Interest-level data related to health searches and browsing helps connect consumers with the cure for what ails them

Health interest data can be tricky. HIPAA, general privacy, and ethics considerations swirl anytime the topic is broached. 

On the other hand, when people search or browse online about specific health topics and conditions, whether as a patient, friend, family member, or caregiver, they’re often seeking help. As marketers, we can help connect them with information, services or products that can provide just that. 

Staying in the privacy and ethics lane on this sensitive subject means not basing campaigns off medical or pharmaceutical data. Legitimate companies shouldn’t even have access to this data anyway so aligning with health privacy regulations should be easy. 

Health-related search and browsing data, so long as it was collected from consumers who have proactively opted in to share it, can substantially improve how relevant brands and providers target campaigns. 

Demographics don’t tell the whole story

Previously, health brands attempting to target campaigns would have to rely on general demographics to connect with prospective customers. 

So, maybe seniors in general. Women in certain age groups. Men over 50. 

While not impossible to find target customers this way, ROI can really drag when attempting to find needles in a haystack. 

Meanwhile, millions of Americans suffer from a range of ailments and are actively seeking information on treatments, insurance plans, and support. When consumers give BRIDGE access to this data, we use it to create a granular topology of ailments spanning 80 categories. For instance, allergies, back pain, heart disease, or arthritis. 

This information also extends to interests. For instance, people who may want to exercise more or lose weight. Or people seeking an alternative approach to managing a condition (e.g., “treatments for skin itch”)

We keep this information for a year and then delete it. This ensures high degrees of relevancy and propensity for action or engagement. The data can be activated in multichannel campaigns that include Email, Display, Connected TV, and OTT. 

A cure for your ailing campaign?

Health interest data can add high value to health-related campaigns, making it possible to: 

• Quickly find new patients. Doctors’ offices or support providers can market local capabilities and services. 

• Target only qualified audiences. When brands have a better idea about specific health conditions of interest to consumers, they can target only those audiences for higher ROI. 

Consumers also win, including those specifically seeking alternative or new, lifestyle-driven approaches to managing a condition. 

This represents a real breakthrough for health brands, especially when factoring in our ability to overlay health-related data atop other personally identifiable information (PII)-based data from our audience of more than 250 million people. 

How can we help ensure your next campaign is a healthy one? Let us know here.