How to Connect with the Correct Healthcare Influencers

Healthcare Influencers
Healthcare Influencers
5 MIN READ

Healthcare influencers are leaders in their field with reach across the marketplace that includes patient care and medicine. Often, healthcare influencers have extensive clinical experience and engage in cutting-edge research, making them deeply knowledgeable in their area of practice. The credibility these medical professionals exhibit in their fields leads other healthcare professionals to recognize and respect the opinions of these key healthcare influencers. 

By identifying and engaging healthcare influencers, pharmaceutical companies can reach networks of medical professionals and increase awareness of their new and existing patient treatment options, including data on efficacy, safety, tolerability and – in some cases – outcomes. This article discusses how pharmaceutical companies can connect with the right healthcare influencers.

The first step in connecting with the correct healthcare influencers is to understand who the most appropriate healthcare influencers are for your product at each stage of your brand’s journey. There are a number of ways companies can identify top healthcare influencers in their field of interest. These include identifying influencers who are regularly published or conducting clinical trials in specific disease areas. Other indicators of influence include institutional leadership, leadership in healthcare provider networks and peer nomination. It is also beneficial to assess an expert’s sphere of influence, which can often be categorized as global, national, regional or local.

Understand the Healthcare Influencer’s Network

Understanding a healthcare influencer’s network and reach is crucial before engaging with them in your brand journey. With the rapid adoption of technology, many healthcare influencers are now participating on social media platforms to spread their knowledge and network with like-minded individuals. Pharmaceutical companies can leverage platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube to gain valuable insights into the activities and reach of specific individuals. Evaluating a healthcare influencer’s online presence can provide essential information about their professional network, affiliations, and areas of interest.

Connect with a Diverse Range of Healthcare Influencers

Healthcare influencers, also known as Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs), can have varying reach within the healthcare community. Pharmaceutical companies often make the mistake of identifying and engaging only the top 50 to 100 healthcare influencers within a therapeutic area. Typically, these influencers are KOLs at a national or global level. 

Global and national healthcare influencers may be well suited for the early stages of a brand’s journey, when the scientific story is being developed and validated, however, regional and local KOLs are often critical in driving awareness and adoption during the pre-launch and launch phases to ensure a treatment’s data and message reaches the point-of-care. It is important to bridge this “Information-To-Impact Gap” between global/national KOLs and regional/local KOLs since they usually have more impact on clinicians and healthcare provider networks where the majority of patient treatment occurs.

How to Engage With Healthcare Influencers

There are many important ways to develop a winning strategy focused on engaging with healthcare influencers. These include using mapping techniques to identify influencers in specific disease states, using market research to find the best influencers at the right time, providing insightful education about treatments and benefits for patient care across a variety of platforms, and focusing on identifying physician networks with specific attention on “High Writers,” prescribers with high prescription volume.

The Importance of High Writers

Some healthcare providers treat an unusually high volume of patients in a specific disease area, making them a valuable target for pharmaceutical companies to reach. However, “High Writers” are often very busy and difficult to reach. Companies should identify “High Writers” and utilize KOL mapping to identify the healthcare influencers most likely to impact prescribing habits. Well-crafted peer-to-peer programs, in-person and digital messaging can be utilized to share relevant data and information with “High Writers” from KOLs they particularly respect.

Utilize Technology To Identify and Connect

Finally, pharma companies can leverage technology solutions to optimize their strategy and selection of healthcare leaders. MDOutlook offers best-in-class products that can help pharmaceutical companies research, identify, communicate and engage with healthcare influencers. 

Using technology to identify and connect can optimize the success of your business and product within the healthcare influencer sphere. Lumineer®  is the ideal platform to thoroughly map, understand and engage healthcare influencers at the global, national, regional, and local levels. Activeer® is a best-in-class peer-to-peer program for healthcare influencers to bridge the Information-to-Impact gap. 

Conclusion

Effectively engaging with healthcare influencers is vital for the success of any life sciences brand. A thorough approach that identifies and connects globally, nationally, regionally and locally can help a brand achieve its full potential rather than simply engaging high-level KOLs and relying on “gravity” to disseminate data and messaging to the point-of-care. Game-changing success hinges on a brand’s ability to successfully channel the influence stream from KOLs to the point-of-care. 

