A Bundle of Joy: How Lifestyle Bundling Could Rewrite Healthcare
As Big Retail, Big Tech and Big Entertainment battle it out to reach the next level of consumer engagement, the lifestyle category of consumer experience will dominate. From Apple One and Amazon Prime to Walmart+, companies are increasingly bundling their offerings that go above and beyond SaaS and into fan-worthy experiences. Not surprisingly, entertainment is a key part of the lifestyle bundle, with each of these rivals leaning into streaming to capture a share of the market. Just ask Disney’s CEO Bob Chapek who shared at D23 Expo, “ Disney+ will not just be a movie service platform, but it’s going to become an experiential lifestyle platform. A platform for the whole company to embody both the physical things that you might be able to experience in a theme park, but also the digital experiences that you can get through media.” What Disney fan wouldn’t want membership perks that offer a swoon-worthy lifestyle of exclusive content, merchandise and experiences?
Which brings us to the real disruption of the lifestyle bundling category: healthcare.
As lifestyle bundles package content, products and experiences, the most ambitious companies will expand their flywheel to include healthcare. Amazon prime members have seen their 2-day shipping perk transform into an on-demand lifestyle, and soon will be getting Amazon’s 2nd (or 3rd?) attempt at healthcare services with their acquisition of One Medical. Walmart’s evolving membership program, Walmart+, is breaking down the walls of brick and mortar and moving into the homes of customers. Shopping for groceries is no longer a chore but rather a way of life, taking their slogan “save money, live better” a whole step further, especially when Walmart has doubled down on their commitment to health with their newly announced 10-year partnership with UnitedHealth. But with a focus on fan-worthy consumer experiences, will these healthcare offerings actually feel like a natural continuation of their membership programs, or will they be tactless tangents that fail to scale healing? Let’s look at Apple, which is known for its loyal fan base. Apple’s lifestyle bundle, Apple One, offers content (Apple music, AppleTV +, Apple News+, Apple Arcade) and products (iCloud+, Apple Fitness+) in one monthly subscription. Coupled with their iconic hardware lines, legacy of easy user experience and dedication to privacy, it’s only a matter of months before Apple One integrates their health offerings. Health data and self-monitoring are already available to users, but what about remote patient monitoring, on demand telehealth, or pharmacy consults being included in your Apple One subscription? Some payers are already reimbursing Apple watches; how soon until they reimburse Apple One subscriptions?
The biggest potential with lifestyle bundling is that it can redefine the narrative of health — moving beyond the patronizing story we are all aware of and into something as compelling as your favorite TV show. If fans will watch their favorite shows for hours, play their favorite games for days, and plan their vacations around their favorite characters, will they be more likely to attend their annual exam or take their medication if it’s a part of their lifestyle? Can packaging healthcare as a part of an entertainment experience transform health into something people want to be a part of? These are bold questions with no definite answers, but if there’s one thing we can count on, it’s that leaders of industry across the board want a piece of healthcare. It’s just a matter of time before entertainment and healthcare converge into a consumer offering that sticks. Ari Mostov is an award-winning entertainment producer and healthcare narrative strategist. Her strategic narrative and engagement designs improve outcomes for health seekers all over the world. She works with health companies to create a new narrative for health. Learn more at www.wellplay.world