Part 1 · Competitive research — Facebook · Instagram · TikTok
Who else is buying this audience, and with what.
Pulled 2026-07-10 from the Meta Ad Library, competitor sites, pixels, and TikTok. Every claim below is backed by a capture on this page or in the research archive.
| Advertiser | ~Active Meta ads | Dominant format | People vs graphic | Dominant hook | TikTok |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MISTR (heymistr.com) | ~116 unique (~260 w/ variants) | Static cards — thirst photography + retro type; recurring giant-pill prop; monochrome royal blue | People in ~2/3 of units (models, bodies); rest type-only | “Free PrEP + DoxyPEP” on nearly every unit; “insured or no insurance — 100% free”; sex-positive wit (“6 Boyfriends, 1 Pill.”) | 7.4K followers · pixel LIVE · creator #ad history — may be ramping |
| FOLX Health | 30 | Hidden (age-gated) — brand system, bold color | Hidden behind age gate | LGBTQ+ care membership (not PrEP) | 113.6K · real paid funnel (prospecting/retargeting LPs) — aimed at non-PrEP lines |
| Q Care Plus | 23 | Video-dominant: ~15 video / 8 static | 100% people — UGC talking heads | Problem-first testimonials + privacy (“PRIVATE FROM START TO FINISH”) + conquesting (“switch providers”) | 5.2K · no pixel — can’t even measure |
| Public health & orgs (NC DHHS, Music City PrEP, Project SHAG, PP, trials) | Dozens each | Mixed; Project SHAG = 60 UGC videos | Mostly real people, community-cast | Free testing · U=U · identity-segmented (Black bi / Latino gay-bi / EN-ES) | — |
| Healthvana (today) | 8 | 100% static | People (studio models, one template) | Give-back (96% of spend) | Invisible — no pixel on StartPrEP.com |
The age-gate finding (matters more than it looks): Meta age-restricts MISTR, FOLX and Nurx — their ads are invisible to logged-out users and researchers, and restricted delivery narrows reach. Q Care Plus and every public-health advertiser run clean. The difference appears to be copy/landing framing (access-and-eligibility language vs explicit sexual-health claims). Healthvana currently runs clean — keeping the new creative framed around care, access and community protects that reach advantage.
MISTR — the ads they're actually running
Captured from MISTR's Meta Ad Library on July 10 (their ads sit behind Meta's age wall, so these were pulled from a logged-in session). The pattern across the set: a single royal blue owns everything; roughly two-thirds of units run thirst photography, the rest are witty type-only cards; the giant-pill prop recurs; and nearly every unit hammers the same offer — free PrEP + DoxyPEP, insured or uninsured, fast/free/online. Click any ad to view it full size.
What this means for Healthvana: MISTR claims “100% FREE — insurance or no insurance” in-ad, so a bare free* claim doesn't differentiate us. What they cannot say is the give-back: your sign-up gives someone else access too. Warmth + community + One-for-One is open ground their sexy/funny/blue system never touches.
MISTR's brand campaign photography (public web/social/press)
Q Care Plus — the one direct competitor we can fully see
23 active ads, roughly two-thirds video. Every unit is people-led. The videos are UGC-style talking-head testimonials with problem-first hooks (“Getting PrEP felt impossible where I live”); the statics are a loud magenta/B&W system pushing privacy and speed. They actively conquest other providers’ patients (“switch to Q Care Plus”).
The rest of the PrEP auction — public health & community advertisers
These share the auction (and raise CPMs) even though they aren’t selling telehealth: state health departments, community clinics and research programs. Note what works: real community faces, identity-specific casting and bilingual creative — and what doesn’t: institutional stock. Captures below are re-rendered from Ad Library data. Click any capture to view it full size.
TikTok: the open lane
The two direct PrEP competitors total ~12.6K followers combined. FOLX and wisp prove sexual-health telehealth converts on TikTok — wisp is literally TikTok’s own case study — but nobody owns the MSM/PrEP lane. TikTok bans prescription-drug ads, so the entire category advertises the service through creator #ad content and Spark Ads, never the medication. StartPrEP.com has no TikTok pixel today; MISTR’s site does, and their videos out-run their follower count (a boost signal). The window is open but may be closing.
Part 2 · Healthvana today (last 30 days, from the ad account)
Pulled directly from the Meta ad account on 2026-07-10. “Cyan” = a new patient sign-up, the metric that matters. Per client direction, the “Doctor in your DMs” and plain “get free PrEP” angles are shown for context only — they are out of the go-forward plan.
$48,339
Spend · 30 days
96
New patients (Cyan)
$503.53
Cost per patient
0.84%
CTR (thumb-stop is weak)
$65.60
CPM (fatigue pressure)
Everything currently live
Eight active ads — but six of them reuse the same two images. Effectively 4 unique creatives (3 concepts) carry all spend. The two Stories statics alone take 71% of budget on placements built for video.
What’s missing
1 · One message. 96% of spend on the give-back angle. The approved 7-hook library (confidence, convenience, peace of mind, modern care, support…) is not in market.
