We are excited to conclude our series on the Four Pillars of Next-Best-Action Success! So far, we have explored Omnichannel Integration, Patient-First Data and Message Delivery, and Robust Audience Intelligence. For the fourth and final part, Digital and Offline Coordination, we dive into how your digital and offline channels can best work together to engage healthcare providers (HCP) and their patients most efficiently.
To truly elevate your brand marketing success, it's crucial not only to deliver the right message on the most suitable channel but also to help your channels and content work together to anticipate and meet physician (and patient) needs.
HCP Marketing Through Digital Channel Messages
Digital channels offer a dynamic platform for delivering clinically relevant messages to HCPs and tailoring information to match their specific needs and interests at various points in their day. With multiple digital channels available – including digital display, social media, streaming and broadcast, and the EHR – it’s critical to know when and where they reach physicians.
These contextual channels have changed the game when it comes to reaching HCPs, adapting to their busy schedules and catered to their varied engagement levels. Through Electronic Health Records (EHR) integration and targeted digital display advertising, HCPs receive pertinent information seamlessly, without interrupting the clinical workflow. They receive relevant brand information, with minimal disruption, while they are immersed in chart review, research endeavors, or are knee-deep in patient care – which increases the actionability of your HCP marketing.
Conversely, during their downtime such as breaks or evenings, social media platforms and streaming services become effective channels for reaching HCPs - providing educational content, updates, and engagement opportunities outside of professional settings that raise top-of-funnel awareness and build audience familiarity and perception of your brand. In a 2023 survey, we found over 80% of physicians are active members of HCP-only social networks. These platforms offer continuous exposure to brand messaging, optimizing communication strategies to effectively connect with HCPs in diverse contexts.
HCP Marketing Through Offline Engagement
Offline channels, notably sales reps and Medical Science Liaisons (MSLs), are also critical for brand relationship building and communications, but may struggle to prioritize which physicians to focus on – leading to reduced efficiency.
However, analyzing insights from digital channels and utilizing predicted patient flow data can significantly aid sales reps in identifying and engaging with the physicians most interested (or in need) of support. This data-driven approach streamlines communication making it easier for physicians to reach out for assistance while fostering stronger relationships between HCPs and industry reps.
And physicians do want these relationships: in the same 2023 physician survey, we found more than half of HCPs that lack the capability to connect with reps or MSLs within EHRs express a strong desire for this, but nearly 85% of HCPs who do have the capability to reach out to sales reps or MSLs through EHRs find it highly beneficial.
Why Omnichannel Coordination and Integration Matters in Pharma Marketing
Next-best-action pharma marketing aims to predict and serve HCPs and patients with the content they need, at (or before) the moment they look for it. While channel reach is important, true immersion in your brand occurs through seamless channel integration.
Digital and offline channel coordination not only creates more consistent, targeted opportunities for HCP engagement, but cultivates a more relevant exchange of information that bolsters clinical decision-making and patient care outcomes. As a result, it increases the overall efficiency of your brand marketing – and improves the return on your marketing investments.