Why Your Value Prop Isn’t Landing with Health Plans

Recently, I reviewed a sales deck with a health tech exec colleague. They have a sharp team with credible results and work with several notable health plans.

But the pitch opened with a vision statement, flowed into a platform overview, and finished with a long list of features.

About five minutes in, I asked:

“What do you want your buyer to do after this?”

There was a pause. Then:

“Well, I want them to know we’re credible and innovative…”

And that’s the problem.

Too many vendors believe their job is to explain themselves.
But in a first meeting, especially with health plans, the real job is to make buyers care.

-Not to help them “understand the solution.”
-Not to “show the full platform.”
-Not to “prove how great we are.”

Your only goal is to make them care enough to continue the conversation.

If buyers aren’t engaging after your calls, emails, or presentations, the problem probably isn’t the product - it’s the message.

Here are five reasons your value prop isn’t landing and how to fix them.

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1. You’re Leading With Your Story, Not Theirs

Most value props start like this:

“We’re a mission-driven platform helping payers and providers…”
“We combine AI, analytics, and engagement workflows to…”

This reads like an About page, not a compelling pitch.

Buyers do not care how you do it. (Not yet.) What they want is a clear reason why it matters to them.

Instead of:
“We deliver proactive member engagement across all lines of business.”

Try:
“Your Medicare team is struggling with silent members. We help plans get more of those people to act, especially on measures that move Stars.”

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2. You’re Describing What It Is Instead of What It Fixes

Features are meaningless unless they are tied to a specific, real-world problem.

Saying your platform is “AI-driven” or “integrates with clinical workflows” doesn’t matter on its own. Buyers need to hear what painful issue you actually solve.

Ask yourself:
-What gets someone fired if it doesn’t get fixed?
-What creates internal friction, risk, or wasted spend?

Then, build your message around that answer.

Instead of:
“We use predictive analytics to surface care gaps in real time.”

Try:
“You’re already getting gaps from your EMR and your vendor, but you’re still missing the ones tied to member behavior. That’s what we fix.”

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3. You’re Skipping the Emotional Trigger

Logic explains, and then emotion converts.
If buyers don’t feel the tension behind the problem, they won’t take action.

Your value prop needs to tap into something they’re worried about, tired of, or under pressure to solve.

Instead of:
“We enable real-time clinical data sharing across care teams.”

Try:
“Your nurses are making decisions without seeing the full picture. You only find out when something goes wrong. We fix that.”

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4. You’re Choosing Precision Over Clarity

When messaging feels too dense or technical, buyers tune out.
They’re not looking for a perfect explanation, but they are looking for something they can repeat.

If your message sounds smart but takes too long to land, it won’t stick.

Instead of:
“We’re a digital front door that enables real-time care navigation across multiple engagement channels.”

Try:
“We make it easy for your members to know what to do next, whether they call in, use the app, or just ignore emails.”

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5. You’re Saying Too Much, Too Soon

A common mistake is trying to explain everything you do right away.

Buyers don’t need the full tour. They just need a reason to step inside.

You can expand the story later, but you won’t get that chance if your message feels bloated or irrelevant at the start.

Begin with your sharpest, specific use case that earns attention.

Instead of:
“We’re a comprehensive population health solution used across Medicaid, MA, and commercial plans.”

Try:
“Our fastest entry point is with Medicaid teams struggling to engage non-digital members. We’ve been able to get 2x response rates where text and email haven’t worked.”

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Final Thought

If your product is strong, but your message isn’t landing, it may not be a sales problem (though it’s worth confirming). More often, it’s a messaging problem.

A smart message that misses the buyer’s reality is still a miss. Relevance always beats polish.

Not sure if your message is hitting? Ask yourself: Would your buyer repeat it, unprompted, to their boss in a meeting you’re not in?

If not, that’s your starting point. And the good news? It’s fixable.

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