2 · One visual template. Every live unit is the same pastel-gradient studio-model system. No lifestyle, no editorial, no native formats.
3 · No testimonial/UGC live. The highest-trust format in the category — with two approved patient quotes on hand — was built (Angle 4) and never launched.
4 · Creative velocity ≈ 0. 4 creatives against $48k/month. MISTR dropped ~100 new units in a single day (Jun 18). Fatigue shows in the $65+ CPM.
5 · Cheap formats underfunded. Carousels are the only sub-$40-CPM units in the account and get 5% of spend.
6 · TikTok: invisible. No pixel on StartPrEP.com. One direct competitor can’t measure TikTok either — the other may be ramping it right now.
Part 3 · The creative & advertising strategy
The full strategy lives with the account team; this is the operating summary. It extends — not replaces — the media plan already approved on the July update page ($5K/day allocation, equal-cell testing, graduation gates, $200 north star).
| Move | What we do | Why (from the research) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 · Video into Stories first | Replace the two static Stories slots with 9:16 motion graphics + lifestyle video now, creator UGC next. | 71% of spend is static in video-first placements; the winning DTC format is UGC talking-head video (Q Care Plus). |
| 2 · Four new angles into the test lane | Campaigns A–D below run in equal cells (~$833/day each), judged on downstream Cyan per the approved protocol. | 96% of spend on one message; the approved hook library is unused inventory. |
| 3 · A look competitors can’t copy | Warm cream, film-grain photography, hand-drawn details, the give-back story. No dark navy, no teal/blue backgrounds, no clinical clichés. | MISTR wins on volume, Q Care on privacy-fear; nobody owns warm + community + free*. The give-back is structurally unmatchable. |
| 4 · Keep the reach advantage | Frame all creative around care, access, community — never explicit claims. | MISTR/FOLX/Nurx are age-gated by Meta; Healthvana currently is not. That’s free reach — protect it. |
| 5 · Carousels into cold | The new testimonial carousels move beyond remarketing at ~10% of budget. | $33–40 CPMs vs $56–81 on singles — cheapest attention in the account. |
| 6 · Monthly refresh cadence | 3–5 hooks × 3 formats ship every month; kill/iterate per protocol. | Fatigue is already visible; the leader refreshes in batches of 100. |
| 7 · TikTok: measure now, pilot next | Install the TikTok pixel this month (free). Then a $50–100/day Spark Ads pilot with 2–3 creators from the vetted list (Dr. Carlton Thomas and BoyaBADDIE are warm intros). | The MSM/PrEP lane is unowned; wisp proves the playbook; MISTR shows ramp signals. Service-led creative only — TikTok bans Rx ads. |
| 8 · Identity-segmented wave next | Black MSM / Latino MSM / Spanish-language creative variants (photography already cast for it). | Project SHAG and NC DHHS prove segmentation works; no DTC brand does it — open lane. |
The measured path: $503 per patient today → $475 graduation gate (already approved) → ≤$300 by month six → the $200 north star. Every move above is a lever on that curve; scale follows the $5K → $7.5K → $10K/day gates already on the plan.
Part 4 · Sourced photography (licensing candidates)
Brief: men, diverse (weighted to Black and Latino MSM), clear and uncluttered, professional but not corporate, no rainbow clichés — and every frame carries negative space for type or an easily isolated subject. All 40 are Alamy, royalty-free, model-released; previews below are watermarked comps (we license on selection). Click any image for its Alamy page.
Studio · color-backdrop portraits (10)
Individual portraits (6)
Lifestyle (10)
Stocksy picks
Watermarked previews — licensed on selection ($85–$135/image). Several are built to have the background leveraged or the subject isolated, and any use passes the same measured legibility standard as the produced creative.
Pexels additions (10) — free commercial license
Sourced via the agency's new Pexels API access (added 2026-07-10). Pexels License allows free commercial use with no attribution and no per-image fee — the fastest path if any of these fit. Curated from 24 pulls down to 10 on the same brief.
Part 5 · Updates to the July creative — APPROVED July 10
Social asset package (approved set): both give-back hero treatments, the testimonial carousels, and the shortened versions — statics + motion, named by placement, with a posting guide and approved captions.
Download ZIP (21 MB)
Your three notes, applied.
Changes to the set on /july-update: new give-back copy on #1, #2 removed, and the testimonials rebuilt as carousels + shortened versions (additions, not replacements).
Note 1 Give-back hero — new copy in, two treatments
Now reads: “When an insured person signs up for Healthvana’s free* telehealth for PrEP, that helps someone without insurance get access to free* PrEP care too.” with “One for One to help your community”. Treatment A keeps GET PrEP. GIVE BACK. as the headline; Treatment B leads with ONE FOR ONE. Full disclaimer on every asset.
Note 2 “Your free* PrEP is waiting” — skipped. Removed from the go-forward set per your direction. The assets stay archived if you ever want them back.
Note 3 Testimonials — carousel versions + shortened versions
The longer quote now breaks across a swipeable carousel (each card carries the disclaimer), closing on a branded card with the new One-for-One line. Below them: the shortened single-image versions using only the line that stands out. The original full-quote cards remain available on /july-update.
