The key to growth: Why innovative health tech suppliers should prioritise marketing maturity

Even the best technology will struggle to have an impact without strategic, ‘mature’ marketing, writes Silver Buck’s Matt Newby

Fast moving health technology companies often juggle two conflicting priorities: developing their solution to meet market opportunities driven by healthcare needs, while building sustainable business operations. For many, the focus on product development is so intense that essential business functions like marketing and communications are deprioritised. Yet, this can be a costly mistake. Without a strategic approach to marketing, even the best technology may struggle to achieve the reach and impact it deserves.

Leading a marketing and communications agency that specialises in health and technology, I have seen this scenario play out many times. One of the most effective ways for SMEs to address this challenge is by assessing their marketing maturity – a process that can reveal where an organisation stands in terms of product-market fit, marketing strategy, capabilities, and execution.

Interestingly, marketing maturity is a concept with parallels to a well-trodden practice within health tech – the assessment of digital maturity.

A familiar concept in health tech

Healthcare providers and established suppliers are no strangers to the concept of maturity assessments. Digital maturity frameworks help healthcare providers assess their strengths and gaps in digital services. These assessments evaluate critical factors such as technical infrastructure, data interoperability, and workforce digital skills. The results help organisations prioritise investments and develop long-term strategies to enhance their digital capabilities.

In healthcare, digital maturity assessments play a crucial role in guiding transformation agendas. By understanding their current state, healthcare providers can chart a clear course towards improvement. This focus on self-assessment and continuous development helps drive innovation and better patient care.

For suppliers, maturity assessments offer a structured way to ensure that they remain competitive and future-ready.

Marketing maturity for health tech suppliers

If digital maturity helps healthcare organisations optimise technology use, marketing maturity serves a similar purpose for SMEs seeking to optimise performance and spend. Marketing maturity assessments evaluate areas like strategic positioning, brand development, customer engagement, and content strategy, helping businesses identify strengths and gaps.

This is particularly relevant for health tech SMEs, which often face unique challenges in marketing. Many operate in regulated environments where messaging should adhere to strict compliance standards. Others may struggle with long sales cycles, needing to build trust with different stakeholder groups including patients, digital, procurement and patients. These complexities make it essential for fast-scaling companies to develop marketing strategies that are both sophisticated and adaptable.

Without the right focus, companies risk falling into common traps: messaging that fails to resonate with, or worse, alienate key audiences; an overreliance on single channels; or an inability to differentiate their products from competitors. By assessing marketing maturity, technology suppliers can gain clarity on these challenges and take action to build a well-oiled marketing engine that supports sustainable growth.

Key components

Marketing maturity assessments typically cover several dimensions, including:

1. Strategy and planning: Does the organisation have a clearly defined marketing strategy aligned with business goals?
2. Customer understanding and advocacy: How well does the company understand the needs and pain points of its target audience? And how willing are customers to help influence their peers?
3. Content and messaging: Is there a cohesive brand narrative which demonstrates that the supplier fully understands the problem its solution solves? Do they align their value proposition with this problem?
4. Digital presence: How effectively is the company leveraging digital channels such as social media, search engines and email marketing?
5. Data and analytics: Does the organisation use data-driven insights to optimise marketing performance and ROI?
6. Team and resources: Does the business have the right in-house or external support in place, or is marketing and communications treated as an afterthought?

A marketing maturity assessment doesn’t just highlight areas for improvement – it also serves as a catalyst for investment in the right areas, whether that’s strategy, execution or talent.

Business impact

Organisations that invest in improving their marketing maturity as they grow see tangible results, including greater ROI from their marketing spend. These can include increased lead generation, stronger brand recognition, improved customer advocacy and more efficient use of marketing resources. Most importantly, marketing maturity helps suppliers build credibility in a crowded market.

In the health tech sector where trust and reputation are vital, decision-makers in healthcare look for suppliers to not only demonstrate they have innovative solutions but also a deep understanding of their challenges and priorities. A mature focus on marketing enables suppliers to engage with these stakeholders effectively, positioning themselves as trusted partners rather than just vendors.

Taking the first step

Undertaking a marketing maturity assessment needn’t be like an exam and it’s important to remember that maturity is a journey, not a destination. The goal is not to become perfect overnight but to take a structured, incremental approach to improvement. At Silver Buck, we help our customers on this journey and have put together a free online assessment to help others begin to understand their own position.

Health tech suppliers have an opportunity to learn from the success of digital maturity frameworks. Just as those frameworks have helped healthcare providers drive digital transformation, marketing maturity assessments can help businesses build the foundations for long-term growth and success.

In an industry where both innovation and patient outcomes are on the line, suppliers cannot afford to leave their marketing efforts to chance. By investing in marketing maturity, they can ensure that their innovations reach the people and organisations that need them most.

Matt Newby is Silver Buck’s managing director.

Click here to take Silver Buck’s free marketing maturity assessment online, and get a free consultation for your team.