A new commercial paradigm of advanced analytic decision-making is emerging from the changing market dynamics in the MedTech industry; the expansion of procedures performed in Ambulatory Surgery Centers (ASCs), the increasing power of Value Analysis Committees (VACs), and the greater acceptance of digital tools. Advanced analytic decision-making means using analytics and artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) to support intelligent customer engagement (e.g., to assess targeting and engagement strategies, promotional mix, resource allocation, and execution).

To succeed within this paradigm, MedTech organizations must embrace customer engagement strategies that are adaptive, omnichannel, diverse, connected, and hyper-personalized.

The new commercial paradigm for success

The goal of omnichannel engagement is to ensure that customers get the information they need, when and where they’re looking for it.

• Adaptive allocation: Monitoring local market and territory needs for flexible resource allocation across personal and non-personal channels.
• Omnichannel engagement: Ensuring sales, marketing, and medical channels interact seamlessly to drive enhanced engagement with customers.
• Diverse, differentiated field roles: Developing a suite of customer-facing roles tailored to the specific portfolio and product dynamics.
• Connected, convenient customer data: Ensuring customer and commercial data is optimally captured and managed for an easily accessible 360o customer view.
• Hyper-personalized experience: Developing tailored healthcare organization (HCO), healthcare provider (HCP), and patient engagement strategies at an individual level across channel, content, and cadence.

The first challenge to solve is getting connected customer data via internal CRM management and complementing that data to create a holistic portrait of the customer.

Only then can you build a clear and customer-centric omnichannel engagement strategy: the integration of sales and marketing through field and digital channels, or personal and non-personal engagement.

Every omnichannel strategy will be unique to the MedTech organization using it. It must be:

• Long-term
• Specific to the company’s stakeholders and use cases
• Adapted to the region, local market, and product type
• Personalized based on the customers and customer segments
• Data- and analytics-driven

Why does omnichannel engagement matter?

Omnichannel engagement is all about a seamless integration between sales and marketing; a combination of field and digital channels.

There’s a lot of interest in, and engagement with, the topic in the MedTech industry right now — but organizations often don’t know where to start. Omnichannel strategies can vary in complexity. It’s crucial to begin with a ‘bite-sized’ plan that the organization can execute, measure, and scale.

This graphic lays out some of the core elements of an intelligent, omnichannel customer engagement strategy.

But an omnichannel strategy cannot be designed in isolation. When MedTech organizations reevaluate their other commercial strategies, such as field force engagement, they should consider all of that to be part of a broader omnichannel engagement strategy.

Especially in MedTech, the sales force will remain critical in this new commercial paradigm. Some IQVIA research has shown that, on average, it's expected that two-thirds of all channel interactions in the space will remain people based.

Other key elements of an omnichannel strategy fall under the umbrella of digital marketing and enablement. We know that 65% of U.S. HCPs spend 4+ hours per day online. It is now possible and impactful to tie together tools and engagement channels based on the analysis of HCPs’ or patients’ digital behavior.

For example, understanding a HCP’s digital journey helps marketing identify leads to determine best ad placements. Then, based on the digital engagement with those ads, and customer researching activity, marketing can sync with sales organizations determine next best action and quickly generate and act upon new leads. Access to opt-in emails along with trigger emails to sales representatives and customers based on digital behavior insights can expedite and raise the quality of customer engagements. Sales can be alerted and take action based on the recommendations for that specific HCP.

This exciting capability exists today, allowing MedTech companies to be more targeted and responsive, leveraging data and technology to truly meet people where they are. ‘Meeting the customer with the right message, at the right time, via the right channel’ is a cliché because it rings true.

The journey of data-driven customer engagement

The possibilities laid out above are, can sometimes feel easier said than done. But there are many “bite-sized” elements that can augment an organization’s current customer engagement efforts, no matter where it is in its journey.

Walk

Start by systematically collecting customer data, using the information to profile and segment customers, making field force deployment decisions based on that input, and then merging sales and marketing closer together.

Run

Next, look at HCPs’ or patients’ digital journeys to understand where they get their content, which channels and sites they visit, what content they are searching for, and where the organization needs to meet them with its content to make the greatest impact.

Fly

The ultimate goal is to drive hyper-personalized HCP engagement using a powerful suggestion engine that removes the complexity from identification of high value HCPs and how to best engage them. IQVIA Next Best transforms decision making by embedding intelligence throughout the commercial engagement processes. Designed for easy end-user adoption, it surfaces suggestions, recommendations, and predictions within workflow technologies, driving efficiency, intelligence, and optimization to deliver the right content at the right time and via the most effective channel.

Take the first step on the omnichannel journey

Wherever you are on your omnichannel journey, it’s of the utmost importance to access, collect, maintain, and analyze your customer data. IQVIA MedTech can help with data collection and processes, as well as designing and executing an omnichannel strategy that’s tailor-made for your organization.