Benefits of DXPs for marketing and communication in pharmaceutical companies

Every pharmaceutical company faces one critical question: How can we reach HCPs (healthcare professionals) in the most effective and engaging way? At NoA Ignite, we strongly believe that a DXP is the answer to this question. In the time of COVID-19 and digitisation, the vast majority of communication between pharma companies and physicians happen online. It is absolutely necessary to ensure impeccable digital experiences, and this is exactly what a DXP can offer. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

DXPs pave the way for an HCP-centric approach

First of all, the best way to get hold of doctors and get their attention is to put them (not your medicine or brand) in the centre of the communication process. At the moment, many HCPs’ offices are going through a major transition. Every healthcare professional now uses a computer and a smartphone on a daily basis. Physicians understand the importance of modern digital solutions in their work. Sometimes they even prescribe not just medicines, but also apps that can help patients with their diseases and ailments.

According to a study by Transcend Insights in 2017, a majority of patients (64%) say that they use a digital device (including mobile apps) to manage their health. 71% believe it would be helpful for their doctor to have access to this information as part of their medical history[1].

It’s up to every pharma company to keep up with this transition. And doing so requires a new way of thinking about physicians and their needs. Today, you need a comprehensive approach that

1. puts the doctor in the centre, and
2. makes the most of digital channels.

This is why we talk about an HCP-centric approach. By making use of available digital tools and channels, pharmaceutical companies can create and nurture meaningful interactions with physicians (and patients through them) and provide them with a new kind of user experience.

Such a shift doesn’t happen overnight, of course. To make this form of communication possible, you need to tick at least four crucial boxes:

• A comprehensive understanding of HCPs’ needs
• Intelligent analytics to measure diverse marketing channels and HCPs’ responses
• A set of digital tools that will aid sales representatives in their everyday work
• Personalised content marketing and explicit messages to improve communication

In other words, you need an effective digital engagement strategy. And this is where DXPs up your game.

Master digital experiences in the pharma industry with a DXP

A DXP provides a comprehensive set of digital products that exchange data through an application programming interface (API) layer, with an architecture designed for further extensions. In other words, with a DXP you can manage and control all your content, digital assets, communication channels, and other marketing and sales-related features in one intuitive dashboard. It’s an online solution, typically accessible online via your internet browser. This allows you to keep everything sales- and marketing-related in one digital ecosystem.

A DXP enables you to master digital experiences in pharma:

• Enhance the quality and efficiency of your marketing and sales efforts
• Keep a consistent user experience across all channels and touchpoints
• Scale and manage your entire marketing and IT infrastructure
• Collect and analyse customer data
• Integrate all your tools and features within one software solution

From a business perspective, DXPs are user-focused (or, in our case, HCP-focused) solutions that help organisations to make effective use of:

• Digital touchpoints (including mobile, web, AR, IoT and more)
• Digital products (CMS, e-commerce, intranet)
• Customer data analysis

How DXPs transform marketing and communication in pharma

There are several significant benefits we would like to talk about. In general, a DXP streamlines and accelerates every campaign, every effort and message. But let’s be more specific:

Easier access to doctors

A DXP allows you to reach HCPs across various online channels. You can also track the efficiency of each channel, so that you can focus on the most successful ones. In other words, you can discover which channels work and then make the most of them.

More conversions

Every decent DXP comes with extended analytics features that allow you to thoroughly evaluate relevant information about HCPs, their behaviour, and their responses. With such insights, you can create more compelling and accurate messages tailored specifically to the HCPs you want to reach, which directly leads to more conversions.

All in one

You have one intuitive and versatile place to manage your whole IT and marketing ecosystem. This feature is especially important in the pharmaceutical industry, because it allows you to keep full compliance.

Everything you write, publish, and send probably has to be verified and accepted by several departments in your company. As a DXP keeps everything in one place, every department can access these resources. This means that the acceptance process is streamlined and shortened. As a result, everyone involved in the process has constant access to approved materials so that they can be used efficiently.

Rapid development

Let’s be honest here. Pharma is not exactly known as the most innovative industry. This is partly due to restrictions and a complicated approval process. Still, many pharma companies today make an effort to be more innovative and use a digital environment. Pharmaceutical leaders like Pfizer and Mercy Health already use DXPs to enhance their communication[2]. Using DXPs will no doubt be an industry-wide standard in the near future. And every time you want to implement or test a new solution, application, strategy, or simply conduct an RTM (real-time marketing) campaign, you can do so quickly and cost-effectively with a DXP.

Master omnichannel

Thanks to DXPs, you can reach HCPs across all your channels, including content marketing, mobile marketing, IoT, and social media. One of the main benefits is that it can be integrated with tons of apps, features, plugins, and extensions. Every digital experience platform is a living thing that grows and transforms according to your current needs.

Crisp, personalised communication

There’s no need to limit yourself to just 2-3 channels or marketing techniques. You can harness contextual marketing and cross-border communication possibilities to present specific target audiences with a carefully crafted, crisp message. You can divide your target audience into particular segments and offer them a compelling, personalised message. It’s one of your keys to success. Like any other target audience, physicians expect tailor-made communication that takes their needs and expectations into account. And DXPs allow you to offer them exactly that.

As you have guessed by now, we’re huge fans of DXPs here at NoA Ignite. They are our primary working tools. Recently we even wrote a comprehensive guide that gives you an overview of the full scope of possibilities that these platforms offer. You can check out the guide here: DXP – a must-have in every modern company.

A customised experience in the pharmaceutical world

It doesn’t really matter whether you talk to an HPC or a patient. The key to success is always the same: be sure to understand your audience’s needs and their customer journey. The customer journey is a broad term that comprises such elements as:

1. The purchasing process, from the very first encounter with your brand to placing an order
2. All the touchpoints, i.e., moments and channels when and where your brand interacts directly with the customer
3. Communication adjusted to specific stages of this journey

When your message is tailored to your target audience and their customer journey (at every stage), you win their attention. And that’s why DXPs are so useful! They provide the tools to truly interact with your customers during their journey. They allow you to analyse the user at each stage and to serve relevant and timely information, so that the entire user experience match their needs. This is what we call a customised experience. It’s critical when it comes to HCPs and patients alike.

If you think that a DXP would come in handy in your company – drop us a line! We offer a free, non-committal consultation, during which we will show you how a DXP can help you with your daily assignments.

[1] https://www.mobihealthnews.com/content/survey-64-percent-patients-use-digital-device-manage-health

[2] https://itbrief.co.nz/story/adobe-makes-its-mark-on-digital-healthcare-innovation