How to Reach the Women Who Don’t Know They Need You Yet: Tips for Femtech Founders
Here’s the tricky thing about femtech: your audience might not even know they’re your audience yet.
They think pain is normal. They think fatigue is just part of being a woman. They’ve been told to push through, complain less and smile more. You know.
That’s why your marketing has to educate before it sells.
You’re not just promoting a product — you’re reframing what “normal” means.
1. Step Back — and Understand Their Journey
Before you start creating content or running ads, pause. Take a step back and think:
What really happens before someone discovers you?
They’re not searching for your brand or your product — because they don’t know it exists. But they are searching for something.
Maybe they’re typing:
“I’m 28 and constantly exhausted even after sleeping 8 hours — is that normal?”
“Can hormonal imbalance cause fatigue?”
“Can’t get out of bed first two days of my period — normal?”
“How to tell if period pain is endometriosis?”
“My GP said it’s just anxiety but I know something’s wrong.”
“Does caffeine make period cramps worse?”
“What tests should I ask my doctor for if I suspect endo?”
Or maybe they’re not searching at all. Maybe they’re just complaining to a friend. Or leaving a comment on Reddit, whispering, “Does anyone else feel like this?”
That’s where you start.
As a founder or marketer, your job is to find those early conversations — the ones that happen before awareness. Go to where they’re being honest: Reddit threads, TikTok comments, long-form YouTube videos, small Facebook groups, Discord servers, Twitter replies.
Read what they write.
Notice the words they use, the tone, the frustration, the shame, the humour.
That’s your raw insight — their real language, not what a keyword tool will show you.
💡 Example: Clue doesn’t start conversations by saying “We’re a cycle-tracking app.” They start by talking about mood swings, cravings, anxiety — the things women already notice but can’t explain.
💡 Example: Mira built educational content like “Why You’re Not Ovulating Even If You Have a Period” — addressing confusion before selling solutions.
When you understand what happens before discovery — the frustration, the search for validation — you can position your product as the answer to a question they didn’t even know how to ask yet.
2. Tell the Truth, Gently
It might seem obvious, but here’s the thing: people can’t search for words they don’t know exist. You have to teach them the words first, and keep doing it — over and over.
Start by naming the experience, not the product. Use language that meets your audience before the awareness stage — when they’re still just frustrated, confused, or resigned.
Instead of “Track your ovulation with our app,” try:
“If you’ve ever wondered why your period is unpredictable — or why your doctor says it’s fine when you know it’s not — this might help.”
This kind of messaging builds emotional relevance first, product relevance second.
And - consistency is key.
One post won’t change decades of silence — you need to be the voice they hear again and again, until the truth becomes obvious to them. Until their irritation builds enough for them to start looking for a solution.
💡 Example: Elvie opened its pelvic floor trainer campaign with “It’s time to talk about pee leaks.”
Not medical, not scary — just honest.
3. Use Storytelling as a Bridge
Let’s be real — storytelling has become one of those shiny marketing words that everyone uses but few can explain. Yet, when we look at the science, there’s good reason it works — and it’s not magic, it’s psychology.
Research shows that when we listen to or read a story, multiple parts of the brain activate — not only the language centres, but also regions responsible for emotion, sensory processing, and memory.
This means that we don’t just hear stories; we experience them. That deeper engagement helps us remember the message longer and connect with it on an emotional level (Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 2020).
So when marketers talk about storytelling, what they should mean is that creative narratives can help people connect emotionally and contextually with what you offer. It’s not about dramatic brand videos or long copy — it’s about making the audience the protagonist, not the brand.
Share stories that mirror what your audience feels — confusion, embarrassment, fatigue, isolation.
Stories of discovery (“I thought it was just me”) are powerful because they help women recognise themselves before they recognise the product.
💡 Example: The Lowdown built a library of real experiences with contraception — a mirror for women to see themselves in.
4. Show the “Before,” Not Just the “After”
So much femtech marketing jumps straight to “empowerment” — smiling women in yoga pants holding apps. Ahhh, content.
But empowerment only makes sense after validation.
Show the messy middle — the confusion, the pain, the late-night Googling. Show the part where they didn’t know.
People don’t just want solutions — they want to feel seen. They want to recognise themselves in the story. That’s where relatability comes in, and it’s gold when it comes to building trust.
It’s not just about talking about the problems your customers face — though of course that’s important. It’s also about being honest about your journey as a founder. Why did you decide to build this product? What mistakes did you make along the way? What kept you up at night?
Especially when you’re talking to Gen Z, they crave the behind-the-scenes. They want to know the backstory, not just the polished results.
The “before” is where the magic happens. Your audience sees the struggle, the confusion, the trial-and-error moments — both theirs and yours — and it makes everything feel real. It’s why showing the messy, human side of the journey builds trust faster than any perfect case study ever could.
💡 Example: Clue shares journal-style stories about learning to live by your cycle — honest, reflective, relatable.
7. Borrow Trust
You don’t have to be the first or the loudest voice to be heard. Partner with people your audience already listens to — doulas, midwives, GPs, micro-influencers, community leaders. When your mission is new, uncomfortable, or simply unfamiliar, borrowed credibility becomes your bridge.
Have you ever heard about the concept of the “first follower”? That delusional brave person who is the first one to join you in your craziness?
When you launch a new idea, product, or service, your first follower is more important than you. Seriously. Humans are wired to follow signals from others — we instinctively look for social proof before committing to something new. The first person who believes in your idea makes it real for everyone else.
Borrowing trust works because humans are wired to listen to credible, familiar sources. When someone your audience already respects vouches for your idea or product, your message lands faster, feels safer, and carries more weight. Especially when the topic is sensitive, like women’s health — people need reassurance that what they’re hearing is reliable, relatable, and validated.
💡 Example: Natural Cycles partnered with educators and doctors to talk about fertility awareness as a legitimate, science-backed choice — breaking down stigma through expertise. Each of their articles is marked as “fact-checked” by a medical expert.
8. The Bottom Line
When women don’t know they need you, your job isn’t to convince them — it’s to show them they deserve better.
Femtech isn’t just marketing convenience.
It’s marketing awareness.
It’s about undoing decades of silence and conditioning. It’s about talking to women who never realised that spending an hour in line for the bathroom isn’t “just how life is” — it’s an architectural flaw.
And that takes empathy, courage, and persistence.
💬 Final Thoughts
The world doesn’t need more noise. It needs more clarity. You don’t have to be everywhere, do everything, or sound like everyone else. You just have to sound like you — honest, curious, and ready to make a difference.
Marketing isn’t about hype. It’s about helping your idea reach the people who need it most. Let’s build marketing that feels human again. If you’re ready to stop overcomplicating and start focusing on what truly matters, reach out to schedule a free session with me.
We’ll map out a simple 90-day plan that aligns with your purpose — and keeps your sanity intact.
🪶 Disclaimer
Written by a human (hi, that’s me) — with a little help from ChatGPT to organise my ideas. The thoughts, experiences, and occasional anxious opinions are all mine.
