5 Challenges in taking a HealthTech innovation to market (that we can all learn from)
One of my eye-opening moments at this year’s Bristol Technology Festival (10-14 October 2022) was the panel discussion featuring HealthTech founders and investors, hosted by SETsquared at the city’s Engine Shed. I hadn’t appreciated until that point just how difficult it is to take a HealthTech innovation to market. And how so many of the conditions founders face would sound nothing short of counter-intuitive to startups in other sectors. None of the ‘normal’ route-to-market rules appear to apply.
Try these 5 for size:
You’ll need to demonstrate traction without anyone using your product.
You’re unlikely to begin your growth journey in countries where there’s greatest need.
Your end beneficiary is rarely your target.
Innovating the business model may count against you.
(Almost) no-one’s interested in the science.
No wonder that tenacity, pragmatism and adaptability are the qualities investors look for in founder teams alongside vision and expertise. In other words, the problem-solving that sparked an innovative idea doesn’t end there. The unpredictable, exhausting yet beautiful process of bringing something into being that will change lives for the better means being prepared to constantly ask ‘Why’, ‘How else?’ and ‘What if?’
Of course this means there is plenty founders in other sectors can be inspired by and learn lessons from.
Not least:
What other indicators of traction could you demonstrate? End user benefit is only one. Have you researched what investors, partners and stakeholders are looking for as measures of success? For instance, have you modelled a system saving in terms of time or money?
How can you de-risk your innovation? The product itself may as yet be untested, but the science or technology behind it can be. And applying for grant funding may double the workload, but it sends a signal to investors that it’s not just their money on the table. These can be valid indicators of traction too.
Do you really know what problem you’re solving? It’s often true that the problem you start out trying to solve turns out not to be the right one to focus on. It’s usually a symptom of another issue somewhere else in the buyer or user journey. Uncovering that deeper problem - and how people feel about it - is key to how you evolve your solution to it. That’s one reason it’s better to work with the existing system rather than against it, whatever its potential shortcomings.
Who are your early adopters? The end audience you desire may be out of reach in the short term. Their ability to access or afford your innovation may be limited until you can achieve efficiencies through scale. So who stands to benefit from outlaying early? And what element of partnership makes that attractive to them?
What’s your story? People (whether investors, partners, buyers or end users) rarely want to know the detail of the science that sits behind your innovation. But they do care about the story behind that science. Founders need a narrative that first and foremost communicates a clear vision, mission and value proposition, rather than starting with the science itself.
Addressing these challenges requires you to progress not just with determination but humility and resilience. A sense of humour will stand you in good stead too. The strength of those who succeed is in knowing the path to commercial realisation is full of unforeseen obstacles. Recognising and overcoming them is a gradual process of discovering common ground between what drives you and what funders, providers, corporate stakeholders and end users want. Then weaving a powerful narrative that speaks to all.
Thank you to Bristol Tech Festival and the HealthTech founders and investors whose frank conversation inspired this article: Jenny Button of Emm, Michael Roberts of GenomeKey, Jenny Bailey of Ferryx, Joshua Steer of Radii Devices, Johnathan Matlock of Science Angel Syndicate and Paul Forster of SETsquared.