How Consumers Use Social Computing For Health

April 30th, 2007

Chloe Stromberg

With contributors:

Sarah Glass , Josh Bernoff , Elizabeth Boehm

Summary

Health marketers are used to waiting out technology trends, but Social Computing is making them nervous. While disease is more prevalent among older consumers, one in four Gen Xers and Gen Yers with medical conditions use Social Computing for health today. New forms of Social Computing are emerging for healthcare, from expert health blogs that turn medical information into conversation to social networks that inspire with personal stories and progress trackers. Result: more transparency in healthcare, a trend that health plans and pharmaceutical companies must prepare for. Marketers should move now to monitoring, planning for, and, when possible, participating in Social Computing activities.

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