Branding and Monetization Strategies for Mental Health Apps
In the dynamic landscape of wellness entrepreneurship, mobile mental health apps serve as crucial digital tools, facilitating the continuous assessment, support, and prevention of mental well-being issues for both patients and healthcare providers. In this digital era, the use of mental health apps is increasing tremendously because they are explicitly tailored according to the needs of the patients.
Every app owner wants to know how to monetize their app. The mental health app monetization process is the same as how people monetize their other apps. It is best to integrate a monetization strategy for a mental health app before its development rather than doing it when it operates with an engaged user community.
In this article, we will describe the most famous strategies to monetize your mental health app. Moreover, in the dynamic landscape of wellness app entrepreneurship, establishing a robust monetization strategy is pivotal for sustained success.
As we explore these strategies, we’ll shed light on how aligning your app with effective monetization techniques not only benefits the bottom line but also contributes to the overall growth and impact of your mental health app within the digital health sector.
Free and Freemium Models
Freemium is one of the best strategies to monetize a healthcare app. This is a compound word which consists of two terms: free and premium. In this strategy, developers make two versions of the same app; one of them is free for all users and the other one is paid, which provides a lot of more important features.
The free version of the app is used to attract a large user base by providing high-quality content and services to the users. After attracting a substantial user base by the free version of their app, developers can start advertising on the app.
In this strategy, developers must keep their eye on user experience because, sometimes, many ads can ruin user experience.
The other strategy often used by the freemium models is the in-app purchases for the premium features. If a mental health app adds value to the treatment of patients and can create a level of trust, then they will love to buy the premium features of the app.
In the freemium model, developers can strategically integrate branding elements within the app’s interface to build brand awareness and trust among health and wellness enthusiasts. This approach, coupled with targeted marketing messages, offers a unique opportunity to grow the wellness business presence in a competitive market.
In this model, it is essential to keep the free version of the helpful app for the user even if they can’t buy these premium features.
Subscription Models
If an app is connecting healthcare providers with patients, then developers can ask the doctors to subscribe to their apps to get more patients. Many of the famous apps like Zocdoc are using this strategy, and they only charge doctors, not patients.
This subscription not only enables doctors to remain on the app but also empowers them to proactively schedule appointments with patients, enhancing their overall branding within the healthcare community.
Developers provide free trials to healthcare providers so that they can access certified content and other premium features on the app to understand the value of this subscription.
The period of these trials plays a crucial role in the subscription of the apps; this should not be too short that the user can’t actually know the features and not too long that users will forget about it.
During free trials, doctors understand its value by getting appointments with new patients and reading modern research in the healthcare industry. So, they are more likely to purchase the subscription if the app will add value to their work.
Monetizing Data
Is data monetization ethical in the healthcare industry?
Yes, monetizing accumulated data by healthcare apps is legal in a few circumstances. Yet, ethical consideration, user consent, and privacy of user-sensitive information are paramount. In this era, where branding and marketing play a pivotal role, data emerges as one of the most essential commodities around us.
Within the realm of health apps, with a strategic focus on branding and marketing, they can adeptly collect a wealth of data based on user experiences. Then, they can monetize it with pharmaceutical companies, research institutions and healthcare providers which want to research human behavior and mental well-being.
This data, marketed intelligently can also be used as statistics for different health journals, newspapers and magazines.
In this monetization strategy, user trust is one of the biggest weapons to monetize your app as an owner. User trust is inherently tied to the delivery of high-quality security and privacy measures for each user, solidifying the app’s position as a trustworthy and marketable platform in the healthcare sector.
Telehealth and Consultation Services
Integrating telehealth services in mental health apps is also one of the most prominent monetization strategies. In this digital era, where branding and marketing play pivotal roles, people increasingly prefer consultations with healthcare providers through telehealth services over traditional methods.
Recent research reveals that last year, around 25% of patients used telehealth services, a significant increase from the pre-pandemic figure of 5%. Developers can provide virtual therapy services from their apps and generate money, which then will be divided with healthcare providers who offer virtual therapy to their patients.
The growing demand for telehealth services makes their integration into mental health apps a strategic and valuable addition. This convergence of branding, marketing, and cutting-edge telehealth services positions these apps as leaders in the dynamic landscape of digital health solutions.
Affiliate Marketing and Referral Programs
Affiliate marketing is another strategy used for monetization by the developers. Developers can promote products and services within their healthcare apps and earn commissions.
Developers can earn a substantial amount of money by promoting relevant products like books, relaxation tools, online courses and video tutorials to mental well-being. It is essential to keep an eye on the user experience and trust because, for the sake of money, we can’t lose the integrity of our app.
This is why transparency in affiliate marketing is a crucial component. Users should be aware of the affiliate program and the revenue you are generating through this program. Failure in the disclosure of this information may cause a negative impact on your audience.
Conclusion
In this blog post, we have studied the best strategies to monetize your mental health app. By exploring these strategies, developers can provide high-quality information or user experience to their user base while maintaining financial stability.
After an in-depth study of this topic, we have concluded that whether you’re using any of the above strategies to monetize your mental health app, user experience plays a critical factor in the success of an app. The integration of branding and marketing elements into the user interface can significantly enhance the overall appeal of the app, fostering a stronger connection with the audience.
If your app is unable to satisfy its user base, whatever method you are using for its monetization would be meaningless for you as well as for your audience. It means by keeping a balance between user experience, monetization, branding and marketing strategies, we can thrive in this digital marketplace.
Author: Ann Krutsko, Healthcare IT Researcher
With an eye for innovation, Ann applies her strategic thinking and deep understanding of the healthcare industry to create a solid strategy for ScienceSoft’s growth in the medical IT domain. Ann focuses her research on the needs of healthcare providers, medical device manufacturers, software startups, pharmaceutical companies, and other major market players to help tackle their challenges with technology.