BLOG
Storytelling in healthcare marketing is a tool that allows you to tell a story using sensory language presented in a way that enables listeners to internalise it, understand it and create their own meaning. Your customers do not buy your product or service. They buy the emotion you make them feel.
Most of the decisions people make are not based on logic. The hippocampus, the logical part of the brain, is only 2% of the brain. So, if we want to change people's behavior, their logic is the weakest tool. To change behavior, pharmaceutical brands have to tap into emotions.
The pharmaceutical industry is economically and socially critical. However, it constantly faces multiple challenges that question the sustainability of several companies. Even before the pandemic, launching a new brand was far from straightforward. A successful launch must overcome a series of barriers, including supply chain, intensifying competition, increasing pricing pressure, increasing market entry barriers, and rising expectations among caregivers and patients.
A first-class customer service experience has as goal to ‘delight’ customers by anticipating the unexpressed wishes of their guests. Customer data is used to shape a personalized experience, and an innovation database stores ideas to share across properties
The pandemic put patients at the center of every conversation, catalyzed innovation. Over the last two years, collaboration across life sciences and with stakeholders has been unprecedented, with everyone mobilizing in the interest of patients.
In the pharmaceutical industry, as in many others, the COVID-19 pandemic has suddenly forced companies to operate differently. Ways had to be found to make fast decisions, even though it was sometimes difficult to convene all those in the organization that would usually be part of the process
In technological terms, the future is already here. But in many provider organizations, the plan for working in that future is still on the drawing board. Organizations have the opportunity to fuse talent and technology or to have them “join forces” instead of burdening or competing with one another. To do so they need to intentionally coordinate human and technological resources from the outset.
Did you know that Big Pharma are investing a lot of money, resources, time, and human effort to improve their interactions with customers? This is because they realised that were sitting on an enormously valuable asset: the data they produce, record, and purchase. Nevertheless, this amazing heritage has always remained unused, reducing the capacity of value creation in the pharmaceutical industry. Suddenly, over the last 2 years, Biopharma companies have invested enormously in advance analytics and machine learning to organise internal and external data and information, to improve the customer’s interactions, increase services and drive incremental sales. This is one of the greatest process of change management that the pharma industry has ever seen: we are not talking about innovation, but rather change management, and as with every single process of change, the biggest threat to this process is resistance to change from people that don’t want to drive the future. You are probably wondering which roles are reluctant to change? Surely, people that don’t want to get tired and challenge the status quo, because change is super tiring and requires us to rethink what we have done in the past; it means breaking your routine and experimenting with something new; it means imagining processes and governance differently. In a nutshell, it’s complicated! Generally, Sales Reps and commercial Leaders think that sales model, that has worked for decades, can continue endless, using the same way of approaching, the same channel and content, not thinking that technology can be a valuable tool to help the in improving their performance in an increasingly competitive market. From my perspective there are 5 different, but equally important actions, that biopharma companies can take to implement change management, overcome resistance in their Teams, develop a digital culture basing on the evidence of the data: 1) Cocreate the change with the Teams 2) Reinforce the accountability of the people 3) Get the buy-in of first line Managers 4) Drive the best data quality culture 5) Address cultural barriers COCREATE THE CHANGE WITH THE TEAMS: Too often, next-generation experiments are projected in some hidden corner of headquarters and then rolled out to a few regions. Especially, when offices are not part of the experiment, this approach generates suspicion from the start to all the people that can take part of the change. For instance, when you want to provide a machine learning tool to sales reps, they generally begin believing that headquarters does not think that they know how to do their jobs or that Big Brother is watching. Firstly, Field teams must be engaged from the very beginning to prevent this from happening. Reps and field managers need to be actively involved in cocreating the experiments in a way that makes the most of their years of experience. It neds to create Ambassadors and super Users