Think consumer, not patient: the secret to success for healthcare brands

Yet many healthcare brands remain stuck in the past, thinking purely clinically and prescriber-first, rather than patient-first.

According to Deloitte’s 2023 Global Health Care Outlook: “Consumer expectations in healthcare are rapidly aligning with experiences from other industries – patients now expect seamless, personalized interactions, and healthcare providers must evolve from reactive care providers to proactive partners in health.”

The assumption that healthcare branding means brochures in waiting rooms or dull, functional product packaging has long been outdated. In reality, patients managing lifelong conditions are consumers with the same expectations and needs as those shopping for consumer goods. They’re savvy, well-informed, and increasingly vocal about what they demand from the brands they trust.

Patient choice

Patient choice is no longer just a nice-to-have; it’s the new battleground for brand loyalty and market growth. Consider the case of Glutafin, a gluten-free prescription food brand. When NHS Scotland shifted some prescribing duties from GPs to pharmacists, patients gained easier access and more frequent opportunities to reconsider their choices. This shift was a pivotal moment. While great for patient empowerment, it posed a real risk – and a real opportunity – for brands.

Working closely with Glutafin, our team at Ideas + Outcomes didn’t just react – we worked to proactively reshape the landscape. We thought and acted like a consumer brand, positioning Glutafin as a category leader. Our strategy involved creating campaigns that spoke directly to consumers, guiding them confidently through the change.

Using tactics more familiar on the high street than in healthcare – direct mail, targeted sampling delivered straight to patients’ doors, integrated online and offline media campaigns, and engaging social media – we communicated the full brand narrative clearly and compellingly.

The impact? A remarkable 25% uplift in Glutafin’s market share in Scotland within a year – at the same time in England, the brand saw a 2% decline. Simply because no similar proactive approach had been taken.

Lifetime value

Healthcare marketers often glaze over when customer lifetime value is mentioned – it’s simply not a metric commonly discussed in their organizations. Viewing individuals purely as patients, rather than consumers, overlooks a crucial reality: with lifelong conditions, customer lifetime value can be enormous.

Patients managing chronic conditions account for around 50% of GP appointments and consume roughly 70% of healthcare budgets (NHS England). Acquiring a new patient can cost five times more than retaining an existing one, highlighting why patient retention is critical for brand profitability and sustainability.

Strong brands not only attract patients but also keep them engaged and loyal over the long term. For challenger brands, leveraging patient choice is a powerful tactic. Even if you aren’t the primary brand prescribed by hospitals or GP surgeries, proactively engaging patients can encourage brand switching, unlocking significant growth.

Consumer thinking

This broader shift is clear: healthcare brands must think and behave more like consumer brands. Consumer brands obsess over customer experience, communication, and engagement. They understand that emotions drive loyalty.

Healthcare brands, particularly those catering to lifelong conditions, must now adopt these principles. Empathy, personalized communication, transparency, and genuine engagement aren’t optional extras – they’re essentials.

Patients today expect brands to understand their journey. They want to be educated, inspired, supported, and respected. They want packaging that doesn’t stigmatize, information that’s clear and relatable, and products that acknowledge their everyday experiences. In short, patients want healthcare brands to treat them as consumers first, patients second.

In our agency, this isn’t radical – it’s central to how we operate. We understand that where there is the potential to drive switching and more patient choice across similar products that have a lot of parity, we need to be more high street than healthcare to make the brand stand out and occupy mental space with patients.

With a relentless focus on patient insight, emotion-driven engagement, and genuine interaction, our approach is informed by understanding what truly matters to patients, beyond clinical benefits alone.

The brands that embrace this patient-driven revolution now will secure loyalty, advocacy, and growth for years to come. Those who cling to the old ways risk becoming irrelevant, losing patients who increasingly know they deserve better.

Because patients aren’t waiting for permission – they’re already demanding brands step up. The only real question left is whether your brand is ready to listen.