Case study

CREATING MEDTECH E-COMMERCE THAT DEMOCRATIZES IMAGING IN HEALTHCARE

01 Story

Joining Forces To Distribute Health Worldwide

Established in 2011, Butterfly Network is dedicated to providing universal access to high-quality medical imaging through affordable, user-friendly ultrasound technology that is intelligently connected and globally accessible.

The Butterfly device is the first handheld, single-probe whole-body ultrasound system using semiconductor technology. Another piece of equipment, Butterfly iQ+ Vet, is aimed at helping animals.

In 2019, Butterfly trusted Mirumee with launching an e-commerce platform to make it easy for the world to access the probes. Since then, the partnership expanded, leading to thousands of devices shipped worldwide. Butterfly iQ+ can be used everywhere, from remote areas of Africa to the International Space Station – and even in a SpaceX spacecraft.

butterflynetwork.com

brand since 2011,

technologies from 2019

The small, smart probes from Butterfly can be easily used in thousands of situations and places – you can't say that about classic sonographic solutions. I feel great about helping develop a product that makes the world a bit better.”

Piotr Wojciechowski,

PM, Mirumee

02 Mission

Low-cost Medical Imaging to Communities In Need

Compact and cost-effective, the probes are vastly more accessible than traditional scanner equipment. Users can carry it in their pockets and connect it to their smartphones. As Butterfly’s founder Jonathan M. Rothberg puts it, “Our mission is to democratize healthcare by making medical imaging accessible to everyone around the world.”

Global players share that mission. Through Butterfly’s global health program, the company works with over 400 global health organizations and counting and has deployed devices to over 100 countries.

03 Challenges

Multicurrency Worldwide E-commerce

To be able to reach audiences around the globe, Butterfly e-commerce requires a platform supporting multiple currencies and dynamic tax settings.

Meeting Users Where They’re At

Users in different regions expect the shop to be in their native language, and to perform well regardless of their device or internet speed. Adjustments must reflect visual and branding consistency across all pages.

Subscription Model With Complex Business Logic

The Butterfly offers multiple subscription options, so users can customize to their needs. The shop must clearly convey how subscriptions work so buyers know what benefits to expect. Additionally, users should be able to manage their accounts to change payment options and upgrade or downgrade their plans – and know exactly how that impacts their experience and finances.

Users and Organizations

Butterfly users can be individuals or organizations with sub-users – for example, a doctor who owns a private practice and manages the subscription of five personnel. This difference impacts from the backend to the shopping flow, as individuals and organizations may receive different offerings when making a purchase.

Improvements Opportunities in Data Flow

The two primary sale sources (e-commerce and direct sales) had data structured differently due to limitations in integration. The mismatch required the team to adjust them constantly.

05 Technology

06 Results

Countries where we sell
directly and online:

Fully-supported
store languages:

Team
members:

07 Relationship

Growing Responsibility and Ownership

The Butterfly-Mirumee partnership evolved. Since we launched the e-commerce platform in 2019, we have expanded it, added features, and continuously implemented future-proof strategies. In the meantime, we assisted with additional projects such as in Butterfly Cloud and critical needs of the marketing website.

Smooth Communication With Minimum Oversight Required

We seek to strike a balance. The partner should always be up to speed on the progress without spending time filtering information. In practice, a Project Owner from Butterfly meets with developers or designers for a quick daily twice a week on average. This steady pace, combined with solid documentation, nurtures a transparent and productive collaboration.

Elastic Team Composition

The delivery team composition evolved to meet the project’s needs. We started with three developers and a project manager, later expanding to two teams temporarily, and even added design support as required to deliver consistently within the given timeline and budget.

Butterfly has quite complex e-commerce challenges that encourage us to look for creative solutions. But working with the Butterfly team, and being inspired by their mission, makes it all a pleasure.”

Aleksander Spyra,

Tech Lead, Mirumee

09 Future-proof

Minimizing Dependency Risks With Agile Architecture

We continuously evaluate what to code from scratch and what to integrate with external services so we have the best of both worlds in composable commerce. In 2023, prompted by the impending deprecation of a critical integration, we smoothly transitioned away from it by implementing clean code and architecture. Ultimately, the solution switch requires a simple click.

Always on The Lookout for Business-Critical Improvements

Our recent update underscores our dedication to equipping our partners with dependable solutions, empowering them to achieve their mission successfully.

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