networks and the main Ortus account, which had yet to find its audience.