who can discuss and prevent any kind of various questions, accurately positioning advanced analytics and machine learning as useful tools for the field team, so that the sales organization can prepare the ground for a fertile experiment. REINFORCE THE ACCOUNTABILITY OF THE PEOPLE: the biggest fear is that new technology will make people more controlled and driven by an engine than they already are. As it is, many companies are beginning to use tools that can suggest which doctors to visit and how often, and they drill their reps on the precise messages to convey besides recommend the weighted channel mix. So, in order to overcome the threat to be perceived as an imposition, new technology needs to be presented as a tool that cuts through the noise and aids decision making—not a tool that dictates what to do next, because people decided what to do next. People are accountable of their destiny, they will decide the next best action, using the best tool to take the best decision. GET THE BUY-IN OF FIRST LINE MANAGERS: Regardless of what top senior management espouses, the perspective of the first-line leaders—their advocacy for a new idea, their coaching of the reps on how to use it to drive sales performance, and their steadfast enforcement of accountability—determines whether the people will ultimately adopt the change or not. So, it’s key to find out if the first-line managers want to adopt the technology and whether they’re able to instruct others on how to use it. If first-line leaders don’t embrace the new technology, it may not be adopted by enough sales reps to be successful. DRIVE THE BEST DATA QUALITY CULTURE: Data quality is an essential condition of data based on factors such as accuracy, completeness, consistency, reliability and whether it's up to date. Measuring data quality levels can help organizations identify data errors that need to be resolved and assess whether the data in their IT systems is fit to serve its intended purpose. The attention on data quality in enterprise systems has increased as data processing has become more complex linked with business operations and organizations increasingly use data analytics to help drive business decisions. Data quality management is a core component of the overall data management process, and data quality improvement efforts are often closely tied to data governance programs that aim to ensure data is formatted and used consistently throughout an organization. Don't forget garbage in, garbage out! ADDRESS CULTURAL BARRIERS: Inevitably, challenges that are deeply embedded in a company's culture can get in the way of implementing change management and next-generation experiments. For example, a culture with an intense focus on reach-and-frequency tactics may encounter resistance to systems that ask for more creativity in driving the business. Alternatively, if there’s an underlying distrust of senior management, it can manifest itself as resistance to a next-generation program. In such situations, the people involved in driving the next-generation model may just see friction, not the underlying issue. From my perspective, test and learn is the best way to address cultural barriers. In the next years, Pharma companies must find out different ways to make the next best action in order to be more appealing in a fast changing complex environment. Biopharma must achieve the levels of next-generation selling capability that are propelling other industries are relentlessly looking for. Recently, I have launched a poll to find out which is the primarily action that Pharma Companies should take to implement change management and develop an innovative culture (you can find the outcomes in the exhibit below), with interesting results. Thus, from your perspective, which is your answer? Please, let me know!
According to Bloomberg, the biggest vaccination campaign in history is underway. More than 2.71 billion doses have been administered across 180 countries, according to data collected by Bloomberg. The latest rate was roughly 41.7 million doses a day. In the U.S.A. 319 million doses have been given so far. In the last week, an average of 1.05 million doses per day were administered. Enough doses have now been administered to fully vaccinate 17.7% of the global population—but the distribution has been lopsided. Countries and regions with the highest incomes are getting vaccinated more than 30 times faster than those with the lowest incomes. In the U.S., the latest vaccination rate is 1,048,167 doses per day, on average. At this pace, it will take another 5 months to cover 75% of the population. Israel was first to show that vaccinations were having a nationwide effect. The country has led the world in vaccinations, and by February more than 84% of people ages 70 and older had received two doses. Severe covid cases and deaths declined rapidly. A separate analysis in the U.K. showed similar results. It’s now a life-and-death contest between vaccine and virus. New strains threaten renewed outbreaks. In the early stages of a campaign, the effect of vaccinations are often outweighed by other factors of transmissibility: virus mutations, seasonality, effectiveness