Gradient Health’s Marketing Evolution: Working with UK Agency Evoline to Scale

Sometimes the best marketing decision is admitting you’re bad at marketing.

“I have to be honest with you, man, I’m really bad at marketing,” Joshua Miller confessed in a recent Category Visionaries episode. “I am a scientist and an engineer at heart.” For the founder of Gradient Health, this self-awareness led to what he calls “dollar for dollar, the best money I’ve ever spent in my life” – partnering with UK marketing agency Evoline.

The decision wasn’t just about delegating a weak spot. Healthcare demands a particular kind of polish that technical founders often struggle to deliver. “Especially in the world of medicine, you do need to come across as very polished,” Joshua explains. “It’s a formal industry in a lot of ways.”

The partnership with Evoline, particularly with James Hansel, quickly evolved beyond typical agency-client dynamics. “The guy who is our main contact there is ex air force and so he kind of whips us all into line from a PR perspective,” Joshua shares. “He’s kind of not afraid to tell us when we’re goofing up.”

This direct feedback proved invaluable. As Joshua notes, “I almost think of him as a Co-Founder. That’s how close we are to this marketing firm and how impactful he has been and his wife, it’s a two person firm, have been on our success.”

The impact has been dramatic. Today, Fortune 500 companies directly reach out to Gradient Health, accounting for nearly 50% of their leads. Their recently launched self-service platform gained 130 users in just 30 days – remarkable traction for a healthcare startup.

For technical founders, Joshua’s experience highlights a crucial truth: recognizing and addressing your weaknesses often yields better results than trying to master everything. “I think that’s an important part of being a Founder,” he reflects, “recognizing what you’re bad at and being willing to admit that, and then being willing to either delegate or outsource that.”

This approach proves particularly valuable in healthcare, where credibility and professionalism can matter as much as technical capability. While Gradient Health excels at making medical imaging data accessible for AI development, translating that expertise into compelling marketing messages required outside help.

The decision to work with a small, focused agency rather than a larger firm has also proved strategic. The two-person team at Evoline provides the personalized attention and industry understanding that larger agencies might struggle to deliver.

For founders considering similar partnerships, Josh’s experience suggests looking beyond traditional agency metrics. The right marketing partner should understand your industry’s formality requirements, challenge your assumptions, and ultimately feel like an extension of your founding team.

After all, as Joshua’s experience shows, sometimes the best way to scale your marketing is to admit you shouldn’t be doing it yourself.