Healthcare Email Marketing: Everything You Need to Know

In this article, we’ll discuss how email marketing for healthcare and wellness brands can help.

But first, let’s further discuss some trends.

Industry and Consumer Trends in Health and Wellness

• By 2030, shopping will be incredibly personalized as the concept of ‘Phygital’ rages on. Physical and digital store experiences will no longer be disparate. Health and wellness shopping experiences will be more connected than before.
• There is a significant shift in shopping behaviors as customers increasingly go digital. Traffic in stores will go down permanently.
• Today’s Pharmaceutical products have the potential to become the over-the-counter drugs of tomorrow, further adding to the drive for wellness and health ecommerce.
• The global vitamins, minerals, and supplements market is expected to grow from $129 billion in 2021 to $196 billion by 2028.
• DTC brands will continue to grow to $212.90 billion by the end of 2024 in the US, and personalized emails will be a top-tier customer engagement strategy.

These trends show that building at least one strong community you own is vital for the health and wellness industry. It will lead to better engagement, loyalty, sales, and long-term growth. And there’s no better fit for this need than the email marketing channel.

Importance of Email Marketing for Healthcare and Wellness Brands

Email marketing can undoubtedly drive long-term benefits for health and wellness brands. Why is it so crucial for this particular industry? Let’s take a closer look.

Education-driven Marketing Channel

With the rise of fake news and misinformation, brands must have a direct communication line with their customers. Email marketing does precisely that for health and wellness brands. They can cut through the noise and share the most accurate and relevant information with their audience, such as the benefits of their products, new product launches, and industry updates.

Personalization

Health and wellness is highly personal and subjective. What works for one person may not work for another. Email marketing allows brands to segment their audience based on interests, demographics, or purchase history and send targeted emails that resonate with the needs of each group.

Relationship Building

Through personalized email content, exclusive offers, and informative newsletters, these brands can build a loyal community of brand advocates. When customers are happy with a product, they are more likely to refer friends. Email greases the wheels for word of mouth, the ultimate marketing channel.

Reputation Management

As mentioned earlier, the health and wellness industry is under intense scrutiny. Any misstep can tarnish a brand’s reputation. Email marketing helps brands stay transparent with their audience by sharing updates on ingredients, sourcing methods, and any other relevant information that customers may want.

Data-driven Decision Making

With email marketing analytics, health and wellness brands can track open rates, click-through rates, conversions and use this data to improve their future campaigns. This allows them to tailor their messaging based on what resonates best with their audience.

10 Healthcare Email Marketing Examples

In this section, we will delve into a few healthcare email marketing emails that will illustrate the application of the strategies mentioned above in real-world scenarios. Keep an eye out for tangible strategies that can be adapted and implemented in your email campaigns to foster strong, lasting customer relationships!

1. Stay Healthy. Stay Nourished

What we love:

• Appealing header: The email opens with a captivating, animated gif header that immediately piques the reader’s interest.
• Engagement-boosting discount: With discounts and incentives, the brand leverages the power of financial savings to boost subscriber engagement and drive conversions.
• Highlights key USPs: The email masterfully details the brand’s unique selling propositions (USPs), such as a satisfaction guarantee and excellent customer ratings. These facets establish the brand’s credibility.
• Customer support details: It also includes how to reach customer support, such as via helpline number and email.

2. Unmissable Flash Sale

What we love:

• Strong opening: The email launches with a bold announcement of an unmissable flash sale, immediately capturing the recipient’s attention.
• Design focus on the discount: The email design emphasizes the substantial discount on offer, making it the star of the show.
• Listing of best products: The email strategically features the brand’s top products, tempting readers with their most popular items.
• Prominent CTAs: Each product is accompanied by an individual, highly visible ‘Shop Now’ button, encouraging immediate action and making the purchasing process simple.

3. Hot take

What we love:

• Image-focused showcase: The email cleverly uses an image to demonstrate the product’s benefits – poreless, flawless skin – thus creating a visual appeal that words alone cannot achieve.
• Conversational copy: The email copy is light-hearted and casual, making it feel more like a chat with a friend than a sales pitch. It establishes a strong connection with the reader.
• Customer testimonial: It offers authentic, user-generated content that establishes trust and credibility.
• Minimalistic design: The simplicity of the design also enhances the readability of the email.

