Effective Healthcare Marketing Strategies for Driving Pharma Sales

Healthcare marketing is a strategic process of promoting healthcare products such as pharmaceutical products (drugs, vaccines, medications, antibiotics, chronic disease medications), medical devices, diagnostics and testing kits, and medical supplies to various stakeholders such as Healthcare Professionals (HCPs), over-the-counter stores, hospitals, caregivers, and patients.

However, pharmaceutical companies' major target audience for prescription drugs comprises healthcare professionals. Marketing products to these professionals can be challenging for various reasons. Some physicians operate their own clinics, while a few others work across multiple clinics or hospitals, making it difficult for life sciences companies to identify key decision makers.

In this article:

• 1. Challenges in Pharmaceutical Sales.
• 2. Segmenting physicians based on their specialties, prescribing behaviors, and practice settings.
• 3. Strategies for Physician Engagement
• 4. FAQs
• 5. Takeaway

According to a study, pharmaceutical companies usually spend at least 20% of their budget on marketing, and 84% of these efforts are directed toward physicians. This is because, according to manufacturers, physicians are the key decision-makers in drug sales.

Understanding the unique needs of HCPs is key to developing a successful marketing strategy. For example, a cardiologist may prioritize information and products related to new cardiac treatments, while a dermatologist is more interested in skin care products or techniques. By gathering feedback from current HCPs and staying informed about market trends, MSLs (Medical Science Liaisons) can tailor their marketing efforts to resonate with each speciality's unique preferences and priorities.

Also, physicians may have different prescribing characteristics based on their expertise, patient demographics, and medical preferences. Some pharmacists prefer to prescribe branded medicines, while others prefer generics. By analyzing prescribing behavior data, healthcare marketers can identify patterns and trends, allowing them to better strategize their marketing efforts and target physicians who are most likely to prescribe their products.

Also, physicians practising in different settings, such as hospitals, clinics, or private practices, may have varying needs and priorities. For example, physicians working in a hospital setting may prioritize access to advanced medical technologies and treatments, while those in private practice may focus more on patient satisfaction and practice efficiency.

Engaging HCPs requires a multifaceted approach that goes beyond traditional marketing strategies. A data-driven approach is critical to enabling personalized marketing with healthcare professionals (HCPs). By understanding HCP preferences and behaviors through data analytics, pharmaceutical companies can fine-tune their communication, making it more relevant and effective. konectar, an AI-powered HCP Management Platform, offers advanced capabilities for segmenting physicians based on their professional engagements, prescribing behaviors, location, and other relevant factors. This allows healthcare marketers to identify relevant HCPs and create marketing campaigns that drive meaningful outcomes.

Providing educational materials such as physician education videos, infographics, articles, tips, access to research articles etc., can greatly help in engaging medical professionals and make them stay loyal to the brand. Also offering patient education materials in either digital or print format that they can distribute to patients can help establish pharma brands as a trusted resource for HCPs. This builds trust and credibility, making HCPs more receptive to marketing efforts.

Using tablets, smart apps and showing recent information with good design infographics during the face-to-face meeting can also help highlight the pharms brand’s professionalism and generate physicians in the product.

Sharing real-world evidence extracted from Real-World Data (RWD) regarding the product’s usage and its potential benefits or risks of a medical product can pique interest of the healthcare professionals. Sales teams also need to highlight how a product or service benefits patients to better engage with HCPs. This approach also helps build trust and position the company as a valuable partner in patient care.

Apart from these, engaging medical professionals in various activities such as medical conferences and webinars and inviting them as speakers can go a long way in building mutual relationships.