Contact us for a free demo of how MDOutlook can help you develop a game-changing strategy for connecting with healthcare influencers.

Pharmaceutical Market Research Tips

Pharmaceutical Market Research
Pharmaceutical Market Research
5 MIN READ

Companies conduct pharmaceutical market research to understand how investigational and marketed products treat or may be utilized to treat specific diseases. Companies gather this information from a wide variety of sources and interpret it, assessing the market success of treatments within a particular disease state. Pharmaceutical market research helps pharma companies then make evidence-based choices, increasing their own treatment’s likelihood of success.

Leveraging observations from the current landscape instead of reacting to perceived market demands can save companies valuable time and money. These learnings can help optimize a company’s internal decision-making by predicting a treatment’s commercial performance, thereby informing product strategy. Therefore, companies should conduct in-depth pharmaceutical market research before expending resources on a specific treatment. 

Pharmaceutical Market Research Tips

1. Define Your Goal

The first step to conducting pharmaceutical market research is having a clear goal. Pharma companies should zero in on what they want to understand about the market. Identifying this goal may require research into a specific therapeutic area, geographic location, or institution. It may also require companies to understand unmet needs at a patient level. In refining the company’s market research goals, they will likely need to answer the following questions:

  • What is the therapeutic area of interest?
  • Are there treatments for this condition?
  • If there are existing treatments, how efficacious are they?
  • Are there safety concerns? Can patients tolerate such therapies?
  • After answering these questions, the next step is determining a baseline metric that would provide sufficient information to yield the desired result. For example, a company may conclude that 50 percent of doctors will use treatment “X” for a specific cancer type, giving them the confidence to move forward.

2. Eliminate Bias

Companies may have preconceived notions about the current commercial landscape before engaging in pharmaceutical market research. In addition, the clinicians and patients from which companies collect data may also have personal biases on such topics from their own anecdotal experience. Therefore, when conducting market research, it is essential to eliminate these potential biases to obtain the most accurate data possible. To prevent bias, companies should diversify market research participants.

Companies should select experts equipped to inform on critical aspects of drug development, such as unmet needs, trial designs, and clinical outcomes of interest. Therefore, it is crucial to pick Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) also known as ThoughtLeaders (TLs) who are field experts. To further minimize bias, companies should also conduct research from a diverse pool of KOLs and clinicians. Experts may differ with regards to their geographic region, patient demographics, and clinical practice. A diverse data set will capture information on different types of patients and disease presentations, including factors such as co-morbidities, socioeconomic status, and disease prevalence. These factors can all impact development and market success.

3. Be Intentional With Research Questions

When conducting pharmaceutical market research, every research question should serve a purpose, and questionnaires should maintain a proper flow. For example, companies can structure their research questionnaires to start with “warm-up” questions, which are questions that acclimate the expert to the topic of interest. Subsequent queries can delve deeper into the research topics. Research questions should be neutral in nature to eliminate bias further. To gather honest data from participants, they should not sway the reader in one direction or the other. 

4. Utilize a Pulse Technique

A pulse technique utilizes a shorter questionnaire that garners continuous (iterative) market research, allowing companies to gather rich insights rapidly. Companies can conduct rapid iterative research that allows them to add or fine-tune questions yielding rich and reliable insights in days not weeks with a pulse product such as DocPulse. This technique provides more rapid pharmaceutical market research insights that can help pharma companies course-correct while maintaining intimacy with KOLs.  

MDOutlook

To create high-quality development and commercial strategies, pharma companies should partner with experts in pharmaceutical market research. MDOutlook integrates expertise in the field of market research with an existing widespread network of KOLs, providing the fuel for efficient and fruitful market research. With platforms such as Lumineer®, DOCpulse®, or Orienteer®, pharma companies can adopt a more streamlined approach to market research and ensure market success.

Conclusion

Ways to optimize pharmaceutical market research include goal setting, eliminating bias, formulating purposeful questions, and utilizing pulse techniques. MDOutlook is a proven research partner that leverages these techniques, amongst many others, to increase the likelihood of a product’s commercial success. For more information on how MDOutlook can assist in market research needs, contact us!