4. Anniversary Sale

What we love:

• Text-centric approach: The email primarily relies on persuasive text to communicate its message rather than leaning heavily on images. This allows the brand to focus on articulating the value proposition and the substantial savings on offer in a detailed manner.
• Dual ‘Shop Now’ CTAs: There are two ‘Shop Now’ call-to-action buttons, each with contrasting designs that add a visual pop and guide the reader towards taking the desired action.
• Emphasis on savings: The copy is strategically curated to highlight the significant savings that customers can avail, creating a sense of urgency and FOMO.
• 60-day Satisfaction Guarantee: The email ends on a high note, reassuring customers of the brand’s confidence in its product with a 60-day satisfaction guarantee offer. This adds an extra layer of credibility.

5. Spin to Win

What we love:

• Interactive experience: The interactive spin-to-win wheel adds an element of fun and excitement for the subscriber, making them more likely to engage with the email and take action.
• Urgency-based copy: The copy is crafted in a way that creates a sense of urgency by emphasizing limited-time offers and using words like ‘now’ and ‘today.’
• Tangy design scheme: The vibrant color scheme used in the email grabs attention and makes it visually appealing. It also aligns well with the brand’s image.
• Catchy call-to-action: The ‘Claim Your Code’ button stands out from the rest of the email and is a personalized invitation for the subscriber to redeem their discount.

6. Say Cheese!

What we love:

• High-Quality Images: The email features high-resolution images of the product: a sleek, modern toothbrush. The images are set against clean, monotone backgrounds, providing a solid contrast that truly focuses on every facet of the product.
• Comprehensive Product Description: The copy is detailed and informative, providing everything a potential buyer needs to know. From its unique features to the materials used and its benefits, the description leaves no stone unturned.
• Focus on Sustainability: The copy also highlights the sustainability features. It proudly declares that the toothbrush is 100% recyclable, thus showcasing the brand’s commitment to environmentally friendly practices.
• Listing of Top Products: The email efficiently lists both top products, complete with their images and features. This offers readers a quick at-a-glance comparison and ease in purchasing.

7. Headspace

What we love:

• Engaging Opening Headline: The ‘You’re here for a reason’ headline immediately grabs attention. It’s an effective way of acknowledging the reader’s need for mindfulness and establishing a personal connection.
• Authoritative Copy: The copy establishes Headspace as a thought leader in meditation and self-care.
• Inclusion of Customer Stories: By incorporating customer stories, the email drives trust and credibility. Hearing from real people who have benefitted from Headspace makes the gains tangible.
• Creative Call-to-action: The ‘Get some Headspace’ CTA is a clever wordplay that doubles as a possible unique brand slogan. It not only encourages users to engage with the product but also reinforces the brand’s mission memorably.

8. Ardent

What we love:

• Countdown Timer: The email incorporates a countdown timer, creating a sense of urgency. This encourages prompt action from the reader, driving immediate engagement.
• Adherence to Brand Guidelines: Ardent’s design philosophy shines through in the email’s layout and aesthetics. Its color scheme, typography, and overall visual scheme align well, ensuring consistent brand messaging.
• Cross-Selling Opportunities: Links to Ardent’s top-selling products showcase their product range and offer a cross-selling opportunity as it presents readers with multiple buying options.

9. Acne Cycle

What we love:

• Educational and Relatable Content: Acne Cycle does a brilliant job of informing the reader about the science of acne in a digestible manner. By demystifying the process, it offers readers a sense of control over their skincare problems. This makes the content highly relatable.
• Problem-Solution Approach: The email introduces the acne problem and positions its product as a viable solution. This creates a strong narrative. It also emphasizes the product’s value in improving skin care.
• Verified Buyer Testimonial: The inclusion of a testimonial from a verified buyer adds a layer of credibility to Boie USA’s claims. It reassures potential buyers about the product’s prowess.

