#FutureReadyHealthcare
How hybrid approaches to reaching HCPs with F2F and digital deliver more impact to brands
02 Oct 2023
Hybrid approaches to reach HCP's that combine face-to-face interactions with digital campaigns deliver more impact to brands. To better understand the priorities, motivations, and challenges that industry leaders are facing and the factors that are driving adoption of hybrid and omnichannel models, Indegene conducted the Biopharmaceutical Hybrid Go-To-Market Trends Survey that captured insights from 100 marketing, sales, and commercial industry leaders.
In the rapidly evolving pharmaceutical landscape, the importance of hybrid approaches in engaging healthcare professionals (HCPs) has surged to the forefront. As HCPs navigate between digital and traditional modes of interaction, the industry is recognizing the need to blend in-person and virtual channels to create more flexible, efficient, and personalized communication strategies. This hybrid model ensures that the diverse preferences and schedules of HCPs are accommodated, enhancing accessibility to crucial medical information and updates. By integrating digital tools such as webinars, virtual conferences, and digital platforms with traditional face-to-face meetings, pharmaceutical companies can maintain continuous and effective engagement with HCPs. This approach not only broadens the reach but also deepens the impact of their messages, facilitating better healthcare outcomes. As such, adopting hybrid strategies is becoming a critical component for pharmaceutical companies aiming to stay connected with the medical community in this digital age.
We found that an overwhelming majority of industry leaders are prioritizing launch success and revenue, but improving customer experience was also at the top of the list. When considering their commercialization strategy, not surprisingly, leaders are focused on addressing the current market challenges including improving access to HCPs and optimizing changing HCP preferences.
But leaders also shared that adopting a hybrid model brings challenges around data integrity and attribution. Knowing how to coordinate a complex channel approach and measure success is a sticking point for leaders. So, what can leaders do to work toward a more successful omnichannel hybrid strategy?
At the Indegene Digital Summit, industry experts Alana Darden Powell (Sumitomo Pharma America), Enis Otuk (Viatris), and Markus Hinderberger (Cx MODELS) further delved into this topic and discussed the key priorities and the challenges leaders face when adopting the hybrid model.
The key highlights of their conversation are summarized below.
Understand the needs of HCPs and patients
Designing a launch strategy requires a deep understanding of your audience so that you can effectively target your messaging. Laying the groundwork and making a foundational investment is key for driving coverage.
Considering the role of the field force and the power of in-person interaction, as well as understanding how to leverage use your reps as a channel is an essential part of a larger hybrid omnichannel strategy.
By creating a technology-driven hybrid strategy, companies have the opportunity to use data-driven insights to ensure that they are designed for customer journeys that deliver the right content at the right time on the right channel. Meeting HCPs’ needs ensures a better customer experience, increased HCP engagement, and higher conversion rates.
If our customers are changing, it means we have to change as well.
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– Nancy Phelan
Define omnichannel and hybrid inside your organization
Based on the Hybrid Go-To-Market Report, definitions of omnichannel and hybrid vary significantly, but deploy an effective strategy, it is key that all stakeholders are on the same page. Omnichannel Activation has the potential to be far more effective than a multichannel strategy given the potential to coordinate and integrate all the digital touch points across a customer journey.
Tailoring your model based on insights from customer preferences and behaviors is what really defines an omnichannel model.
Lorem
– Enis Otuk
Across the industry, 91% of leaders consider the field rep to be a channel in a hybrid omnichannel strategy. But the way that reps are deployed as a channel alongside digital channels varies across the industry. One important step to drive success with a hybrid strategy is to be sure that everyone in the organization understands the definitions and goals. Simplify language and terms where possible so that everyone is clear and aligned when it comes time to operationalize.
Marketing leaders and your sales leaders need to be working hand in hand underneath one omnichannel strategy.
Lorem
– Markus Hinderberger
Measure goals and outcomes for your hybrid strategy
44% of industry leaders cited demonstrating ROI and attribution as one of their top three challenges in adopting a hybrid omnichannel model. In an omnichannel strategy with coordinated channels, it is important to understand how each channel is deployed and how channel success can be measured.
Everything should begin with asking the right questions. Start with the why and use that to inform where you go.
Lorem
– Enis Otuk
But it is also important to balance the need for attribution with the reality that building out a data-driven strategy informed by real-time insights from customers requires flexibility. Deploying an effective hybrid strategy requires insights and planning. One size does not fit all. And in the planning, change management is key.
You need time to orchestrate everything. It is not going to be overnight. It takes time to get it built in the right way and once you lay that foundation, you have got the opportunity to scale from here.
Lorem
– Alana Darden Powell
Having an attribution model and the technology you need to measure ROI is essential, but even with those tools, it is important to keep your expectations in check and your goals in mind.
Be flexible and focus on a digital-first strategy that is anchored in data and analytics.
Lorem
– Markus Hinderberger
Conclusion
At the end of the day, a successful omnichannel hybrid strategy built on a foundation of cutting-edge technology and expertise that interprets insights and tie customers’ preferences and behaviors to outcomes is the model of the future. Framing the conversation around the 5 Cs—customer, channel, content, cadence, and coordination, we can create a hybrid strategy that addresses current industry challenges and drives success.