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1 min read

Vitamin or Pain Killer

Would you rather take a vitamin every day or pop a painkiller when the headache is unbearable? Most people choose the painkiller—because pain demands immediate action. This is why startups obsess over the question, “Is your idea a pain killer or a vitamin?”. The implication is that customers are less likely to use and pay for vitamins. Interestingly, most health & wellness initiatives are considered ‘vitamins’.

I have been thinking about four ways to address this question for Hobbes:

  1. Educate. Most people I speak with are well aware of the importance of staying healthy and are taking some steps already. The challenge is consistency and motivation. Without it, we suffer from low energy, poor focus, weight-gain, and burnout. Hobbes could be positioned to directly solve these problems. “Boost your productivity by 15% within a month!”
  2. Target a specific problem. 1 in 2 adults have diabetes or pre-diabetes, 1 in 3 have high cholesterol, and 1 in 2 have hypertension. Many don’t even know it until their routine checkup. Hobbes could step in at this critical moment, providing clear, personalized steps to bring blood sugar and triglycerides back to healthy levels. “Reduce your triglycerides by 50% within 3 months!”
  3. Sell to those that feel the pain. The US healthcare system will spend nearly $4 trillion in 2025 on treating chronic illnesses. Employers bear a significant portion of this burden. In addition to high health insurance costs, employers lose tens of billions of dollars from lost productivity each year. Hobbes helps companies reduce this cost and improve employee well-being. “Hobbes will lower your healthcare cost by 15%!”
  4. Ignore the premise. The most frequently used apps today - Tiktok, Instagram, YouTube - are not painkillers. Whether a product is a ‘vitamin’ or ‘painkiller’ is less important than whether it can create genuine engagement and retention. Hobbes could be designed to be indispensable as a partner on the customer’s health journey. “Hobbes is your favorite wellness companion!”

The answer, ultimately, is probably a combination of all of these approaches. Let me know what you think by replying to this email.