+ 5 Trends Driving Health & Wellness

We know that The Greener Grass needs to be more than just a collection of interviews, because there are plenty of other people doing interviews. Our goal is to add value by listening to experts, then distilling what we've heard into themes, trends, consumer archetypes, and scenarios that are concise, relevant and actionable. As product developers, it's what we do every day for our clients, and The Greener Grass gives us the opportunity to apply our skills toward designing a better future for all of us- we hope it can be a way for us to give back to the community. Each unit in The Greener Grass will follow this format: 4 or 5 weeks of interviews and research, followed by our analysis, and finally our concepts for products and services that embody the key takeaways from the interviews and analysis. We'll be posting our product and service concepts next week, so stay tuned. In the meantime, check out the archive of all our interviews. With that said, here's the first part of our analysis on Health & Wellness: Themes. Please share your reactions, additions, or questions in the comments!


Theme #1: Confusion is the problem, authenticity is the answer
One of the main issues confronting consumers is an overabundance of contradictory information, and a lack of resources for evaluating that information. One minute running is good, the next minute it kills you. Apples are healthy today, deadly tomorrow.

People are bombarded by information from every direction: in media, on the shelves, word of mouth, and every other channel. In the face a staggering array of products and services that can be overwhelming and intimidating, many simply give up. They know that half the information is good, they just don’t know which half.

"Human nature is to simplify things as much as possible, but things aren't always simple."
Alan Aragon

With hype and overstatement running rampant through the category, the key to earning the consumer’s trust is authenticity, transparency, and honesty. Nobody expects health and wellness solutions to be perfect, they just want the truth. Only by being honest can health and wellness providers build dialogues and relationships with consumers built on trust.

Relevant links:
Drink better, live better: An interview with VeeV founder Courtney Reum
Cereal box makeover
Breaking through the myths: An interview with fitness and nutrition expert Alan Aragon



Theme #2: Corporate wellness is gaining steam and here to stay
Insurance costs are higher than ever, for both individuals and institutions. Absenteeism continues to be an issue, and productivity dips severely for workers that are suffering from chronic ailments. Saddled with these expenses, employers are turning to proactive wellness programs to create a healthy workforce.

"Corporate wellness programs are very popular. Of course, being in HR, we see insurance costs going up and employee absenteeism on the rise. So we started a wellness program to try and combat all of these things. And Its definitely about keeping the employees healthy, but not just physically healthy."
Sarah Phillips, FRCH

Corporations are responding with a variety of comprehensive wellness programs that increasingly address more than just preventive health care. They emphasize holistic wellness: stress management, healthy relationships, fitness, even good personal finance habits. These programs aren’t a fad, but simply the first generation corporate wellness initiatives.

Relevant links:
Wellness in the workplace: An interview with FRCH's Sarah Phillips
Businessweek asks, "What's a wellness program?"
Corporate wellness programs on the rise




Theme #3: Sourcing matters
We heard again and again that sourcing is a key part of many health and wellness brands. Once an invisible piece of the supply chain that consumers didn’t know or care about, in the wake of product recalls and safety scares, sourcing is now scrutinized. They want to know exactly what ingredients go into their products, and where those ingredients came from.

"You're going to see costs rise in all kinds of products that were formerly sourced in China, because it's a massive industrial country with cheap labor. If you lose that supplier, costs are going to go up across the board, not just in food. So is the customer going to be willing to pay the higher price? I don't see where they'll have much choice."
Jason Crandall, Amelia Bay

Perhaps the most meaningful facet of sourcing scrutiny is that cost is no longer the primary factor. Consumers are increasingly willing to pay a premium for sourcing they feel good about. With the health of their families on the line, peace of mind is something that commands significant value.

Relevant links:
Everybody Eats! An interview with Earth Source Produce
Vertically integrated beverage innovation: An interview with Amelia Bay
NPR reports on localism



Theme #4: Consumer sophistication is high and growing rapidly
Health and wellness consumers are smart and getting smarter. They’re also skeptical. They’ve been burned by decades of hype and overstatement, thousands of products and services that don’t work, frustrated by bureaucratic insurance and healthcare systems.

People are looking deeper. Empowered by the social media and other parts of the internet, they’re reading labels, asking questions, and talking about it with each other- and the rest of the world. They’re responding to the information overload by using the tools at their disposal to dig through everything and help each other make sense of it all.

We wanted to make it ring true and hit home, because consumers are very astute. People are going to wise up to claims like "a portion of proceeds," whereas ours is very tangible and specific, and nobody can really question where it's actually going.
Courtney Reum, VeeV

For people shaping the direction of health and wellness products or services, it means that consumers will hold you to increasingly high standards. They’ll see any inconsistencies or inadequacies out there, and let you know about them. Do the right thing and listen.

Relevant links:
Drink better, live better: An interview with VeeV founder Courtney Reum
Be The Change: An interview with One Planet, One Solution


Theme #5: No more tradeoffs
The next stage in the evolution of health and wellness will be come when health and wellness no longer means sacrifice. This evolution will come in two ways. First, consumer attitudes will change: they’ll begin to enjoy things that used to be chore, such as exercise and healthy foods. Second, providers of products and services will create new offerings that are more sophisticated, bringing to market experiences that don’t require sacrifice.

"We use organic cheeses from Wisconsin, grass-fed beef from Colorado, organic unsalted peanut butter from upstate New York, we use chicken that is hormone and antibiotic free, we use bacon from Applegate Farms which is nitrites and nitrate free. All of the ingredients we use are human grade, they are of the highest quality. I guarantee that some people don’t even eat the high quality bacon we use."
Lisa Fortunato, Robbie Dawg

Like “glamorous green,” the next generation of health and wellness products will engage users with rich, blissful experiences that bring them closer to optimum wellness. It’s the best of both worlds: foods that are delicious and seemingly indulgent, but rich in nutrition. New activities that stimulate our minds and bodies while bringing us together to have fun. Corporate wellness programs that make everybody feel better about their work life while reducing expenses and improving the bottom line. The list goes on.

Relevant links:
WestPaw Design: Care for your pet, care for your planet
Healthy living delivered: An interview with Door To Door Organics
Handcrafted, organic dog biscuits: A conversation with Robbie Dawg President Lisa Fortunato

Coming tomorrow: Health & Wellness consumer archetypes