We're all using digital health tech, but not all experiences are created equal. MERGE's new consumer study reveals 6 key insights into what consumers really want—from personalization to financial wellness.
Katie Lukas | VP, Group Experience Lead
October 30, 2025
We’re all becoming more sophisticated health consumers using technology to track, improve, and understand our well-being. The invention and adoption of these solutions continues to rise—but not all digital health and wellness experiences are created equal.
To discover what enables these technologies to deliver lasting impact, MERGE conducted a study to fully understand the attitudes, perceptions, and of the health and wellness consumer. This post discusses seven key insights and opportunities from the research, giving you a unique, data-driven perspective on the role digital health technologies play in health, wellness, and personal transformation.
People who engage with their health and wellness as an ongoing journey are much more likely to be proactive, to use multiple digital health technologies, and to report positive results. Tapping into self-perception and self-identity are crucial keys to reaching consumers.
The perception is often that consumers don’t trust health insurers, employers, and even providers—but we found significant appetite for digital health technologies that are prescribed, recommended, and incentivized by all of the players in the healthcare ecosystem.
A poorly designed experience is one of the biggest contributors to early abandonment of digital health and wellness technologies—and it can erode trust.
Brands need to ensure their tools are able to adapt to what the consumer prefers. For example, people want notifications. Too many alerts become annoying, and too few don't support behavior change.
They want their notifications, incentives, and gamification to be just right.
Underscoring the “Goldilocks problem,” we saw a potent need for and customization of these experiences.
When talking about wellness, nearly a third of people state their financial wellness is closely tied to their physical and mental health. At the end of the day, financial stability shapes behaviors, attitudes, access to care, and consequently, overall well-being. It’s more than just dollars and cents.
Gen Z was born into digital, and as a result, their expectations for experiences are incredibly high. They’re looking for an Apple level of simplicity, ease of use, and intelligence, and they will move on quickly rather than trying to make something work.
The viability of digital health technologies and their usage by consumers depends on how well brands can earn trust, personalize experiences, and connect their tools to something deeper, including a person’s purpose and financial wellness. Also, organizations who design their tools to adapt and evolve with the user, instead of the other way around, will drive lasting impact.
That impact depends not only on innovation but on ensuring access and inclusion across every health journey.
Download the full report to dive deeper and explore these and more findings, data, and implications for health leaders.
Contact our research team to discuss the report in more detail.
