I just counted 11,340 health and medical apps at the iTunes App Store. That’s twice as many as last February. And according to a Pew Research Center report, 18- to 29-year-olds (Millennials) are more likely to use these mobile health apps.
Market research giant GfK has coined a new phrase for this rising consumer market: techfluentials. Techfluentials see technologies like mobile health apps as extensions of themselves. And as Millennials age, they will become even more focused on health.
Time to build a better app trap
As more companies scramble to introduce the latest, greatest mobile health app, I fear that they are missing the main ingredients: Does it provide value? More importantly, will it change behavior?
For example, “My Glycemic Index” helps people with diabetes know the glycemic load of 2,500 different foods, but does it motivate them to make healthy choices?
Go backward to move forward
For example, why not uncover the obstacles that are preventing diabetic patients from maintaining good blood glucose control? Then you can shape your app to help them overcome those challenges.
Maybe an app that reminds diabetic patients to eat an afternoon snack — so they aren’t famished when they go to Burger King for dinner and order a cheeseburger (glycemic load = 15) instead of a chicken Caesar salad without dressing or croutons (glycemic load = 3) — would be more effective to help them make healthy food choices.
I looked, but I couldn’t find an app for that.
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Ken is a great deal more than just the president of a medical communications company. He is something of a hybrid. He’s part marketing manager, part creative director, and part copywriter. To the chagrin of his peers—but to the delight of his clients—Ken is a consummate perfectionist. As a former creative director for a high-end consumer agency, he challenged his creative teams to go beyond the mundane to produce work with real creative impact, something he’s just as fervent about today. From producing and directing TV commercials, to launching DTC and Rx-to-OTC switches, Ken brings his clients a world of experience in OTC pharmaceuticals as well as business, lifestyle, and high-end consumer products and services. Whether huddled with clients behind a mirror in a market research center in Houston, facilitating a strategic workshop in Madrid, or developing a global campaign either in the New Jersey or California office, Ken is always fully engaged, bringing “bestness” to all areas of his hectic but full life.
