Why Consumers Want Science-Backed Wellness Brands

In Welltodo’s recently released 2021 Consumer Wellness Trends Report, we explore the eight key consumer trends we predict will impact the trajectory of the global wellness industry over the coming year. And the pockets of opportunity that exist within this exciting new landscape.

To give you a taste of what you can expect within this 80+ page resource, we’ve been diving into some of the trends featured in the report, sharing the consumer behaviours and values driving them, and which wellness brands are pioneering new approaches in response.

In the third instalment of the series, we’re exploring what’s driving the rise in consumers demanding that wellness buzzwords and unsubstantiated claims are replaced by trustworthy, transparent and credible communications. And how science-backed disruptors like supplement brand Seed, are already one step ahead of the game when it comes to meeting their needs.

THE TREND: With vigilant consumers becoming bolder in questioning and researching claims, and the increase in visibility of medical experts during the COVID-19 crisis further pushing the need for scientific expertise and evidence into the spotlight, wellness brands are increasingly finding themselves under the microscope when it comes to verifying the solutions they’re selling. 

This is creating an opportunity for science-backed wellness brands to establish themselves as bastions of this new value-system – leveraging their scientific credentials to not only establish consumer trust but help shift the wellness industry’s controversial image.

THE STATS: 

• More than three-quarters of respondents from a recent report by Ford across markets including the US, UK and Spain, report a growing mistrust in brands.
• 80% of respondents in Edelman’s Trust Barometer revealed they trust doctors for pandemic information and 79% trust scientists.
• 35% of consumers in Europe are increasingly seeking out products with health claims that are rooted in science,” says Bain and Company.
• And young people, in particular, are shifting their faith toward science, noted a recent report by Vice magazine, which revealed that more than half of young people will seek science-backed information more than they did before COVID-19. 

THE CURRENT STATE OF PLAY: With renewed public interest in science – including the brands providing it – predicted to have a lasting impact on purchasing behaviour, moving forward wellness brands will need to pay closer attention to how they are communicating and substantiating their claims. 

Within this new lexicon, if brands are to earn consumer confidence and win allegiance, it will take more than just frilly statements and generic stamps of approval. Instead, brands will have to prove they can verify and demonstrate their claims in a consistent and relevant manner, across all consumer touchpoints.

THE TRAILBLAZERS:

SEED: The three-year-old microbial sciences company has built a wellness brand that’s just as aspirational as it is scientific, by combining deep knowledge with a visual identity that wouldn’t look out of place on an influencer’s Instagram grid.

Where Seed really seems to have found its sweet spot is by championing ‘consumer life science’ and positioning consumer knowledge as something to be worn as a badge of honour.

KENSHO HEALTH: Launched, in its own words, as ‘the antithesis of Goop’, Kensho Health is using intelligent technology and scientific research to take the guesswork out of holistic health. 

By carrying out all of the research and vetting involved in choosing a credible wellness provider, as well as partnering with Authorea – a research publishing platform giving open access to scientific research that validates the efficacy of holistic health practices – it’s been able to cultivate consumer confidence and position itself as trustworthy. 

CEREBELLY: Leaning into founder Teresa Purzner’s credibility as a neurosurgeon to build brand authenticity and trust, has helped baby food brand Cerebelly to experience 1,000% growth in revenue since launching in October 2019, with one of its pouches sold every 15 seconds in 2020, as of August 5th.

QUESTIONS TO ASK YOUR BUSINESS:

• How can you make the ‘science part’ of your brand or service resonate with your specific audience?
• What could you be doing to establish deeper levels of brand authority and credibility? 
• What motivates your customers and how can you leverage that interest to effectively weave science into your brand story?

To find out more about how and why consumers are buying into science-backed wellness brands and how you should be approaching the above questions, get your full copy of Welltodo’s 2021 Consumer Wellness Trends Report, here.