Quote 1 · “I used to think PrEP wasn’t an option…” · 4-card carousel
Quote 2 · “Losing my job…” · 3-card carousel
Shortened versions — the standout lines
Part 6 · New campaigns — produced & ready for review
Four new campaigns. One unmistakably Healthvana look.
Built on the research: photography-led where the market is template-led, warm where competitors shout, every headline from the client-approved hook library. Editorial film-grain photography, cream grounds, the full logo palette as accents only (no teal/blue backgrounds), Fraunces italic emphasis with hand-drawn underlines, staggered type, sticker-style claim chips — designed, not generated-looking. Every asset: logo, approved copy, free* + full disclaimer, StartPrEP.com.
About the people in these ads: Wave-2 photography is AI-generated to editorial standards for this review round (the account already runs AI imagery). The plan swaps in licensed photography (Part 4) and creator UGC as campaigns graduate — the layouts are built to take either.
Campaign A · Sexual Confidence · coral
“Show up more confident.” V2 · Updated for you
Revised per page feedback: large left-stacked type, gradient pulled off his face. Stories pieces approved.
+ Your note & what we changed
You asked (Use more of the space along the left of the image. There is a lot of empty space along the left. Use it. You’re covering his face with text and a box): “Jul 10”
You asked (Can you reduce the gradient on his face? Maybe shift the gradient fade to the left?): “Jul 10”
You asked (On the Feed 4:5: move the logo and copy down a bit and lift “Get started StartPrEP.com” up so nothing gets cut off when it runs on Instagram.): “Jul 11”
What we changed: On the Feed 4:5 we added breathing room at the top and bottom — the logo and headline now sit lower and the Get Started button sits higher, so nothing crops in the Instagram feed. (Earlier: opened up the left space and cleared the cream fade off his face.)
Ad body copy that runs with these (fine-print lives here, per client): Show up more confident. PrEP, taken as prescribed, is 99% effective against HIV — and for most patients, private at-home PrEP care through Healthvana is completely free.* Get started → StartPrEP.com · *PrEP Care (testing, visits & medication) is free for most patients — insured or uninsured. Medication is prescribed at the healthcare provider’s discretion. See full eligibility details at www.StartPrEP.com
Campaign B · Convenience · blue
“PrEP care, from your couch.” V2 · Updated for you
Revised per your Jul 11 note: the man now has his legs in frame — he’s shown full-body, relaxed on the couch — and we added top/bottom IG safe-zone so nothing crops when it runs.
+ Your note & what we changed
You asked (I love the look of this but the person doesn’t have legs. Can legs be added? lol): “Jul 11”
You asked (The man on the couch needs legs and then I would approve of those. Ensure there is enough space at the top and bottom so nothing is cut off when these ads run.): “Jul 11”
What we changed: Added his legs — he’s now shown full-body, reclined on the couch with his legs and feet in frame; his face, smile, sweater, phone and pose are unchanged. We also added top and bottom breathing room so nothing crops when it runs on Instagram. Applied across the Feed 4:5, Square 1:1, and Motion versions.
Ad body copy that runs with these (fine-print lives here, per client): PrEP care, from your couch. Fill out a short online form, test at home, and your care is delivered. For most patients it’s completely free.* Check eligibility → StartPrEP.com · *PrEP Care (testing, visits & medication) is free for most patients — insured or uninsured. Medication is prescribed at the healthcare provider’s discretion. See full eligibility details at www.StartPrEP.com
Campaign C · Peace of Mind · purple
“One less thing to worry about.” V2 · Updated for you
Revised per page feedback: “worry” oversized with “about.” beneath it, “less” accented and underlined. Stories pieces approved.
+ Your note & what we changed
You asked (make worry much larger and put about beneath worry. make less and accent word with an underline as well): “Jul 10”
What we changed: Made “worry” the oversized focal word with “about.” tucked directly beneath it, and kept “less” as the underlined purple accent. Applied across the Feed, Square, and Motion versions.
Ad body copy that runs with these (fine-print lives here, per client): One less thing to worry about. PrEP, taken as prescribed, is 99% effective against HIV — and for most patients, PrEP care through Healthvana is completely free.* Learn more → StartPrEP.com · *PrEP Care (testing, visits & medication) is free for most patients — insured or uninsured. Medication is prescribed at the healthcare provider’s discretion. See full eligibility details at www.StartPrEP.com
What happens next: You review this page and mark what you like. We license the selected photography (sensitive-use cleared), load the approved campaigns into the test lane per the media plan, install the TikTok pixel, and open creator outreach from the vetted list. Nothing launches and nothing is spent without your explicit go.
*PrEP Care (testing, visits & medication) is free for most patients — insured or uninsured. Medication is prescribed at the healthcare provider’s discretion. See full eligibility details at www.StartPrEP.com · Prepared by The Gaygency · 2026-07-10 · Research archive: Meta Ad Library captures, account API pull, TikTok audit, image catalog — on file.