8 MIN READ
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.
HCPs are the clinicians in the field executing a patient’s care plan. Likewise, HCPs are intimately involved in the patient’s treatment and care, including the prescription of treatments and monitoring their safety and efficacy.
To ensure success pharmaceutical companies should engage with HCPs to optimize the success of their treatments when they are introduced to the market. Doing so garners the trust of HCPs in the new medicine, making them more likely to prescribe the product and optimizing commercial success.
To have the most significant impact, companies should partner with HCPs that have a considerable influence in their field of medicine. Distinguished HCPs, known as Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) or Thought Leaders (TLs), can influence their peers and encourage adoption.
Laying the Groundwork for Successful HCP Engagement Strategies
Many companies utilize a patchwork of HCP engagement strategies to build relationships with KOLs in the field. By recruiting HCPs of various qualifications at strategic points throughout a product’s lifecycle, companies will maximize commercial potential.
All HCPs differ in terms of how they like to consume content and learn about new treatments. Some HCPs assume roles outside their medical practice, while others prefer to only practice medicine in their clinic or hospital. There are several ways to meet HCPs, both face-to-face in their offices or at conferences and panel engagements, and remotely through online events and other digital vehicles. By considering how each individual HCP will respond, brands will be able to target their messaging and better appeal to HCPs.
Planning for HCP interactions requires some level of research and strategy. To do this, pharmaceutical companies can utilize ThoughtLeader mapping. ThoughtLeader mapping outlines key leaders in the field, including their contributions, network and disease area and their preferred mode of communication. Rich insights about HCPs will enhance your strategy and increase the likelihood that a KOL agrees to work with your brand.
5 Proven HCP Engagement Strategies
There are several types of HCP engagement strategies. This article will discuss five of the best ways to build relationships with HCPs.
Enlist TLs To Speak Bringing a TL on board to a pharmaceutical company and engaging them to speak about a particular treatment can help build credibility and garner HCP trust. To do this, companies can hire TLs and train them internally on the treatment and its data. After internal training, TLs can speak to audiences of HCPs about the data and their own experience with a treatment. TLs can incorporate their own field experience and expertise into their data analysis and presentation.
Engage HCPs Via Digital Platforms Another HCP engagement strategy involves leveraging digital platforms to extend the messaging reach and increase messaging frequency. In today’s post-pandemic environment, virtual interactions have become the norm, allowing pharmaceutical companies to reach important stakeholders instantly around the world. In fact, 87 percent of HCPs prefer a completely virtual or a hybrid model of communication post-pandemic. Online communication channels include email, social media posting, virtual educational programs, webinars, and virtual Advisory Boards.
Maintain A Presence At Relevant Conferences To continue engaging HCPs, pharmaceutical companies should attend key conferences where TLs and clinicians are present. Since conferences create opportunities to share information, knowledge, and experiences/ they will likely be receptive to learning about data and treatment best practices. Pharmaceutical companies can present data about their treatment at these conferences, increasing awareness and providing educational content, which can be a powerful HCP engagement strategy.
Identify And Prioritize Focus On High Writers “High Writers” are clinicians who treat a high volume of patients in a particular disease state. Remarkably, the 80/20 rule often applies. In many disease states, 20% of the HCPs prescribe 80% of the treatments. However, “High Writers” are not necessarily KOLs. So, it may be important to identify and map the KOLs that most influence “High Writers.” By engaging and winning share-of-mind with “High Writers”, brands can make a more powerful impact on treatment share and total prescription volume.
MDOutlook Offers Game-Changing HCP Engagement Strategies
HCP engagement strategies are essential to ensuring the commercial success of new treatments. Life sciences leaders can efficiently adapt to market trends and engage target HCPs who can help influence market perception.
Contact us for a free demo on how MDOutlook can help you develop a game-changing HCP Engagement Strategy and help your team overdeliver on your goals.