of mask use and social distancing. In time, higher vaccination rates should limit the Covid-19 burden around the world. FOCUS ON EUROPE According to the latest IQVIA analysis, a summary of the situation of the G5 is as follows: - ITALY : Italy changed its vaccination guidelines to prioritize the elderly; Initially Italy prioritized vaccinating health workers followed by nursing home staff, over 80s and people with serious conditions but since Mar 2021, the govt. is prioritizing elderly people over other groups. - GERMANY : Germany’s vaccine rollout is at slow pace compare to other countries, but they aim to hasten it with flexibility. Highest priority group (80+ age group & health workers) has been vaccinated in most German states; vaccination is ongoing onto second group (70+ age group, people with serious illnesses and primary school teachers). - SPAIN : Spain’s vaccination strategy has progressed to the mass vaccination phase. The Spanish govt. prioritized vaccinating people based on health condition, essential and high exposure job roles and age, in late March and early April most regions finished vaccinating their 80+ age group and are now proceeding with those in 70s. - FRANCE : France ramps up its vaccine rollout; currently vaccinating all aged 55+. In the first vaccination phase elderly people and staff in nursing homes, healthcare workers, firefighters, home helpers aged 50+ and 75+ were vaccinated. Anyone over the age 55 is now eligible for vaccination, however few professions are prioritized. - UK : UK is one of the world’s front runners in terms of vaccine coverage. E veryone over the age of 50 and high-risk categories population received their first vaccine dose before April 15, 2021. Currently the govt. has vaccinated people below the age of 50. OVERVIEW OF COVID-19 AND ITS IMPACT ON SALES ACROSS US AND G5 Basically, across countries, Covid-19 has negatively impacted pharma sales evolution, but positive signals are coming from the overall promotional volume and F2F interactions improved compared to 2020. Going through a deep analysis country by country, we can see that: - Italy Italian hospital market showed a YTD decline of ~21% compared to 2020; Within top 5 classes alimentary tract & metabolism was worse affected, while F2F detailing still holds major share of the market; Overall promotion has improved significantly compared to 2020 but still lower than 2019. - Germany German hospital market showed a decline of ~16% in February 2021 compared to the same month last year, while Postal mailing and E-mail holds major share of promotional volume; F2F interactions show growth compared to 2020. - Spain Spanish hospital market showed a YTD decline of ~12% compared to the same period last year; Growth in antineoplastic & immunomodulating agents but concerning F2F interactions share has started to improve compared to 2020. - French French hospital market showed YTD decline compared to 2020 whereas antiparasitic, insecticides & repellents category showed growth since Jan’21, while F2F interactions has started gaining more share in Promotional volume - UK UK hospital market has shown a YTD decline of ~9% compared to the same period last year; Musculo-skeletal category showed growth in 2021 and the overall promotion shows growth compared to 2020; Email & Postal Mailing holds major share of promotional volume. NEXT PUBLIC HEALTH CHALLENGE TO DEFEAT THE PANDEMIC Healthcare around the world is at a crossroads, with financial pressures undermining the sustainability of health systems. As highlighted by the European Steering Group on Sustainable Healthcare, a sustainable healthcare requires a shift from treatment of established disease to disease prevention and early diagnosis, and it relies on the need to engage citizens to take greater responsibility for their health in order to establish a more participatory healthcare model, instead of a paternalistic one. From my personal perspective, countries, in order to improve their position to defeat the pandemic, should implement 4 different drivers: 1) Expand Telemedicine , reimbursing it at the same rate as in person; permit telemedicine for first time visit, expand approved technologies and audio only visits. 2) Improving Access to Medicine , permitting early refills, expanded Rx size and remove prior authorization; permit home drug deliveries and network of pharmacies, expanded patient assistance programs 3) Expand system capacity , permitting licensed physicians in good standing to work across state borders, allow states to mobilize inactive physicians into workforce, value domestic production for drugs and supplies 4) Improve Access to healthcare , reopening of healthcare exchanges in many states, improve and ease access and care, covered costs of all COVID-19 testing and treatments To conclude, furthermore, we could identify meaningful areas of acceleration that can boost the recovery post-COVID-19; for instance and from my personal point of view: investments in the newer technologies for vaccines, remote site monitoring & activation, novel trial design, digital patient engagement and accelerated Real World Evidence.
