9️⃣ Nine Marketing Messaging Tips for Femtech Startups in SEA

Femtech brands in Southeast Asia (SEA) are required to go far beyond global playbooks or product-centric campaigns to truly connect with local customers. Effective messaging in the region prioritises building trust, breaking stigma and guiding women with empathy and clarity through the potentially unfamiliar territory of personal health.

This mini-guide, created in partnership between Creative Branding Agency Prism Creative and FemTech Association Asia, outlines Nine Marketing Messaging Tips for startups, reflecting on the femtech sector in SEA. Whether you are looking to launch in the region, expand to a new market or refine your brand voice, these principles can help you connect more deeply with the people who matter most: your customers.

Note: Highlights are from “Insights into the Femtech Landscape in Southeast Asia”, a FemTech Association Asia and Milieu Insight report published in June 2024.

Tip 1: Lead with Education, not Assumption

Most consumers in SEA (and around the world) are still learning about femtech and women's health. Build messaging that educates before selling. Use colloquial language and visual storytelling to clarify medical terms or taboo topics. For example, explain what endometriosis, PCOS, fertility tracking, etc. is and why it is important before what your product does and how it can help.

Brand Spotlight: Hormony (Singapore) is breaking down barriers to help women openly talk about menopause in often more conservative SEA communities. Their Instagram soundbite on "How to Tell Your Husband About Menopause" is a brilliant example of using a lighthearted, conversational tone to make a topic approachable.

Tip 2: Localise, Don’t Just Translate

Customise content to the local language and context. This includes idioms, tone, references and even product names, especially in exciting growth markets like Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.

Brand Spotlight: Moom’s (Singapore) reel highlights how this startup can support women who are fasting during Ramadan, showcasing that it’s still possible to manage energy, hydration and nutrient deficiencies.

Tip 3: Respect Cultural Sensitivities

Approach topics like menstruation, fertility, and sexual health with cultural awareness. Use inclusive and respectful language. What works in one country may not translate well in another country or in SEA as a whole.

Best Practices:

• Language & Terminology: Consider alternative language like “feminine wellness” or “monthly cycle” instead of “vaginal health”.

• Imagery & Symbolism: Use fully clothed models in Muslim-majority markets (Indonesia, Malaysia); note the use of red liquid in pad ads can be considered taboo in some communities.

• Regulatory & Platform Limitations: Malaysia regulates feminine hygiene ads; Thailand restricts “indecent” health content. Work with local legal teams to ensure local compliance.

Brand Spotlight: Ease (Singapore) copywriting reflects regional culture.

For example, instead of using direct or potentially taboo terms (e.g., "sex", "STIs") in ads, Ease uses health-oriented language, e.g. “Take control of your reproductive health", and highlights the discretion and confidentiality of service and care. Visuals focus on wellness, self-care and agency, not medical sterility.

Tip 4: Use Real Stories & Testimonials

Trust is a big hurdle. Use testimonials from local consumers - especially key opinion leaders like medical professionals, academics or respected community leaders - to build authenticity and credibility. Leverage trusted voices over celebrities to shape your message and delivery.

Recommended Trusted Voice in Thailand: Rung Satchatippavarn is a period activist, women’s health advocate and femtech founder of “ira”. She co-hosts a gender-friendly podcast, has 30.9K+ followers on YouTube and has been recognised on the Tatler Thailand Front & Female list.

Brand Spotlight: twoplus Fertility (Singapore) pregnancy stories blog effectively builds trust and relatability by showcasing diverse, real-life couples’ journeys, making their fertility kit feel accessible and scientifically-validated.

Tip 5: Back Up Claims with Data

Women in SEA, especially in urban centres, are increasingly data-driven and health-conscious. Highlight clinically-backed user insights and real outcomes accurately and clearly. Ensure information used reflects each country’s data protection law, which varies across SEA - e.g. PDPA in Singapore.

Example: Singapore startup Hey Venus Integrated Healthcare partnered with NUS Bia-Echo Asia Centre for Reproductive Longevity and Equality at the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine to co-author a white paper quantifying how menopause affects the lives of working women across APAC.

White Paper, ‘Menopause and the Bottom Line: A Critical Leadership Challenge for APAC Leaders’: https://www.heyvenusintegratedhealthscience.com/resourcehub

Tip 6: Be Aspirational but Accessible

Frame your solution as a tool for self-empowerment, productivity and health, not just a medical intervention. Avoid pricing or branding that feels too luxury, elitist or exclusive.

While medical accuracy is essential, customer response may be better to empathetic, lifestyle-aligned messaging than cold clinical copy.

Brand Spotlight: Fertility can be shrouded in silence in SEA, so data can help to normalise the conversation when met with compassion, avoiding condescension. Sow Fertility’s platform is a great example of balancing data and lifestyle, with real stories, peers interviewing each other and expert advice to help women feel less isolated.

Best Practice:

• Frame as "Self-Care for Everyday Superwomen"

Why? SEA women juggle careers, families, and societal expectations. Position your product as a practical ally, not a luxury splurge or only to fix a health problem.

• Avoid Clinical or Elitist Language

Why? Terms like "biohacking" or "optimisation" can feel alienating. Instead, use everyday terms that feel familiar.

• Tiered Pricing & Transparency

Why? SEA consumers range from more affluent urbanites to budget-conscious rural users, so consider how cost is presented to each consumer segment inclusively.

Tip 7: Tap into Communities

SEA is a region of strong community influence. Collaborate with company ERGs, volunteer or parent groups, women's collectives, wellness clubs or religious networks to shape your message, define your target audience and understand how to best deliver your solution locally.

Brand Spotlight: Nala’s (Philippines) student magazine brilliantly bridges education and empowerment by tapping into campus communities with relatable, youth-driven content. Activating peer-to-peer trust and making menstrual health advice feel authentic (not corporate).

Tip 8: Position Femtech as Family Health

Reframe messaging to show how women’s health impacts the whole family, not just the individual. This appeals to broader social values and decision-makers beyond the woman in the house (e.g. husbands or mothers-in-law).

Brand Spotlight: Perfect Fit’s (Indonesia) campaign targeting dads is a masterclass in inclusive, stigma-breaking marketing. It tackles a less often addressed audience (fathers) with empathy, practical advice, and cultural nuance, making period education a shared family responsibility rather than a "woman’s issue."

Tip 9: Align with Local Health Priorities

Align with national or regional health efforts to stay relevant and credible, and also open the door for larger-scale partnerships.

Examples:

• Healthier SG. National initiative by Ministry of Health focusing on preventive health.

• Indonesia Sehat. SATUSEHAT platform for health data integration, Jaminan Kesehatan Nasional (JKN) for universal health coverage, and Kartu Indonesia Sehat (KIS) for access to healthcare.

• PhilHealth’s Z Benefits. Financial risk protection against illnesses perceived as medically and economically catastrophic.