In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Roman Kirsch interviews Dominik Burziwoda, CEO & Founder of Perfood. Perfood develops digital therapeutics using personalized low-glycemic diets to treat lifestyle-associated diseases like type 2 diabetes and migraines. Operating in Germany’s regulated healthcare system, Perfood must navigate the complex challenge of marketing to three distinct stakeholders: insurance companies as payers, medical doctors as prescribers, and patients as end users. Through their B2B market access approach, they’ve created a pharmaceutical-like business model that delivers digital therapy through an app, achieving patient remission rates that traditional drug therapies cannot match.

Topics Discussed:

• Building a regulated healthcare product that serves multiple stakeholder groups simultaneously

• Navigating marketing restrictions and compliance requirements in the digital therapeutics space

• Creating personalized health solutions using continuous glucose monitoring and AI-powered food recognition

• Developing longer sales funnels for complex healthcare products (4-6 months conversion cycles)

• Balancing scientific credibility with consumer-friendly messaging

• Scaling digital therapeutics across multiple disease indications and international markets

Lessons For Consumer Marketers:

Master Multi-Stakeholder Marketing with Differentiated Messaging

Perfood must simultaneously appeal to insurance companies (economic value), doctors (clinical efficacy), and patients (health outcomes). The key is maintaining scientific credibility for medical professionals while creating optimistic but honest messaging for consumers. Over-promising kills credibility with doctors, while being too clinical fails to motivate patients.

Use Educational Content to Navigate Regulatory Restrictions

When direct advertising is limited by healthcare regulations, ebooks become powerful lead magnets. Perfood’s ebooks educate patients on the scientific concept while equipping them to have informed conversations with their doctors. This approach builds trust, demonstrates expertise, and prepares customers to advocate for the product during medical consultations.

Extend Sales Funnels for Complex Products

Healthcare products require 4-6 month conversion cycles due to their complexity and the need for medical consultation. Perfood uses drip campaigns and educational touchpoints (info sessions, nutritionist calls) to nurture prospects through this extended journey. The investment in longer funnels is justified by higher lifetime value and retention rates.

Leverage AI for Operational Marketing Efficiency

Perfood uses AI throughout their product (photo-based food recognition, personalized recommendations) and marketing operations (ad creation, drip campaign workflows). This creates significant process gains while maintaining the personalized experience that’s core to their value proposition.

Simplify Complex Science Without Losing Accuracy

The biggest marketing mistake in healthcare is over-complicating messaging. Perfood learned that “stumpf ist stumpf” (simple is simple) – complex medical concepts must be explained simply without being inaccurate or exaggerated. Too much explanation kills conversions, while oversimplification damages credibility with medical stakeholders.

Build Teams on Drive Over Domain Expertise

Perfood prioritizes energy and curiosity over specific medical or marketing backgrounds when hiring. Team members who work 12-14 hour days and maintain high curiosity will outlearn and outwork those with perfect credentials but less drive. Domain knowledge can be learned, but work ethic and intellectual curiosity cannot be taught.