HIPAA guidelines make it nearly impossible for healthcare organizations to effectively use digital advertising platforms in the same way other industries use them. The guidelines block the use of traditional tracking technologies because those technologies automatically collect Protected Health Information (PHI). But those tracking technologies are essential for feeding data back to ad platforms like Google Ads and Meta to optimize ad performance, targeting the right audiences, and driving down costs.
As a result, healthcare providers often make the decision to advertise without ad trackers, which causes metrics like Cost-Per-Lead (CPL) to skyrocket to an unsustainable level.
Allergy Partners, the largest allergy and asthma healthcare provider in the U.S., was all too familiar with this challenge. Their marketing team, led by Jonathan Silver, VP of Marketing, was tasked with filling their clinics with patients while navigating the unique challenges of healthcare marketing.
Without the ability to share conversion data with ad platforms to optimize performance, Allergy Partners’ cost per lead (CPL) soared to $300, making their marketing unsustainable—they were spending more on leads than the leads were worth because a lead doesn’t necessarily become a patient.
Jonathan explains, “No specialty clinic can sustain itself at $300 per lead. And that’s just the cost per lead—we haven’t even talked about the actual patient acquisition cost. It's safe to assume it’s even more expensive when it comes down to the final acquisition.”
With an unsustainable CPL as high as $300, Allergy Partners knew they needed a solution that could enable optimization with HIPAA compliance.
After talking to trusted advisors, Allergy Partners quickly settled on Freshpaint’s Healthcare Privacy Platform as the solution to their problems.
Freshpaint’s platform allowed them to replace risky trackers and safely share conversion data with ads and analytics tools like Google Ads and Google Analytics, all without exposing protected health information (PHI).
“A lot of these larger companies, like Google and Meta, don't sign business associate agreements. That means if we market using their tools, we have to be completely sure we're not sharing PHI. Freshpaint helped us do that.”
The Freshpaint team worked closely with Allergy Partners to address their legal and security concerns, ensuring that the conversion data they needed to share with ad platforms was compliant with both HIPAA and the updated HHS guidelines.
This allowed Allergy Partners to reintroduce data optimization to their digital advertising campaigns with confidence.
Once Freshpaint was implemented, the results were immediate and dramatic. With the secure data conversion sharing that Freshpaint provided, Allergy Partners was able to optimize their ad campaigns, feeding conversion data back into platforms like Google Ads. As a result, they saw their cost per lead drop rapidly.
“Our cost-per-lead (CPL) went from $300 down to $50, then to $20, $18, $12, and even as low as $6,” Jonathan stated. “It kept dropping. Google Ads did a terrific job of optimizing itself because it now had data to work with. It’s now incentivized to send us the right type of traffic that actually converts.”
By securely sharing conversion data without risking PHI, Allergy Partners was able to leverage digital ads in a way they hadn’t thought possible, driving qualified leads at a fraction of their previous cost.
“Freshpaint helped us go from flying blind to optimizing everything. We finally had the data we needed to prove the value of digital advertising. It’s been a game-changer for us.”
With Freshpaint, Allergy Partners not only reduced their CPL but also rebuilt internal confidence in digital advertising. Clinic managers, previously skeptical of the value of digital marketing, now saw the direct impact it was having on their patient flow. In fact, digital advertising became a go-to solution for clinics struggling to fill their schedules.
"Now we have a quick action response. Clinics tell us they need more patients, and we pull this lever: digital ads. We'll get it up for a certain amount of cost. We can almost guarantee we'll start getting leads at a very affordable cost."
Allergy Partners has continued to expand their use of digital ads, and Freshpaint has become a critical part of their marketing infrastructure.
Freshpaint’s Healthcare Privacy Platform has transformed Allergy Partners’ digital marketing efforts. By enabling secure, compliant conversion data sharing with ad platforms like Google Ads, Allergy Partners was able to reduce their cost per lead from $300 to $12—a 96% improvement.
Not only did Freshpaint deliver immediate ROI, but it also helped rebuild internal confidence in the power of digital marketing. As Allergy Partners continues to expand, Freshpaint remains an integral part of their marketing infrastructure, driving better results while ensuring patient privacy.
