June 26, 2020
Few consumer technologies have been adopted as rapidly as wearables. No longer just the purview of techno-geeks, smartwatches, activity trackers, and wearable devices that count steps, measure heart rates, and report on sleep patterns are now quite commonplace. So much so that the wearable market, worth $20 billion in 2015, is expected to surpass $70 billion in the next five years.
This growth is being fed largely by consumer demand to take more control of their healthcare, coupled with hardware and software that is capable of providing new levels of affordable, convenient health monitoring.
That said, a large percentage of consumers still perceive wearable devices as nonessential luxury items. As the results of a recent Slingshot consumer survey reveal, COVID-19 is likely to alter these perceptions. Moreover, technology has stepped up to the challenges the coronavirus presents, and wearables may ultimately play a significant role in detection, contact tracing, and isolation, helping prevent future viral infections from reaching epidemic proportions.
Researchers at Northwestern University are currently testing a small, wireless device, worn at the throat, that monitors respiratory activity and coughing. A continuous stream of data identifies early COVID-19 symptoms. When worn by someone already diagnosed with the virus, the device can also provide insight into the disease’s progression. Meanwhile, Stanford researchers are hoping data collected from wearable biosensors will alert wearers to infections before they manifest symptoms.
Whether viewed as lifestyle accessories or the cutting edge in preventative care, wearables merit close attention. So, which industry trends should health and wellness brands be following? Start with these five.
1) Growth may come from the young and the old.
Over the past decade, wearables have evolved from simple pedometers to sophisticated, always-connected devices, not unlike smartphones and tablets. But where the industry witnessed explosive growth in the use of the latter, growth in the use of the former has been slower and steadier. Nevertheless, a recent eMarketer report projects that by 2022, 71.4 million people will regularly wear clothing or accessories embedded with internet-connected electronics.
What do we know about these people? Between 2015 and 2017, analytics company Infegy collected data across social media, blogs, user comments, and other online forums to measure the change in the volume of conversations about smartwatches. Mentions of this technology increased by 10 percent among teenagers.
Moreover, wearables seem to be a natural fit for Gen Z consumers. They came of age in an era defined by mobile technology. They also expect the private sector to be a leader in technological innovation. At the same time, they also take it as a given that their online activity is mined and monetized. If wearable manufacturers can win Gen Z’s trust and loyalty, they can secure lifelong users of their products who view their use of wearables as a contributing factor to both their longevity and quality of life.
Quality of life concerns also help explain what is perhaps Infegy’s key finding. The demographic where they noted the most significant change in digital conversations about wearables was the 55-64 age group. Among this cohort, mentions of smartwatches rose by 37 percent. Not only can retiring and retired Baby Boomers afford to purchase this new technology for themselves, but they also have a more vested interest in the benefits it delivers. Their everyday needs often include monitoring of multiple health conditions and the management of prescription medications.
At the same time, mentions of wearables declined by 25 percent among millennials. These figures may initially seem puzzling, but given millennials’ devotion to their smartphones — which they can stock with all manner of biometric screening and fitness apps — they should come as little surprise.
Health and wellness brands seeking growth in the wearables space would be wise to focus on the two ends of the consumer spectrum when evaluating how to integrate their products and services with wearable experiences.
2) Smart fabrics are more than a fashion statement.
Wearable technology is not confined to wrist straps and stick-on sensors. The future may be one in which entire ensembles are spun from conductive textiles, fiber optics, and super-miniaturized electronics. Such programmable clothes represent a radical expansion of the wearable concept.
A 2019 Mintel survey reports that about a third of consumers are interested in “smart” clothes designed to improve athletic performance. Men between the ages of 18 and 54 — a group that has traditionally favors new technology — show the most enthusiasm for smart clothing. They also indicate they would be willing to “spend a lot of money” on wearables with diagnostic functionality.
