Picture this. You’re an executive at a scrappy, VC-backed health-tech startup with a runway of about 12 months. Your investors are breathing down your neck for growth, and given your limited budget, you’re tempted to throw everything you’ve got into growth marketing—paid search, email marketing, conversion rate optimization, the works. After all, that’s what moves the needle, right?
While growth marketing tends to focus on quick wins like lead generation (B2B) and immediate sales (B2B2C and DTC), without the support of a strong brand narrative, those efforts can fall short. Unfocused messaging or a lack of clear differentiators can make it difficult to stand out from the competition to attract qualified leads, impacting conversion rates early on, and hampering your efforts deeper in the funnel.
And without a compelling story behind your growth efforts, your marketing becomes transactional. This limits your ability to build the trust and long-term relationships essential for success in the health-tech space. A weak brand can lead to lower customer retention, diminished trust, and missed opportunities for sustainable growth.
As the founders of leading health-tech growth and brand marketing firms, we’ve seen firsthand how the failure to power your growth strategies with an effective brand narrative can cripple even the most ambitious marketing efforts. In this health-tech marketing guide, we’ll share our expertise to help you avoid common missteps by supercharging your growth goals with a brand that drives sustainable results.
Example #1: Parsley Health
Parsley Health, a former client, found traction by positioning itself as the holistic alternative to the impersonal, quick-fix model of conventional healthcare by offering longer, more in-depth consultations with doctors, coaches, and nutritionists.
With a focus on prevention rather than just symptom management, Parsley quickly gained a following among women whose complex conditions had not been well-managed by the medical status quo. Members’ willingness to share their personal successes—and amplify Parsley’s brand narrative—created invaluable authenticity for the brand while lowering their customer acquisition costs.
Example #2: Maven Clinic
Maven Clinic, the digital health platform focused on women’s and family healthcare, chose to invest in brand building from the start, emphasizing gaps in traditional care that negatively impact working families.
By positioning themselves as a trusted, personalized support system throughout all stages of family building—from fertility treatment to postpartum and pediatric care—Maven fostered deep emotional connections with grateful users. This mission-driven approach not only drove strong engagement but also attracted partnerships with major employers, securing Maven’s role as a leading force in women and family-centered healthcare today.
Time and again, we’ve seen that a well-crafted brand narrative is often what distinguishes marketing campaigns that scale from those that burn through budgets without delivering. By connecting brand marketing inputs to growth outcomes, businesses can unlock sustainable growth, creating deeper audience engagement and higher conversion rates.
Actium Health, an innovator in automated patient outreach, found their messaging wasn’t breaking through to the right decision makers. They turned to BFJ to craft a new brand identity and narrative to showcase their unique value and reach customers on a more emotional level.
The results? A significant boost in engagement, reduced customer acquisition costs, and a market position and identity that truly stands out. This is just a snapshot—explore the full case study to see how a well-crafted brand story can transform growth efforts.
To find out how your own brand measures up, get in touch with BFJ for a free 4-point assessment to identify your brand’s strengths and areas for improvement relative to other competitors in your market.
Part II: Best practices to amplify your narrative across all growth channels
Recognizing the power of a strong brand narrative and its direct impact on growth is just the beginning. In Part 2, we’ll explore how to put that narrative into action across your growth marketing channels—whether through paid search, social media, email, or offline strategies. By connecting a compelling story with the right tactics, you can drive deeper engagement and lift conversion rates.
We’ll also dive into real-world case examples, such as how Growth Vanguard helped one client achieve a 95% increase in conversion rates and a 43% reduction in customer acquisition costs by collaborating with a content partner. You’ll get an inside look at the strategies that made those impressive results possible.
If you’re looking to replicate this kind of success, follow us on LinkedIn to be the first to access Part 2 and learn actionable steps to take your brand growth from good to unstoppable.
Written in collaboration with Tim Ming, the Founder of Growth Vanguard, a fractional growth marketing consultancy for digital health and healthcare companies - from pre-seed to Fortune 200 companies. GV specializes in growth marketing consulting and managed services for acquisition and engagement marketing channels, as well as HIPAA compliant marketing analytics and tracking services.
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Best Friend Jack understands the challenges and opportunities confronting health-tech clients at every stage of the funnel. Get in touch for a complimentary brand audit today.
