eDetailing can be effective if you follow some basic guidelines
Interesting Tweet from the latest ePharma conference that only 14-17% of physicians have used eDetailing leading to the question is eDetailing an effective strategy to reach HCP"s?
By on Nov 4, 2009Interesting Tweet from the latest ePharma conference that only 14-17% of physicians have used eDetailing leading to the question is eDetailing an effective strategy to reach HCP"s? The answer is that yes it can be but you have to follow some simple rules to ensure they are effective.
Physicians already do a lot of things that they don't get reimbursed for and with rising costs and cost controls on the way it's not going to get an easier to establish a profitable practice. eDetailing can be a cost effective way to reach physicians but to ensure success follow these guidelines:
(1) Make it available 24/7-Live detailing has its place but a RICH media or FLASH presentation can communicate your key messages to your audience. The key is to make it available when your audience wants to access it on THEIR schedule.
(2) Ensure it has value-Your HCP team has done a lot of research on the key messages they want to communicate to HCP's but is it of value to your target audience? You need to look at the key messages and test them with your KOL's and ask if physicians are interested in hearing the messages. You should also look to integrate key messages with details that provide value in other areas.
(3) Keep it short-Your detail should not be longer than 5 minutes. Break down your key messages and if necessary integrate one message per detail.
(4) Offer an incentive-At the end of the detail offer the physician a chance to request samples or contact a medical liaison or KOL.
(5) Match your target list and segment your message/detail-Target specific physicians by decile and customize each detail to your physicians speciality and prescribing behavior.
(6) Know what to say-Do you really think a physician is going to accept a detail on Viagra ? Probably not, but there is a good chance they will accept a detail for a new or existing product that has new research behind it.
(7) Go where your audience is don't force them to come to you-This means that if you may need to use the services of a web portal like Medscape.
(8) Make it Web friendly- don't just put a Power Point slide on the screen, translate the slide into a FLASH or RICH media presentation with animated graphics.
Finally don't be afraid to share your consumer marketing plans and research with your target physicians. Believe it or not it has been my experience that they like to hear your plans and get feedback on patients and what they think.