The regulatory landscape is unusually fragmented and complex. Pricing models are opaque. And middlemen play an outsized role in how services get paid for.  

And yet, healthcare is in no way immune from broader macroeconomic trends. In fact, because healthcare makes up such a large part of the economy, it’s often the sector that sets trends. Healthcare can be an indicator species.    

Such is the case with consolidation. While recent headlines and social media posts have highlighted the impacts of consolidation in industries like media and food for the general public, consolidation has been a hot topic in healthcare for many years, and it’s taken many forms.  

Large hospital groups are buying up smaller practices, often making it more challenging for patients to access care conveniently. Insurance companies are buying up provider groups, creating a closed loop in which they, in essence, end up paying themselves to provide care. Private equity groups are buying up specialty firms and rolling them up into a single management organization.  

While the impact of consolidation in health tech may not be as immediately visible as two big media companies trying to merge, or even a hospital closure, it’s dramatic nonetheless. Since COVID accelerated the opportunity to succeed in digital health, big, non-traditional technology companies are coming downstream, looking to acquire point solutions as a way to become entrenched in the space. Amazon, Apple, Best Buy, Google, and Microsoft have all made moves into healthcare, whether through acquisition or in-house development, because they view the industry as where the money is.  

Those bets may prove true (some already are), but where does that leave the rest of the industry, full of startups and earlier- and mid-stage companies with specialized solutions looking to grow and be acquired, many of whom are still living off the quickly diminishing runway of money from the post-COVID boom? What happens to those companies if they’re not one of the few to be absorbed by these more established companies in a high-dollar exit, particularly as VC money is being consolidated in a smaller number of larger deals?  

The truth is that most companies are susceptible to being stuck in that middle ground – without a big-name acquirer to boost their visibility. What can they do to stand out?  

How to Stand Out in an Era of Consolidation 

Communicators can do a lot to bring eyeballs to their brand, even if that brand doesn’t have the name recognition of the legacy technology companies. How to overcome that seeming disadvantage will vary for each company, but there are a few core tenets to follow.  

Show how your model is special – and specialized 

Having name recognition comes with inherent advantages – companies don’t have to do the same level of market education, and they often can offer scale in a way that a Series B or C company can’t. But those less mature brands can have their own advantages, most notably specialization. A big technology company that bolted on a healthcare arm or acquired one in the last five years may not be enmeshed in an industry in the same way that a newer startup, whose mission is more focused, will be. That specialized startup company may have proprietary technology they’ve built designed specifically to accommodate their care model, or they might have clinical expertise and breadth that the legacy technology company does not. Communicators should work with clinical and product teams to find those advantages, and then shout them from the rooftops.  

Lean into the nitty gritty

Buyers often turn to large organizations because they assume those companies have the scale, partner relationships, and experience to create a seamless experience, from onboarding through continuous updates. Lesser-known brands need to show they can offer the same, when the time is right. Integration timelines and ecosystem plug-ins may not be top-of-mind brand differentiators, but they matter to the people in health systems or payer organizations who are actually buying the product. Develop a cohesive message around that infrastructure, and be ready to deploy it at the right time to the right audiences.  

Leverage your agility for thought leadership 

Doing thought leadership at a large company can be hard, especially in a highly-regulated industry like healthcare, which legacy technology companies may or may not be as familiar with. Startups often have less bureaucracy, founders and C-suite executives who are more hands-on (and, oftentimes, a personal connection to the industry and their company), and first-hand perspectives that make good thought leadership. Communicators that can tap into these features to create robust thought leadership programs will help their organizations stand out.  

The fact is that consolidation in healthcare isn’t going anywhere – if anything, it’s likely to accelerate. But that doesn’t mean we’re bound to a future where a handful of companies, content to keep the status quo in place, are running the entire system. Startup and smaller brands have a critical part to play – they just need to find their voice first.  

Matt Miller is an Account Director at V2 Communications, where he develops communications strategies and drives media results for clients across digital health and enterprise technology. He specializes in connecting client initiatives to timely industry conversations, securing coverage in outlets including Fierce Healthcare, STAT News, Bloomberg, and POLITICO. 

About V2 Communications 

V2 Communications is a top PR firm for tech companies and a leading integrated communications partner focused on B2B technology, AI, climate and energy, healthcare and high-growth brands. The firm delivers integrated communications programs across earned, owned, and paid media, helping companies build market leadership, increase visibility, and drive measurable business results.