Pelago GTM brain

category

market profile

• text: Employers and payers seek measurable treatment and cost outcomes for substance use, an area with unmet demand and stigma-related barriers to care.
• text: Pelago has expanded from substance use into mental health and behavioral addictions, combining digital access with clinical services.

personas

• title: Employer benefits or wellness leader
  pains:

  • Substance use raises health spending and affects workforce wellbeing
  • Employees may avoid stigmatized or inconvenient treatment
  • Benefits leaders must justify vendor costs with engagement and ROI
• title: Health plan behavioral health executive
  pains:

  • Members have different acuity levels and need appropriate care pathways
  • Plans need evidence of clinical outcomes and integration with existing benefits
• title: Benefits consultant or PBM leader
  pains:

  • Clients want measurable program results rather than fees for unused access
  • Disconnected interventions make it harder to guide members to suitable care

icp

• text: Large US employers, especially self-insured organizations with substantial covered populations and measurable healthcare claims.
• text: National health plans and pharmacy benefit managers seeking virtual substance use and behavioral health services for eligible members.
• text: Benefits consultants advising employers on behavioral health and accountable care vendor selection.

message pillars

• text: Tailor support to each member and protect privacy.
• text: Connect digital access with human clinical care.
• text: Tie vendor fees to measurable results.

objections

• objection: Will employees engage with a stigmatized benefit?
  response: Explain confidential, judgment-free access and assess actual engagement in the target population rather than assuming uptake.
• objection: How do we know it pays for itself?
  response: Review the ROI study, population assumptions and negotiated performance guarantees with the benefits and actuarial teams.
• objection: Can an app address complex substance use?
  response: Assess the clinical care model, escalation pathways and medication services for the needs of the covered population.

competitors

• name: Bicycle Health
  why: Virtual opioid use disorder treatment overlaps with Pelago's clinical substance use services.
• name: Boulder Care
  why: Virtual addiction care is an alternative for health plans and members.
• name: Spring Health
  why: Broader employer mental health platform with overlapping behavioral health needs.

influencers

• name: Yusuf Sherwani
  url: https://www.pelagohealth.com/blog/announcing-quit-genius-11m-series-a-and-our-manifesto-to-help-100m-quit-their-addiction/
  why: Co-founder and physician wrote about the company's substance use mission.

keywords

• substance use benefits for employers
• virtual addiction treatment health plans
• employee alcohol use support
• tobacco cessation employee benefits
• behavioral health ROI
• opioid use disorder virtual care
• outcomes based behavioral health

voice

• Empathetic and nonjudgmental
• Clinically grounded
• Outcome and ROI focused

signals

• text: An employer or payer issues a substance use or behavioral health benefits RFP.
• text: Benefits leaders review rising behavioral health claims or seek vendor contracts with outcomes guarantees.

pricing

motion

channels

• SEO
• webinars
• research
• benefits partnerships

confidence

Founders

• name: Yusuf Sherwani
  title: Founder/CEO
  role: CEO
  bio: Co-founder and CEO at Pelago. Medical Doctor.
• name: Sarim Siddiqui
  title: Founder/Chief Medical Officer
  role: Founder
  bio: Co-founder Pelago Health MD