Pharmaceutical KPIs for HCP Engagement

Pharmaceutical KPIs
Pharmaceutical KPIs
6 MIN READ

By understanding how market dynamics are affecting pharmaceutical KPIs, brands can tweak sales strategies to maximize engagement from healthcare providers (HCPs), thereby improving adoption rates, treatment share, and overall profitability.

Pharmaceutical key performance indicators, or pharmaceutical KPIs, are quantifiable measurements of performance that help companies understand how their treatments are performing in the market. 

Importantly, they also reveal information about how the brand is being perceived by HCPs, who impact treatment formularies and prescription volumes. In this article, we discuss how access to precise data creates a more transparent sales funnel, enabling brands to more accurately measure the efficacy of their HCP engagement strategies.

Top Pharmaceutical KPIs for HCP Engagement

Through granular analyses about the factors driving prescription volume, treatment share, HCP sentiment and return on investment (ROI), companies are able to make more informed decisions to execute on their pharmaceutical KPIs.

Here are the top pharma KPIs that many brands utilize to improve sales and patient outcomes: 

Prescription Volume

By measuring prescription volume, pharma brands are able to identify the geographies, HCPs and types of institutions that are writing prescriptions for a particular treatment. 

Companies may find that their treatment is performing better or worse in some geographies, institutions or HCP networks. KPI data can provide clarity on the disparities and likely causes of the disparities. For example, one geography might have a higher disease prevalence, resulting in more diagnosis and more overall treatment volume in a specific disease area. Another area might be impacted by high or low rates of insurance coverage for a specific treatment, while another may reflect a brand’s cultivation of high writers, or HCPs known for writing a large amount of prescriptions. 

By continuously measuring pharmaceutical KPIs, brands will be able to understand how their treatment is performing and make rapid strategic decisions about messaging, targeting, KOL engagement and other interventions needed to reach sales goals. 

Treatment Share

By analyzing treatment share, brands are able to understand how their treatment is performing against the competition in a particular disease area. 

With this pharmaceutical KPI, companies are able to measure how much share a treatment has in a designated market. When breaking this down by prescriber, geography, institution and treatment formularies, companies can gauge where they are hitting roadblocks and where they’re excelling.

Treatment share can also provide valuable information about saturation so that companies can pivot their efforts where greater ROI impact can be achieved.

Net Promoter Score

One of the most effective ways of measuring pharmaceutical KPIs is to survey HCPs about treatment and brand sentiment. Net promoter score is an insightful measurement of how likely HCPs are to recommend a brand or treatment to other HCPs and to their patients.

By surveying HCPs directly, companies obtain direct insight from prescription writers about why their treatment is or is not being recommended. This type of clarity helps brands identify potential blockers. In some cases, for example, companies may find that insurance won’t cover a treatment for a percentage of patients with, say, pre-existing conditions. Some HCPs might prefer a rival treatment, while others simply won’t prescribe a treatment based on a patient’s existing medications. In other cases, the HCPs might have a negative perception of  treatment caused by a few bad patient experiences (EG – patients suffered side effects) or other HCPs have impacted their opinion about a treatment (EG – other HCPs utilize the treatment second line rather than first line). And one more example, HCPs may simply not be aware of the latest efficacy, safety and tolerability data of a treatment.  

Return on Investment (ROI)

In order to evaluate the overall success of pharmaceutical KPIs and the net impact of sales efforts on profitability, companies can measure ROI by geography, institution, payer, network and individual HCP. Through this breakdown, life sciences sales teams gain transparency into the highest-value areas of investment so they know where to focus and pivot.

By using ROI as a pharmaceutical KPI, companies can begin to see which marketing, sales efforts and HCP engagement strategies are driving the most profitable results.

Tips to Implement a KPI Tracking Program

Given the importance of pharmaceutical KPIs on HCP engagement, it’s imperative that pharma brands implement a KPI tracking program. In order to do this, first establish a baseline on which you’ll be able to compare future performance. Second, begin using tools that collect and analyze applicable metrics, such as MDOutlook’s Orienteer platform. It’s important to round these efforts off with action, in that data yields actionable recommendations, and review outcomes to improve ROI and market share.

