What health tech companies can learn from Nike

Author

Lauren Curtis
December 31, 2024

Hey Health Techies!

Happy New Year’s Eve. I want to thank all of you for being here this year. No matter where in the healthcare industry you hang out, you also choose to spend your time here learning alongside a bunch of other clinicians and folks in nontraditional healthcare careers, and for that I’m truly grateful. I wish you the very best in the new year.

Given it’s the holiday season, you have undoubtedly been bombarded with sales and ads from every single company that you’ve ever interacted with. And so I thought it an interesting time to take a deep dive into one of the great marketing giants of our time, Nike, and their connections both past and present with the health tech industry.

Nike has long been associated with innovation. They are innovators in design and marketing, always setting trends in the sports and fitness industry. And a little over a decade ago, they tried to set a new trend in an emerging wearables market when it was still a brand new concept.

In the early 2010s, Nike entered the wearables market with the Nike+ FuelBand, a product that aimed to revolutionize fitness tracking. Despite a strong launch (few know how to hype up a product as well as Nike), Nike decided to exit the wearables market just five years later in 2017. While this chapter might seem like a failure, it’s actually a story of just how a big, successful company like Nike becomes just that (taking big bets and knowing when to pivot). It also offers valuable lessons for health tech companies navigating the rapidly evolving intersection of technology and consumer health even today.

💡 Start with a strong idea, but know when to pivot

Nike’s strength has always been in creating exceptional sportswear and cultivating a strong brand identity. The FuelBand was a bold move that aligned with their mission to inspire athletes, but it also required a significant leap into hardware manufacturing—a domain far removed from their expertise.

Hidden lesson: Leverage your core competencies when entering new markets, but recognize when a venture stretches your capabilities too thin. Collaborations or partnerships with tech-centric companies can provide the expertise needed to fill gaps. In fact, leveraging partnerships is just what Nike has done to remain relevant in the wearables realm, and is a tactic that I predicted a few weeks ago as a trend we’d continue to see more of in 2025.

🏃🏻‍♀️Consumer-centric design matters—but so does ecosystem and lifestyle fit

The FuelBand was praised for its sleek design and ease of use. However, it struggled to compete with broader ecosystems offered by tech giants like Apple and Fitbit, which provided deeper integrations and a wider range of functionalities. Nike ultimately shifted its focus to software, developing the Nike Run Club and integrating with popular platforms like Apple Health.

Hidden lesson: A well-designed product is critical, but it’s equally important to ensure your solution fits seamlessly within existing ecosystems and your target customer’s lifestyle. In healthcare, this could mean integrating with electronic health records (EHRs), telehealth platforms, or wearable devices already in use.

🔢 Data is powerful, but it’s insights that matter

The FuelBand captured a wealth of fitness data, but Nike struggled to differentiate its analytics and actionable insights from competitors. Meanwhile, companies like Fitbit and Apple leveraged data to build comprehensive health and wellness ecosystems.

Hidden lesson: Oh boy, this can (and should!) be a newsletter topic on its own. Collecting data isn’t enough. So many health tech companies have popped up excited about the data that they can collect from patients. But few have stopped to think about whether they should — I’m reminded of this recent YouTube video from Doctor Mike about the health insights of company, 23andMe. Health tech companies need to focus on translating raw data into actionable insights that improve user outcomes and empower decision making and less on the novelty of the data collection itself.

⏎ Be ready to adapt or pivot if necessary

Nike’s decision to exit the wearable market wasn’t a defeat, it was a strategic pivot. By stepping away from hardware, Nike was able to concentrate on what it does best—building a strong lifestyle brand—while still engaging with the fitness tech space through partnerships and software.

Hidden lesson: Knowing when to pivot is a sign of strategic maturity. If a product or market doesn’t align with your long-term goals or isn’t delivering value to your customers, companies should consider redirecting resources to other areas. This seems to be what many companies are trying to do by directing resources to AI features, but the ones that will win are those making AI a part of their core competency not rather than the sole strategy.

🤝 Brand trust is a differentiator

Even as the FuelBand phased out, Nike’s reputation as a trusted fitness brand remained intact. This trust allowed them to successfully transition customers to their software offerings and maintain a loyal user base.

Hidden lesson: Building and maintaining trust is non-negotiable. Whether it’s through product reliability, data security, or exceptional customer support, a strong brand reputation can cushion the blow of setbacks and pave the way for future success. I fear that many companies are getting this wrong, thinking that they can just put out a cool product and having very little to fall back on by way of trust. I think the companies that focus on trust and proven outcomes will win in the end.

💭 Final thoughts

Nike’s foray into wearable tech serves as a compelling case study for health tech companies. The takeaway? We fix healthcare by developing solutions to real problems, not by creating a cool product first and hoping to find a patient or clinician problem that it can solve. Success isn’t just about innovating; it’s about aligning innovation with your strengths, adapting to market realities, and maintaining a relentless focus on delivering value to your customers.

This Holiday Season, Give Yourself the Gift of Nike Air Max.

This winter, take your footwear game to the next level with Nike's Air Max collection for men. With a diverse range of models, this collection prioritizes comfort and functionality, perfectly tailored to meet your everyday needs. Whether you're hitting the gym or heading out for a casual outing, these sneakers deliver the support you crave without compromising on style.

Find the perfect pair that matches your lifestyle and get ready to make a statement with every step. Treat yourself to a fresh pair from the collection this holiday season—you deserve it.

💭 📌 Job Board

Don’t miss these open roles 👀

Until next time,

Lauren