Healthcare professional engagement
Healthcare professionals (HCPs) rely on information in a digital format to continuously educate themselves, connect with peers and thought leaders and rapidly obtain answers to their questions. This also helps them provide better information, care, and support to their patients.
A clear and focused digital strategy leads to the optimal engagement approach, appropriately designed to meet HCP prioritization. It combines the best suited tools, platforms, and channels with the relevant content. Nearly 1 in 5 HCPs (19%) expect that asking patients to self-administer more may be a permanent change (survey conducted among 720 healthcare providers). As the relevance of content has grown, we observe stronger levels of engagement and a clear preference for high quality and actionable information. This trend applies to all companies, from start-up biotech to large global pharma as they collaborate with HCPs. It levels the playing field to some degree, as the size of the organization is not directly correlated with the quality of content. Companies providing important information in time can make a difference for patients and their HCP and thus enable better care. A September 2021 analysis focused on US MedTech companies confirmed a greater return of digital marketing investments compared to the overall marketing mix, coupled with improved success rates.
HCPs’ interests and needs come first and drive the selection of communication channels and platforms, ranging from live interactions to live online, on demand online content to downloadable tools, white papers, and self-learning bots that improve the user experience. Whatever supports HCPs in their clinical practice and adds value for patients is prioritized. Systematic data and smart analysis inform channel selection and all to optimize resources utilized, reducing complexity, and focusing on key KPIs such as cost-per-contact, click-through-rates, and conversion.