Beyond Tactical: Why Concept Testing is a Strategic Imperative

Gender specific virtual health care is entering a new phase of growth. What began as a direct-to-consumer model through companies like Midi Health, Alloy Women’s Health, and Hims & Hers Telehealth is now expanding toward the business-to-business enterprise market. Watching these changes from the sidelines, I began thinking about the challenges these companies are facing as they work to make this transition successfully.

The shift they are navigating creates a new set of strategic business questions. An offering that succeeds with consumers does not automatically translate into an employer-sponsored benefit that buyers will prioritize, fund, and implement. As these companies look to scale, they need to understand not just whether demand exists, but how their services should be structured, priced, and positioned for adoption.

This is where concept testing can have a strategic impact. While often associated with consumer-packaged goods, concept testing can also help service providers of all types evaluate key decisions before making large commercial plays. In the case of virtual women’s healthcare, it can help pressure-test the assumptions behind a move into the B2B market.

Concept Testing As A Strategic Instrument

Concept testing is frequently viewed as a tactical step, but it can serve as a strategic instrument for organizations making important growth decisions. For service providers looking to expand into new markets, it helps clarify tradeoffs, align internal stakeholders, and reduce uncertainty around what will drive buyer adoption.

Using virtual women’s healthcare providers as a reference point, concept testing can help address three core business questions associated with scaling into the B2B enterprise market.

What is the right solution design for my target buyer?

One of the first questions leaders face is what a viable solution should look like. For the virtual women’s healthcare provider, the question could be should the offering focus narrowly on menopause care, or does it need to be bundled with broader metabolic, cardiovascular, or longevity programs to gain enterprise approval?

Concept testing that includes MaxDiff or discrete choice modeling can help clarify which features employers view as essential versus which additions increase cost and complexity without materially improving adoption. By identifying feature priorities from an employer’s perspective, organizations can make more informed decisions about product scope and bundling strategies.

What pricing model supports adoption and scale?

Sometimes moving into a new market means adopting a new pricing model. For virtual women’s healthcare providers, moving from consumer cash-pay or direct insurance billing to an employer-sponsored model requires testing complex pricing mechanisms.

Concept testing allows organizations to explore employer response to different pricing schemes, such as per-member-per-month (PMPM) subscription fees or fee-for-service models integrated with existing pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). In this case, discrete choice modeling is a great way to investigate price and benefit alignment, and this data allows a CFO to project revenue and set pricing strategies with statistical confidence.

What value story resonates best with decision makers?

The communication used with consumers is not likely to sell your service in a B2B environment. Human resources leaders, benefits managers, and finance leaders often need to balance employee experience, cost containment, productivity, and retention within a set budget. Therefore, the value story needs to be adjusted and optimized.

Concept testing enables organizations to evaluate different messaging pillars, such as clinical empathy, workforce productivity, healthcare cost offsets, or retention impact. By comparing how these storylines perform with target buyers, companies can better understand the value hierarchy that drives approval and tailor their go to market strategy accordingly.

Translating Insights Into Actionable Strategies

The value of research ultimately lies in its ability to inform better decisions. For companies introducing an existing service into a B2B market, concept testing helps reduce risk and build alignment.

Rather than entering the B2B marketplace with an adapted consumer offering and a set of assumptions, a structured research framework can provide clearer guidance on what the new market is willing to pay, how they expect services to be structured, and which proof points are most likely to support adoption.

Market expansion is inherently risky. Brand reputation, operational focus, and significant investment are often on the line. By treating concept testing not as a checkbox but as a strategic impact device, entering a new market can be done with greater clarity. Ultimately, companies can position themselves to navigate complexity, make more confident tradeoffs, and build a stronger foundation for sustainable growth.

Author

Julie Trujillo

Senior Vice President

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As a research consultant with over 20 years of experience, Julie provides strategic direction to clients who are struggling with difficult business challenges. Julie guides her clients to identify the business questions and then designs research to get answers. Julie’s experience includes quantitative and qualitative research across an array of categories and research techniques. Julie holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, with a concentration in Marketing, from Valparaiso University.

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