The Pill Club Rebrands as It Expands Beyond Birth Control

Favor wants to revolutionize healthcare for millennials and Gen Z. That’s why the digital health platform formerly known as The Pill Club launched a rebranded site on March 21. This officially marks a shift from a digital platform for contraception to what CEO Liz Meyerdirk described as “the most trusted digital platform for women and people who menstruate.” She added, “We are evolving from a single point solution focused on birth control delivery and reproductive care to a digital health platform.” According to a representative, the company is seeking to “address the shortcomings of the current health system, starting with reproductive care and skincare.” “We do believe that more women should be able to get treated right from the healthcare system,” said Meyerdirk, a former executive and founding member of Uber Eats. What’s in a Name? Founded six years ago, The Pill Club started out as a way to eliminate the hurdles women faced when trying to access birth control, which is covered by the Affordable Care Act. The company offers more than 120 FDA-approved forms of birth control through a service that allows customers—with and without insurance—to also access doctors and nurses through its telehealth network and have prescriptions shipped through the company’s pharmacy. The rebrand brings in a network of dermatologists and an expansion to include prescription-grade and over-the-counter skincare. “I personally really love the name The Pill Club,” Meyerdirk said. “It sounds very friendly and positive. But it’s a little bit hemmed in because it suggests ‘the pill’ or any pill when we also have a robust telehealth service … and so that is a big piece of our business that allows you to have birth control consults, talk about your skin, talk about sexual health concerns and ‘The Pill Club’ doesn’t quite represent that.” Skin in the Game In case you’re wondering how skincare and dermatology entered the chat, the answer is, quite simply, that customers asked for it. After joining the company in December 2020, Meyerdirk and her team dove into the process of finding out who The Pill Club customer was, what worked for them and what they wanted from the company going forward. They discovered 40% of respondents admitted using the pill not for pregnancy prevention but instead to control hormonal acne. That’s why Favor added dermatology services, which are now live on the site in 36 states and Washington D.C. Favor is currently licensed and live in 49 states (with hopes to add Mississippi soon), and its pharmacy is licensed in all 50 states. A Care-Full Brand Identity According to the company, the new brand name and site design avoids using colors that would be perceived as gendered and uses “visual ties to quilting to represent the patchwork of care we seek to provide women and people who menstruate.” It also puts an emphasis on the network of healthcare providers, dubbed a “wellbeing coalition.” Favor plans to take an omnichannel approach to its marketing, according to the representative. This includes paid social advertising and organic social with an emphasis on TikTok, which is the favored platform of its target market, as well as member communications, blog content and earned media. “[Our] focus is on millennial to Gen Z women and people who menstruate,” Meyerdirk added. “We think that we can uniquely serve their needs. And that is the genesis and thought process behind shifting to being more inclusive to reflect the people that we are serving, and the name change reflects a broader platform than 'pills' or 'club.'” Instead, she said Favor is focused on holistic health and “being able to have a more complete platform to serve those needs so that you don’t have to go from this doctor to that doctor, to this practice to that practice.” That, Meyerdirk said, is the real value in Favor at a time when consumers are embracing telehealth options. “For us, fundamentally, we believe that virtual care should not be a luxury preserved for people who can afford to pay out of pocket or in states of emergency. It should be the norm for all of women’s healthcare,” she added. “And one day, it will be. And we’re building that reality today.”

Health and Wellness

The Pill Club Rebrands as It Expands Beyond Birth Control

The DTC company, now known as Favor, adds services based on customer feedback

Leslie Blount

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Leslie Blount