From Qualified to Converted: Why Your Next Campaign Needs to Focus on Low-Funnel Audiences
It’s not just about reaching qualified patients, it’s about engaging them in the critical moments when they’re ready to act.
Published Aug. 12, 2025 | 3 Minute Read
For years, Audience Quality (AQ) has been a go-to metric in health marketing, a seemingly reliable indicator of a campaign’s reach. The logic is simple: connect with a verified patient, and you’ve succeeded. But what if that’s only half the story?
Reaching a patient with a specific diagnosis is one thing, but reaching them in the critical moments when they are actively seeking solutions and ready to act is quite another.
The truth is, AQ metrics alone don’t prove a patient is ready to change their treatment, or even that they are actively involved in their care. This is where the focus must shift from broad qualification to laser-focused conversion, targeting what we call “low-funnel audiences.”
The Limitation of Looking at Diagnosis Alone
Many marketing efforts rely on third-party (3P) data that can be outdated. It might tell you a person has a diagnosis, but it won’t tell you if they are dissatisfied with their current treatment , experiencing new symptoms , or planning to speak with their doctor about making a change in the next six months.
This distinction is crucial. Unlike competitors who rely on this 3P data, Health Union’s audiences are built from actively engaged patients within our 53 condition-specific online communities. These are not passive patients. They are currently seeking solutions and are ready to take action. This allows us to ensure that the qualified audiences we reach are more likely to convert, driving more efficient results and a greater return on investment for our partners.
From Online AQ to Offline Action
A case study from a recent Type2Diabetes.com display campaign perfectly illustrates this point. While our cost per 1000 treating (CPMT) was -9% less efficient than the benchmark, our cost per conversion for that same audience was +18% more efficient.
The takeaway? Reaching a slightly smaller but more motivated audience leads to significantly better results where it counts—in actual conversions.
Similarly, a campaign for a leading respiratory brand found that while Health Union ranked second out of four partners on AQ rate, we ranked first for driving incremental HCP office visits and had the lowest cost per visit.
Engaging With Engaged Patients
Connecting with these low-funnel audiences requires more than just standard advertising. It demands products, messaging, and experiences that empower patients and caregivers to move toward conversion. At Health Union, we’ve developed innovative solutions designed specifically to engage motivated patients during these critical health moments.
- The Confident Patient: We can deliver crucial messaging to patients just as they are preparing for their next doctor’s appointment. This easy-to-follow, downloadable doctor discussion guide empowers them to advocate for themselves and have more productive conversations about treatment options, turning intent into action.
- Take 5ive: In a first-to-market video experience, we help patients cut through the clutter with five easy-to-digest tips and tricks that fuel their next steps. By offering immediately applicable advice, we empower them to make real changes.
- Unconditionally, Me: This first-of-its-kind roundtable video series features real patient influencers getting honest about life with their condition. These raw, authentic conversations, moderated by leading health advocates, build a deep, personal connection.
- Community Site Exclusivity: For brands looking to make the biggest impact, we offer the premier opportunity to secure 100% share of voice (SOV) for Health Union’s condition-specific community ecosystem, including advertising placements on-site, email, and social activity, effectively blocking competitors and securing market leadership in the category. This ensures your message is the one seen by a deeply engaged audience ready for solutions. This is more than a media buy; it’s a commitment to fostering a life-changing space for patients.
The Right Audience at the Right Time
The future of successful health marketing is moving beyond the simple “who” to the more powerful “when” and “why.” By focusing on low-funnel, solution-seeking audiences, brands can move past the limitations of traditional metrics and drive the actions that matter most.
Health Union’s deep community expertise and innovative solutions provide the unique ability to connect with the right patients at the right time, delivering not just impressions, but real, measurable impact.
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