MDOutlook’s Orienteer Delivers Valuable Insights on Pharmaceutical KPIs

When evaluating pharmaceutical KPIs for HCP engagement, companies will find a robust resource in MDOutlook’s Orienteer business intelligence platform.

Orienteer taps MDOutlook’s community of more than 500,000 clinicians and deep market intelligence to provide companies with survey results and market insights that support rapid decision-making. In fact, Orienteer reports are 50% faster than more traditional Awareness Trial and Usage (ATU) studies.

Through comprehensive insights about market dynamics and competition, Orienteer enhances HCP engagement strategies and helps brands drive ROI and profitability. How can Orienteer help your team execute on pharmaceutical KPIs? Contact us today to schedule a free demo.  

Top 5 HCP Engagement Strategies

HCP Engagement Strategies

Healthcare providers (HCPs) are critical to promoting the distribution and utilization of new pharmaceutical treatments. Therefore, pharmaceutical companies must collaborate with HCP leaders when bringing their products to market. It’s important to create and implement successful HCP engagement strategies in order to ensure product success across all stages of the brand journey.

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How to Choose the Best HCP Engagement Platform

How to Choose the Best HCP Engagement Platform

Healthcare providers, or HCPs, are vital to ensuring the success of a treatment launch. A robust HCP engagement platform can help companies find the right HCPs at the right time to serve as brand advocates. By using a quality business intelligence platform, pharma companies can design and execute effective HCP engagement strategies that boost profitability and improve outcomes for patients.

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What is HCP Engagement?

What is HCP Engagement?

What is HCP engagement and how can it help your business through the various stages of a treatment’s lifecycle? In this article, we will discuss how Healthcare Providers (HCPs) can be identified, engaged and even enrolled as advocates to help pharmaceutical companies implement effective marketing strategies.

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Clinical Education Alliance (CEA) Acquires MDOutlook

Clinical Education Alliance (CEA) Acquires MDoutlook

Clinical Education Alliance (CEA) Acquires MDOutlook to Expand Its Precision Intelligence Engagement Solutions for Healthcare Professionals

The acquisition widens CEA’s reach into market research, providing targeted actionable insights to and for healthcare professionals thought leaders, and industry.

Reston, Virginia – July 29, 2021 – Clinical Education Alliance (CEA) today announced its acquisition of MDOutlook. This internationally recognized market research organization delivers high‐value, actionable, precision intelligence for the healthcare industry, powered by meaningful engagement of healthcare thought leaders.

CEA is a growing alliance of continuing professional development, independent medical education, and sponsored education brands focused on improving patient care through the delivery of clinically relevant, evidence-based education to healthcare professionals.

By combining CEA’s engaged worldwide network of more than 2 million healthcare professionals with MDOutlook’s data‐driven value solutions and precision engagement, the Alliance will gain deeper insights into healthcare professionals’ educational needs.

“MDOutlook is excited to provide a strategic role within the CEA,” said Jan Heybroek, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of MDOutlook. “The therapeutic alignment and expanded network, resources, and mission make CEA a perfect organizational fit for MDOutlook.”

“Combining our extensive healthcare professional network with MDOutlook’s understandings of healthcare professionals’ behaviors, challenges, and needs will further enhance CEA’s mission and capabilities,” said Dan Cox, Chief Executive Officer of CEA.

Advisors
Moses and Singer acted as legal counsel for the seller and Jones Day served as legal counsel for CEA.

About Clinical Education Alliance

CEA is the global leader in the development of innovative enduring, virtual, and live education. CEA provides medical and healthcare education and information for the entire healthcare team with the goal of improving patient outcomes. CEA has pioneered the creation of healthcare education and decision support resources for healthcare professionals both in the United States and worldwide for more than 2 decades. For more information, visit ClinicalEducationAlliance.com.

Contact:

Tradd Sanderson
Director of Marketing
Clinical Education Alliance
Telephone: +1.855.224.2241
[email protected]