Because of the unprecedented nature and scale of the outbreak, physicians needs and behaviors changed compared to the pre-crisis period. There's no doubt that, since March of the last year the vast majority of HCPs realized the pandemic was about to change their way of working and interacting with patients and pharma companies, at least for a while. Nowadays, Sales Reps working from home has become the norm for those that can, stay-at-home orders are gradually coming down and, eventually, mask mandates have started appearing. They have had to reinvent their jobs, adapting interactions and activities with new situations. Many of them, are thinking: “In September we will go to back to normal”, nevertheless, few of us know that “normal” is to have the restrictions, constraints and rules embedded in our daily activities. “Covid rules” will be with us for good . The New Normal is Normal; let’s analyse it. One year on, for the healthcare industry much has changed, and some of those alterations may be permanent: channel interactions mix, new contact channels, contents, projects such as “home drug delivery”, telemedicine etc. On the other hand, hospital staff have faced unprecedented levels of stress and burnout, most primary care providers have largely recovered from the pandemic financially, but are increasingly frustrated with a lack of access to coronavirus vaccines to give to their patients, many of whom report worsening chronic medical conditions. According to leading analysts such as McKinsey and IQVIA, patient remote engagement has increased greatly month by month, now having promoters who were detractors in the past; the same is happening with HCP engagement, with less difference country by country, so let us look at these in order. HCPs ENGAGEMENT THROUGH G5 (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and UK) Face-to- face interactions with pharma Sales Rep fell by 75% vs. pre-crisis levels, and many physicians expect to not see reps regularly again in the following months. As I mentioned previously, we cannot suppose to return to the previous situation: this is the new way of working and lasts for a while, and then it changes back again. To respond to the lack of contacts, pharma companies have totally reinvented the way they reach out to customers, fostering remote engagement, which has increased by >2x compared to pre-crisis levels, and yet physicians report a poorer remote experience vs. in-person, stating a lack of personal exchange and technical challenges as the most common drivers for dissatisfaction Physician feedback points to the great chance to improve engagement in three main areas: 1) Content & Services : only few offerings impress physicians in terms of quality, with some disproportionately under-performing such as scientific collaboration and peer experience sharing 2) Channel mix : many physicians report a mismatch between preferred channel mix and actual channel mix with a significant difference between countries 3) Execution : “Listening” and “Relating” are perceived to be the most important skills of reps and seem to be even more important in remote engagements Concerning the attitude of the physicians in the G5, the UK followed by Spain and Italy report the strongest shift from in-person to remote patient consultations, while Germany and France remain closer to pre-pandemic practice activity. Looking at primary and secondary care; on average there are a higher share of remote interactions in primary care (~70%) versus secondary care (40-50%), while overall in volume of interactions within the industry, only 15% of them are currently in-person (vs. 58% pre-crisis). Considering the future, we need to keep in mind some pain points that companies could face, as the fact that few physicians are accepting regular visits from pharma representatives now compared to September 2020 –likely driven by the second COVID-19 wave that emerged in Q4-2020, or up to 20% of physicians may no longer be reachable F2F, and around 50% expect at least another 4-6 months before receiving a sales rep in person. Adoption of most remote channels for pharma engagement continued to increase across most channels and countries, and following this aspect many pharmaceutical companies have started to invest in customer engagement innovation, especially in high quality content which may contribute to stronger remote engagement. Nevertheless, remote interactions typically frustrate HCPs owing to the absence of personal interactions, the dedicated time required for it (vs. patient consultations) and the technical issues. Therefore, the New Sales Rep will have to have new skills and competencies to ensure successful interactions (relating and listening above all), to be able to keep high HCP engagement through different channels in different situations, but mostly in a fast-changing competitive environments. PATIENTS ENGAGEMENT AND CONSULTATION IN G5 While the total volume of physician-patient interactions is pretty much the same to pre-crisis levels and stable since September, almost 50% of consultations are now remote (vs. 15% pre-crisis); generally, physicians declare that they have adjusted their prescribing habits: around 40-60% of them have adjusted their prescribing habits during the last year (exception: France where only 22% of physicians report such prescribing changes). For those adjusting treatments, the main changes include: - Self-administered treatments are preferred - Treatments that require less monitoring of the patient are preferred Covid-19 issues are impacting on patients that are struggling most with obtaining access to care and especially to isolation, while physicians detect a lack of education and peer exchange opportunities. Furthermore, HCPs (Oncologists) complain that the ability to take care of cancer patients is being negatively impacted and 60% of them said that diagnosis issues and treatment delays adversely affected cancer patient care in pandemic times. Unfortunately, these are the main reasons why cancer patients are more affected by the outbreak: - cancellation/delays in getting a doctor’s appointment - Patients experiencing logistical challenge because of the new way of working - Patients experiencing financial hardship KEY TAKE-AWAYS Many of the changes made in pharma environments will be permanent , especially for HCPs engagement and patients’ way of treatment Remote interactions are and will be protagonists in the coming months , but sometimes they are seen as frustrating by HCPs; so to have successful interactions, Companies’ Representatives will have to relate and listen to the HCPs in the best way The big pain point is the delay of the diseases diagnoses due to the Covid impact on the patient’s management, who are not able anymore to reach out the HCPs to be visited as once What do you think about that? Let me know your feedback!