Not for Me: the Dilemma of Health Intertia

As healthcare marketers, how can you inspire change for better health outcomes when change is not perceived necessary?

A report published by Wunderman Health had some really interesting statistics about a survey where 750 people (18 years of age or older) with chronic conditions participated.

56% of people with chronic conditions considered themselves healthy or very healthy with an addition of 80% of people who felt their health was average. 

After calling themselves healthy the respondents admitted to numerous poor health behaviors, such as not getting enough sleep, not eating a balanced diet and not spending time being active outdoors and the healthy behaviors they did report were far less impactful ones, such as taking vitamins, limiting coffee, and getting regular health checkups. 

Most people believe they are significantly healthier than they are, impeding their motivation to change and improve their health. Further, the research findings indicated that traditional marketing approaches reinforce rather than change this behavior. 

Picture this: There’s a nagging health condition that has been bothering someone for years. Even if they don’t notice the symptoms all the time, they’ve absorbed more than enough information to understand the scope of the problem. They know the treatment options, the potential benefits to be gained by improving their health, and the dangers of continuing on their current path…

But nothing changes.

Maybe they’ll keep collecting more information about their health conditions. Maybe they’ll keep telling themself that they’ll take care of it soon. But, days and months go by, and they find themself in the exact same place as before – or possibly even worse off.

If this observation sounds familiar, you might have come across “health inertia.” Health inertia is a common behavior pattern that can affect the entire scope of healthcare – everything from minor wellness and prevention tweaks to major operations and follow-up.

If this is the case, how do we inspire change when change is not perceived as a necessity?

The shift from education to inspiration

As health care marketers we create vast amounts of content and advertising designed to influence new behaviors but these all tend to be rational, factual and educational rather than motivational. Action is not about information, we need to connect emotionally around personal motivations and deep somethings even unconscious desires. We need to shift from education to inspiration. 

Effective targeting based on behavior can give your brand an edge over your competition. Understanding behavior can help you identify the communication required to overcome the health inertia pertaining to your therapy area. We, the healthcare marketing community is not only fighting serious health conditions, but it is also fighting human nature. To effect real change, we must use data to evoke emotions that motivate. 

Drop a message and I along with my team can help you with an effective approach to overcome the health inertia for your therapy. Partner with us and allow us to create communication and identify channels to influence behavior for better health outcomes.

Reach out to me. I am just a message away!