Markets
The disruptive power of mobile technology has ignited innovation in the healthcare industry.
In its Open Mobile Survey 2012, the accounting/consulting firm Deloitte concluded that healthcare/life science is one of the “top three fields (along with consumer products and the financial industry) likely to propel mobile device growth over the next five years.” In particular, factors such as an aging population, increasing prevalence of chronic illness, ballooning healthcare costs, and more assertive consumers demanding tools for self-care, are creating a fertile ground for mobile-based health (“mHealth”) solutions.
“Digital technologies, including ubiquitous mobile devices, can play a key role in transforming health care into a more efficient, patient-centered system of care in which individuals have instant, on-demand access to their medical records and powerful clinical decision support tools that empower them to actively participate in their treatment plans.” DeloitteLLC, “mHealth in an mWorld” 2012
The worldwide proliferation of smartphones and tablets makes this degree of change possible. Cisco Systems estimates that there will be 10 billion mobile devices in worldwide use by 2016. As a result, the global mHealth market is expected to experience a 39% Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) between 2011 and 2018,¹ and wireless monitoring devices in the US are expected to triple from $7.1 billion in 2012 to $22 billion in 2015.²
The medical app market is expected to experience 23% annual growth over the next 5 years.³ According to an independent mobile research firm, the number of people worldwide who downloaded a mobile health app nearly doubled from 127 million in 2011 to 247 million in 2012⁴ and half a billion smartphone users will have at least one mobile health care app on their phones by 2015.⁵ Doctors support these changes. A survey of nearly 2,300 US healthcare professionals conducted in January 2013 by eClinical Works found that 89% of doctors would recommend a mHealth app to their patients and that 93% saw mHealth apps improving patient outcomes. Another key issue that physicians felt would benefit from patient app usage is medication adherence.
Surprisingly, a recent study by Indiana University found that using digital algorithms to assess patient data could do a better job of diagnosing and making treatment recommendations than physicians. Using data from 6,700 patients, researchers found that positive patient outcomes increased by 35% while cost of diagnosis & treatment was reduced by 60%. These results help to fuel the enthusiasm among investors for the long-range promise of digital and mHealth technologies.⁶
Certainly the trends in capital investment reflect strong confidence in expectations for performance: US venture funding of digital health companies increased by 45% to $1.4 billion in 2012, up from $968 million in 2011 (RockHealth).⁷ These dramatic trends affirm the strategic product development direction that iSonea is taking with AirSonea and AsthmaSense.
The innovative apps and monitoring devices in our pipeline can help people to:
- Better monitor chronic asthma symptoms;
- Increase awareness of changing risk for an attack;
- Enhance adherence to asthma treatment plans;
- Improve long-term outcomes; and Reduce healthcare expenditures.
We sell respiratory and sleep supply products into Home care and Hospital markets. Our products and services are premium priced and provide enough value to justify that premium. We help our customers to make more money by using our products for better clinical outcomes and a better quality of life for the patient / user. Our brand image is “innovative”, “better not bigger” and “high quality”.
Our marketing messages are clever, catchy and tasteful. Our marketing campaigns are heavily “social” involving both two-way conversations between us and our market as well as buzz within the market. The messaging and feel of our marketing campaigns are consistent across channels. Our passion about helping patients to be healthy is apparent throughout our marketing communication. We clearly state what we do better than the competitive alternatives, but we do not negative sell against our competitors or their products.
Our customers eagerly await our next new product. We position our messages to create interest and anticipation. We make announcements to maximize the positive “buzz” in the DME and respiratory marketplace. We favor the direct communication (as opposed to mass marketing) with our customers where possible.
Internally, our marketing organization is aligned with the market segments we serve.