How to become a Healthusiasm company?
Via my youtube channel you can find a 25-minute monologue in which I delve deeper into why people are, more than ever, occupied with their health, and why they are taking more and more action to impact their own health.
But I also prepared a shorter version. And in this brief one, I will recap the four different evolutions that make people (want to) take action to impact their own health.
These four evolutions are important for you as a company in order to really serve the primary need of your customer, which is “be(com)ing healthy and happy”. In applying these four evolutions, your business can become a health(care) business.
Here is a written summary of this brief monologue:
1. Technology
The first evolution is the technological evolution.
Today people are accustomed to becoming whoever they want to become. And that is all thanks to technology. Technology offers us (1) the tools which are cheaper than ever, (2) the platforms to learn things, as well as (3) the customers, the people, the audience that we want to reach. Thanks to these three elements, we have the power to become whoever or whatever we want to become. If you want to become a singer, you can become a singer; if we want to write a book, we can write a book. More than ever, these things have become attainable for every one of us. If you want to become a runner, there are tools and apps that can help you persevere. Today, people are accustomed to the fact that technology helps them to become whoever or whatever they want to become. That is the first evolution.
2. Economy
The second evolution has to do with how brands and companies create value.
In the past, value lied in the commodities and products that were put on the market, by brands or companies. Then, the market moved into services, because they wanted to differentiate ourselves from our competitors. But ever since 2014, customer experience has become the dominant field of competition for brands and customers. This was how they could differentiate themselves from competition.
But ever since about a year two, in my opinion, value has become more closely related to transformations. Companies can create value for their customers, if they offer an experience that is that personal, that it makes the actual customer feel transformed. That he or she feels better because of it. It is no longer just about a general customer experience. It is truly about a personal experience that changes a person, deep down. This is the second evolution, i.e. the economic evolution. Therefore, for you as a company or a brand, it is really important to understand what those personal transformations, the personal experiences, are that you can offer your customers in order to create value.
3. Psychology
A third evolution has more to do with the way people behave, with what people want in their lives. This is the psychological evolution. More than ever, the basic and emotional needs of people have been fulfilled – in particular in Western society. What we now increasingly see being chased are the ‘Self-actualization needs’: people aspire to become a better person. This is very obvious and very visible in the way they go about sustainability for example: People change their behaviours and even choose brands and companies that are sustainable. But they also want brands that take diversity and inclusivity into account. In the same way, they will choose brands that help them become healthy & happy.
Those are the three aspirational trends we see develop today: sustainability, inclusivity and diversity, and finally health. So, the important question for you is: do you know your customer’s aspirations? And do you know what aspirations they have related to their health? Can you actually help them in achieving it? Because yes, that is what they really expect from any type of company. Whether you are Nike, or Mercedes, or whether you are a pharmaceutical company or a hospital. Customers really expect you to help them to achieve those aspirations.
4. Society
Obviously, the fourth evolution has to do with this strange pandemic reality we are currently living in. The COVID-19 crisis has probably made health the single most “used” word in our vocabularies today. And while people would previously focus on those aspirational needs alone, now they have gone down a few notches in Maslow's hierarchy of needs pyramid. Now, people also need their basic needs to be fulfilled again. We worry about our health, our work, our sleep. These basis needs are very important today. Because these needs are no longer fulfilled in this pandemic reality that has impacted the things that felt safe and secure before. People are looking for that safety, or #safeness, again.
A second thing we notice is related to the fact that, right now, most of us are locked up in our own houses. Most likely, we will still be for several months to come. Over perhaps even the next two to three years, we could experience these lockdowns again. More than ever, we need #togetherness. This refers to the emotional needs that are currently not being fulfilled. It refers to the mental health aspect of this entire situation.
Therefore, the question is: how can your company help your customers with matters of #safeness and with this idea of #togetherness. (While at the same time still offering the right #wellness to those who still relentlessly aspire to become a healthier and happier.)
Conclusion
Those four evolutions make people want to become healthier and happier today. Those four evolutions made people take actions that impact their own health.
It includes a technological evolution. People are accustomed to becoming whoever they want to become, and that is also the case when it comes to their health. They want to have an impact on their own health by relying on technology.
A second evolution has to do with value creation: people are looking for personal experiences that are offered by you, the brand, a company or a healthcare institution.
A third evolution is the psychological one, which sees people becoming more aspirational than ever before. They truly want to become the best possible version of themselves, and they really want to become as healthy and as happy as possible.
Then, finally, there is the societal evolution. This fourth evolution has to do with the need for #safeness and #togetherness, which has been added on top of the aspiration of becoming as healthy and as happy as possible.
This is how you as a company today can actually help your customers to become healthy and happy. In fact, it is our duty to really help them. After all, that is what they want. That is how they make choices. That is what is truly valuable to them. So, let us help our society to become as healthy and happy as possible. Let us make our customers healthy and happy.
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Christophe Jauquet is a health marketing expert who inspires consumer businesses and healthcare organisations around the world. With his experience at the intersection of healthcare, marketing and technology, he guides companies and brands to remain relevant in the light of this Healthusiasm trend.
Every Wednesday and Friday he takes calls from companies that want to briefly (40 minutes) discuss matters, i.e. brainstorm about how they should incorporate health into either their vision, mission strategy or marketing communication, and even in their business tactics. Christophe is available for calls for two days a week, so he can bring my knowledge and insights to all sorts of companies. Please feel free to reach out via LinkedIn, through linkedin, or via email.