10. Alloura

What we love:

• Educational Welcome Email: Alloura’s introductory email educates readers about their brand’s ethos and product line. The email is not just about selling. It’s about informing and engaging the customer and establishing a solid foundation for a long-term relationship.
• Resourceful Links to Educational Content: The embedded links direct readers to more educational content on Alloura’s website, offering deeper insight into pheromones and their cologne line.
• Social Media Integration: By including links to social media channels, Alloura encourages cross-engagement, expanding the conversation beyond email. This fosters a sense of community.
• Unique Selling Propositions (USPs): Alloura’s emphasis on clean, vegan, and paraben-free fragrances is a key differentiator in the crowded fragrance market. Highlighting these USPs in the email aligns with the values of their primary target audience.

8 Healthcare Email Marketing Best Practices 

When it comes to health and wellness brands, executing email marketing right can often mean walking a thin line between a genuine brand and one that comes off as pushy, overbearing, or even scammy. We’ve outlined eight best healthcare email marketing best practices that can help you get your health and wellness email marketing right.

Drill Down On Your Target Audience

The demographics, interests, and pain points of target audiences can vary drastically. Dive deep into the daily struggles of your target audience and how your offering fits as a solution. Pull in your go-to-market strategy in this process to find:

• Customer demographics for those who need your product or service more than others.
• The right messaging, visuals, and tone of communication that appeals to this target audience.
• The leading behavior and preferences that can appeal to your target audience

Example: Your target audience is busy professionals looking for quick and healthy meal solutions. Your email marketing should focus on convenience, time-saving, and healthy meal options that fit into their fast-paced lifestyle.

Adopt a Mobile-first Approach

You can no longer treat mobile as a secondary marketing channel. The first thing that 58% of adults do today is check their emails, with mobile being their preferred choice of device. In fact, 85-90% of users use smartphones to exchange emails, depending on age group.

A mobile-first approach is a must that will pay dividends. Here’s how you can achieve that:

• Aim for a clean and simple layout that is easy to read on smaller screens.
• Use images sparingly and make sure they are optimized for mobile viewing.
• Use responsive design to ensure that the email adapts to different screen sizes automatically.

This approach will improve user experience and increase the chances of your emails being opened, read, and clicked through.

Personalize Your Emails

Personalization is vital in today’s marketing landscape. People want to feel like they are being addressed directly and not just receiving generic marketing emails. Personalized emails have 29% higher open rates and 41% higher click-through rates than non-personalized ones.

Here are some ways health and wellness brands can personalize their emails:

• Use the recipient’s first name in the subject line for a more personal touch.
• Create targeted and relevant content that fits your demographics, customer interests, and past customer interactions. You can use customer segments to further drive these efforts.
• Use dynamic content to tailor the email’s message to each individual recipient.

If appropriate to your brand, you can go a step further and use data from your customers’ health and fitness trackers or surveys to create hyper-personalized content that resonates with their specific goals and needs.

Test, Analyze, and Refine

It’s essential to test, analyze, and refine your email campaigns constantly. A/B testing is a great way to determine what works best for your audience. Experiment with different email subject lines, email design, call-to-actions, and more to see what gets the most engagement.

Analyze email kpis such as open rates, click-through rates, bounce rates, and conversions. These metrics provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of your emails. Use this data to make changes and improvements in your future campaigns.

Don’t be afraid to try new things and take risks. What works for one brand may not work for another, so it’s essential to find what resonates with your specific audience.

Use Consistent Branding for Every Email

Brand recognition is key across all of your marketing channels. Email is no exception.

Use a consistent format for your emails. It may not rise to the level of a full template, but this consistency across essential elements like headers, footers, contact information, legal requirements, and social media links helps your emails look professional while boosting brand recognition and recall.

Why is this so important in particular for health and wellness brands?

Healthcare information is often time-sensitive and frequently requires legal disclaimers. Having a consistent look and feel helps ensure that these elements are always included and up-to-date, allowing you to focus on creating compelling content rather than spending hours formatting every email.

Have Action-oriented CTAs

For health and wellness brands, it’s vital to have action-oriented CTAs that drive your audience toward taking steps to improve their health.

