A Startup’s Success in Storytelling

It is a privilege to work every day with visionary innovators who are reimagining the future of health. But as promising as their products and services are, it can be hard to generate interest in startups. By some estimates, there are more than 2,500 healthcare startups in the U.S. vying for investment, customers and widespread adoption. Standing out when your product is still in development or awaiting approval from regulators is a daily challenge. 

So, imagine my surprise the other day when, as I was reviewing the day’s news coverage while sipping on my coffee, I came across this headline:

”Endiatx’s pill-sized robot sees and swims inside stomach”

It caught my attention because it sounded like something out of a science fiction movie. I looked up the company and learned that it is a startup developing robots for use in the human digestive tract. The article focused on PillBot, a multivitamin-sized intrabody robot that is trying to disrupt the endoscopy industry by providing faster, cheaper stomach imaging. The company is in seed rounds, trying to raise $3 million to run clinical trials. 

The point is that I stopped to read the story. Why? Well, the headline definitely caught my attention. But the content of the article kept me engaged. It provided a snapshot into what Endiatx is doing, insight that would help potential investors understand the promise of the company. And this insight also gave doctors a glimpse into the value PillBot will offer them once it is on the market. 

This type of coverage is a big win for a startup. A news profile like this offers third-party validation that helps stakeholders know and understand a company that doesn’t otherwise have a long-standing track record.

So, what made this article good? 

Storytelling: The information we need to evaluate healthcare products is quite technical and the detail is not always exciting. But as humans, we love a good story. We all know how Apple was created in a garage. And we know Facebook started in a dorm room. Endiatx is telling a story that is combining science, imagery and aspiration in a way we can understand. The robot is the size of a multivitamin. It describes traversing through the body as swimming. They even tell us a tale of flying in a Cessna 310 simulating weightlessness to test the PillBot’s “swimming skills.” We can connect with the story in a way we can relate to. 

Founder Story: Innovation is not a straightforward process. There are successes and failures. And many founders are wary of sharing failures. But Endiatx turned that on its head. Not only did they openly share their journey, but they also shared a video of the first time they tested the robot in a human. And it wasn’t just any human. It was the CEO, a man who admitted to having been fired from nearly every job he’s held. He made himself the first test case. That’s something we can remember, and it shows potential investors how confident and passionate they are about their product. 

Value and Differentiation: Anyone pursuing a news story will pitch a reporter on the benefits of their products or services. But reporters are savvy. They know the story they are being pitched is skewed to the positive. And it is their responsibility to make sure they provide a balanced and objective perspective. This story talked about other disposable pill cameras on the market. And it described how PillBot was different. This tells me that Endiatx did a good job of differentiating its offering. And they shared with us a clear value story. They intend to make it easier for a doctor to look inside a patient by making diagnoses simpler, faster, less expensive and more available beyond the walls of a medical facility. 

In the end, this news story shared valuable information with the market. We got to see the team’s journey into innovation and we learned about the value of the product. We also learned that the company is growing and in need of capital. I hope Endiatx has been sharing this news piece with every potential investor and partner they engage. I’d like to see it posted on their website and on all their social media channels. Sometimes nothing tells a story as well as a third-party accounting of what we are doing.

Note: I do not work with Endiatx and I do not know the founders or anyone involved with this company. My review of this article reflects only my views about the information I obtained from the article and the company’s website.