But smart clothing isn’t all about the guys. Students at the Swiss Institute of Technology in Lausanne have developed a bra that emits ultrasound waves to scan for cancerous cells. A suspicious mass in the breast triggers an alert letting the wearer know she should schedule an appointment to have it checked. The development team believes their technology could ultimately have therapeutic applications, delivering low-dose ultrasonic waves to stimulate the self-destruction of cancerous cells.
By identifying breast cancers before they can metastasize, this unique wearable could considerably reduce the cost of cancer care. Once it launches in 2021, the smart bra bears following closely. Its success could lead to the technology being adapted to detect as well as treat other forms of cancer.
3) Smart devices will only get more intelligent.
The next generation of wearables will do more than monitor vital signs. They will utilize artificial intelligence to analyze a constant stream of data and determine when action is necessary. That is, these wearables will be exponentially more interactive, offering feedback, recommendations, and even treatment plans.
Pilot studies show that AI-powered “smart headbands” could lead to new, non-invasive mental health treatments. In a May 2020 study, 15 law enforcement officers volunteered to wear such devices. Embedded in them were sensors that scanned brain activity, then mirrored back specific brain waves in the form of audible frequencies. These test subjects, whose daily duties expose them to trauma, experienced significant reductions in stress, depression, anxiety, and insomnia.
4) The Quadruple Aim will drive more adoption of wearable tech.
Approaches to optimizing healthcare system performance have long centered on achieving three goals, a.k.a., The Triple Aim.
- A better patient experience.
- Better patient outcomes.
- Reduced costs.
While a laudable initiative, the Triple Aim overlooks one crucial factor — the healthcare provider experience. Increasing societal expectations, a task-based payment system that rewards “sick” care over wellness, and multiple-payer bureaucracy have all taken a toll on practitioners. Doctor burnout is real, and it puts public health at risk. The COVID-19 pandemic has only thrust these underlying problems with the U.S. healthcare system into stark relief.
The Quadruple Aim seeks to correct this oversight. As it becomes a guiding principle for more hospitals, HMOs, etc., expect the B2B market for wearables to grow. What are marketed today as benefits for the average consumer — for example, making patients more active in their own care — will be marketed tomorrow as benefits for healthcare professionals — reducing a provider’s workload.
Yet wearables are not poised to replace doctors for the same reasons that telemedicine does not mean the end of in-person consultation. Wearables are machines to which the medical profession might offload repetitive, routine tasks — a trend sweeping every industry. Doing so should free up precious resources, chief among them time.
5) Big data = big opportunities + big challenges.
Wearables give individuals unprecedented access to their real-time health data. They also empower them to be more directly involved in their healthcare. People with the ability to easily check their own blood pressure or painlessly monitor blood glucose levels will eventually cause the doctor-patient relationship to evolve.
The same is true of the customer-healthcare brand relationship, as data collected (and, in many instances, streamed) by wearables is not HIPAA-protected and may be used by marketers. Although not all consumers are aware of this fact, a third of them those surveyed by Limelight Networks in 2018 said they had privacy concerns about using wearables.
Meanwhile, some insurance providers are already encouraging their beneficiaries to take advantage of wearable technology — and offering financial incentives to do so. Yet anyone who has seen their premiums increase or had benefits denied because of a pre-existing condition can appreciate how wearable data might be misused.
Now is the time for brands playing in this space to address data privacy issues head-on. And it’s not enough to offer reassurances. Competitive advantage will continue to shift to those brands that prioritize transparency and remove punitive disincentives when customers opt out of data-sharing agreements.
Consumers have gotten the message that wearables are the ultimate self-actualization accessory. And although not quite the Wild West, wearables are a frontier. The industry is young and still finding its way, even as certain players — Apple, FitBit, and Google among them — have dominated the market thus far. Health and wellness brands hoping to carve out a niche for themselves should look beyond the hype and concentrate on the more mundane aspects of living with wearable technology. It's in these simple, daily interactions where customers will ultimately be won or lost.