Instead of generic phrases like “Shop Now” or “Learn More,” try using CTAs that align with your brand’s mission and goals. For example, a nutritionist may use “Start your health journey now,” while a fitness studio may use “Join our community and get fit today.” These types of CTAs not only create urgency but also resonate with the specific lifestyle choices of your target audience.

Some key things to take care of here include:

• Making the CTA stand out with a contrasting color and larger font size
• Including time-sensitive sentences as a rider to the CTA, such as “Last 5 slots remaining” or “Sale ends tomorrow.”
• Including actionable words in the CTA such as ‘Start,’ ‘Join,’ or ‘Register.’
• Using personalization to make the CTA more relatable, for example, “Get your goal-oriented meal plan now.”

Integrate Email Marketing and Social Media Marketing

Health and wellness, while fiercely personal, can also be an incredibly social endeavor. Integrating social media in your email campaigns can increase your overall reach and help with brand recognition.

A few ways you can integrate email marketing and social media marketing are:

• Create an exclusive Facebook or Instagram group for your subscribers. It creates a sense of community and encourages engagement and word-of-mouth marketing. You can use email marketing to promote these groups.
• Use email campaigns to promote user-generated content on social media. Encourage your subscribers to share their experiences with your brand on their social media pages and tag your accounts in exchange for a freebie or discount. This “social proof” can do wonders for brand credibility.
• Share behind-the-scenes content of your email campaign creation process on Instagram stories or live streams.
• Use social media polls or surveys to gather feedback from your subscribers about their preferences for future email campaigns.
• Include teasers or previews of upcoming social media content in your emails, enticing subscribers to follow you on different platforms.

Remember that integrating email marketing and social media marketing is not just about promoting one through the other but also creating a cohesive strategy that complements each other’s strengths.

Focus on Strategies to Build Customer Relationships

The long-term success of any business relies on a loyal customer base. Here are some strategies to help you develop and maintain strong customer relationships.

• Consistency: Be consistent with your emails, both in terms of frequency and tone. This helps in establishing trust with your subscribers and keeps them engaged.
• Value-driven content: Your emails should provide value to your subscribers, whether it’s through educational content, exclusive offers or promotions, or helpful tips and advice. This will not only keep them interested but also position your brand as a reliable source of information.
• Respond promptly: If a subscriber reaches out to you via email with a question or concern, respond quickly and address their issue. Go the extra mile. It tells them that you care about their experience.
• Ask for feedback: Regularly ask for customer feedback through surveys, polls, or reviews. It shows that you value their opinions and are continuously striving to improve.
• Loyalty programs: Offer exclusive rewards or discounts to your loyal customers to thank them for their continued support. It also encourages new customers to become repeat buyers.

Healthcare Email Marketing Challenges

There are also challenges that health and wellness brands need to overcome:

High competition

The health and wellness market is flooded with brands, each vying for consumer attention. This makes it increasingly difficult for new or smaller brands to carve out a niche for themselves.

Stringent Rules
Health and wellness products are subject to rigorous compliance like safety standards, ethical sourcing and production practices, and strict labeling requirements. Non-compliance can cause penalties, including fines and product recalls, significantly impacting a brand’s reputation and bottom line.

Marketing Regulations

Health and wellness brands must also navigate complex and ever-changing marketing regulations. These rules govern how they can advertise their products, including claims they can make about health benefits and the use of particular language or imagery. Misleading marketing and claims can lead to legal repercussions and damage a brand’s reputation.

Increased Consumer Awareness

With the rise of social media and access to information, consumers are more educated and aware than ever before. They are increasingly scrutinizing the ingredients used in health and wellness products, expecting transparency from brands, and demanding sustainability practices. Brands that fail to meet these expectations risk losing customers and damaging their reputation.

Wrapping Up

Email marketing thrives on relevance, personalization, and value-adding content. Health and wellness brands can successfully leverage these to create impactful email campaigns that not only drive sales but also foster long-term customer relationships. If you need help, get in touch with InboxArmy, one of the top email marketing firms in the USA