We just finished talking to over 200 hundred HCPs about pharma marketing and salespeople to measure any differences since before the pandemic. Attitudes are indeed changing, but one need remains clear: access to data obtained during clinical and ongoing trials.
We’ve all heard that digital is the way to reach HCPs, and we found out that’s still mostly true, but not all digital tactics are created equal. Once again, we found out that Medscape is the top medical website for most HCPs and is visited at least once a day. When asked about other sites, the majority said “they don’t have time” or “they trust Medscape to give them the information they need.”
However, the digital landscape changed when HCPs went online to search for specific information. In these cases, HCPs were more likely to go to different sites either bookmarked or via search results. To them, it was all about “getting the information I need quickly.”
We heard more negative comments than positive ones from sales reps, even in Oncology. However, it seems that medical liaisons provide a lot of the value supplied they have some type of medical background and can talk to them peer to peer. They want more access to medical liaisons, including talking with them via video chats and email. This was especially true with new drugs that have a significant competitive market.
Trust in pharma did not decline, but they don’t want to be told about the data via charts; they want the ability to read the data for themselves and talk to other HCPs about the data and drug.
Their biggest complaint is insurance companies’ preapprovals. They see this as an insurance company coming between them and their patients. They also want to understand better why some drugs require more co-pay if the data shows better patient outcomes.
Pharma websites are a resource, but they don’t provide what they need and want to prescribe the drug. The most likely reason to visit a pharma website for HCPs is to download the product label.
The feedback suggests that pharma has significant opportunities to get closer to HCPs via more transparency about drug trials and data. Will they transform their HCP marketing or stick to dated models?