What Should Healthcare Advertisers Ask Patients? It Depends on the Disease State.
Healthcare advertisers have access to a wide range of targeting data, from demographics and online behavior to claims data. But these signals alone don’t reveal what someone needs at that moment.
Are they looking for information about unexplained symptoms? Newly diagnosed? Struggling with their current treatment? Seeking alternative treatment options?
Those differences can dramatically change what information is most useful. And the questions advertisers ask should change depending on the disease state and campaign goal.
Different Disease States Call for Different Questions
There’s no universal “best” question to ask a patient. The most useful question is the one that helps uncover context traditional targeting signals may not reveal and these often vary by disease state. Here are some of the questions our VG Health team has found most effective across different disease states:
| Disease State | Patient Insight | Example Question | How This Answer Helps |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rare Disease | Undiagnosed/ Misdiagnosed | Are you experiencing any of these symptoms that haven’t yet been explained? | Rare diseases can be difficult to diagnose because symptoms may overlap with more common conditions or appear unrelated. Understanding which unexplained symptoms people are experiencing can help advertisers identify audiences who may benefit from disease education and connect them with more relevant information. |
| Rare Disease | Diagnosis / journey stage | Where are you in your journey with [rare disease]? | Distinguish people still seeking a diagnosis from those already diagnosed, then deliver education relevant to their stage. |
| Oncology | Information needs | What would be most helpful to learn about right now? | Helps advertisers understand what information matters most to different audiences and deliver educational content that better aligns with those needs. |
| Oncology | Treatment stage | Where are you with your [cancer name] treatment now? | Helps distinguish people at different points in their treatment journey so advertising and educational content can be more relevant to where they are today. |
| Oncology | Treatment priorities | When you think about your next treatment, which of the following matters most? | For cancers with multiple treatment approaches, this can uncover the factors people value most when considering their options and inform more relevant messaging and audience strategies. |
| Rheumatology | Treatment satisfaction / symptom control | How well is your current treatment managing your symptoms? | Identify patients who may be dissatisfied with their current treatment and more receptive to information about other options. |
| Neurology | Symptom burden / daily impact | Which aspect of managing your condition is most challenging? | Understand which patient needs are most important and tailor messaging and educational content accordingly. |
| Chronic conditions | Openness to exploring alternatives | How satisfied are you with your current treatment? | Separate satisfied patients from those who may be more likely to explore another option, improving targeting and media efficiency. |
Ask Questions You Can Act On
The goal is to uncover insights that can make healthcare advertising more useful.
Consider a patient who falls within the target audience for a rheumatology campaign. Traditional data might help a brand reach that person. But knowing that their current treatment isn’t adequately controlling their symptoms provides additional context. The brand can use that insight to determine which educational content may be most relevant, while avoiding unnecessary messaging to patients who are satisfied with their current care.
That same principle looks different in rare disease, where understanding whether someone is searching for answers or has already received a diagnosis can fundamentally change what they need to know next.
From Patient Answers to Smarter Audiences
VG Health enables healthcare marketers to ask patients short, optional questions directly within digital advertising. Those voluntarily shared responses can inform messaging and creative sequencing while also powering VoiceAlike® AI to build scalable audiences based on the insights that matter for a specific campaign.
Instead of relying solely on assumptions about what a patient may need, marketers gain valuable signals: how patients feel in-the-moment, where they are in their journey, what matters to them, and what they may need next.
Because when healthcare advertisers ask better questions, they can deliver more relevant information that helps connect patients with the care they need.
