Columbus, OH- Brands of all shapes and sizes have tapped into the heavily saturated market of wearable technology. From Apple to Nike, Fitbit to Google Glass, wearable devices are becoming a power player and are gaining popularity.
Despite the popularity of wearable devices, recent research has shown that engagement with these devices tends to drop off after 6 months. Interestingly, the largest amount of people using wearable devices report that they received the device as a gift. Should we just attribute this loss of engagement to bad gift choices? No matter which way you look at it, the fact of the matter is that they are not going away any time soon.
Take a quick glance at any website that deals with health technology and it will not take you long to see the words “mHealth” or “wearables.” Wearables are moving forward and expanding to reach different audiences beyond those that want to track their steps or shed a couple pounds. Intel has recently partnered with the Michael J. Fox Foundation to research Parkinson’s disease and to study the patterns that patients suffering from the disease deal with daily.
Symptoms of interest for Parkinson’s research include:
-slow movement
-tremors
-gait
-quality of sleep.
The partnering of Intel and the Michael J. Fox Foundation opens up new doors for wearables and mHealth that will continue to change the way we research prevalent diseases, and ultimately defeat them.
Have you noticed similar trends pertaining to your own wearable device usage? If so, please leave us a comment. We would love to hear your thoughts!
Posted by: Zach Gerber
About the Author:
As Managing Director of Innovation and Insights for Syneos Health Communications, Leigh is responsible for building and scaling a global team of healthcare experts who together help life science leaders better understand the complex lives, influences and expectations of their customers. Specifically, they uncover actionable insights that fuel empathy and creativity; lead co-creation events that let marketers learn from peers, trends, and new possibilities; and help clients identify the most valuable and useful new customer experiences to create.
Leigh has worked with Fortune 1000 companies to craft their digital, mobile, social and CRM strategies for nearly 20 years.She’s worked for category-leading agencies in retail, public affairs, B2B technology, and higher education. Prior to moving to Syneos Health Communications, she held several leadership roles at our largest agency, GSW. There, she founded an innovation practice fueled by the zeitgeist and spearheaded digital and innovation thinking across the business.
Leigh has taken a special interest in complex healthcare products that can change lives in meaningful ways. She was recently a strategic lead on the 3rd largest launch in pharmaceutical history: Tecfidera. Before that she had keys roles with Eli Lilly Oncology, Abbott Nutrition, Amgen Cardiovascular, and Eli Lilly Diabetes.
A critical part of Leigh’s work is trends and new ideas. Every year, she convenes a group of trend watchers from across our global network to identify the shifts most critical to healthcare marketers. This year, she led over 250 experts to experts to focus on the most important changes in the commercial, consumer, marketing, digital and healthcare landscapes. (See reports at trends.health)
Leigh is a sought-after writer and speaker. Recognized as one of the most inspiring people in the pharmaceutical industry by PharmaVoice and Top 10 Innovation Catalysts of 2017 by MM&M, Leigh also was recognized as a Rising Star by the Healthcare Businesswomen's Association (HBA) for her overt passion, industry thought leadership and significant contributions in new business, strategy and mentoring.
