“Let’s Talk Healthcare Marketing to Physicians”

• Physicians are very busy and only have a few minutes
• Create an elevator speech that busy doctors can remember
• Learning events are still important
• Take advantage of conferences for sponsorships and advertising opportunities
• Personal relationships do matter
• Get to know opinion leaders and be active in peer-to-peer experiences

“How to Market to Overloaded Physicians”

• Construct a viral message
• Make it easy for the doctor to make the referral
• Navigation
• Make sure the doctor has all the contact information necessary a
• Word of Mouth is important
• Again, get to know opinion leaders and experts
• Create word-of-mouth messages

"Conservative’ pharmaceutical industry slow to take advantage of online marketing opportunities”

• Customers are using the web extensively to meet information needs
• Use the internet to target physicians for referrals and to gain new patients
• Social Media and network sites
• Engage customers online
• Understand the needs of physicians
• Example: websites geared towards physicians should be more clinical in content and appearance
• Patients used the internet to gain medical knowledge

“Internet vs. sales Reps: Which Do Docs Prefer?”

• 47 percent of doctors feel that e-promotion is the same as face-to-face detailing
• Werispan defines ePromotion as video details, online events, and virtual details

“Web Watch”

• Now must medial schools actually require that students have hand-held PDA’s or smart phones in the classroom
• Just about every physician in the country claims to use the Internet in their practice
• 83 percent of doctors say the Internet is essential to running their practice
• Over 90% of physicians use google to search for health and pharma information
• Three out of four physicians now participate in online CME programs
• More than half of the doctors in the country are participating in social networks like Sermo and Medscape’s Physician Connect
• Target Nurse Practitioners

“MinuteClinic ‘handy thing to have’ in area”

• Consumer research studies showed that people are really time strapped and this (MinuteClinic) will allow them to manage health care needs on their own schedule
• MinuteClinic is not considered to be a replacement for primary care
• MinuteClinic will make a referral for doctors if patients come in and do not have a primary care physician

“Virtual On-Line (VOVs) Support Physician/Patient Interactions”

• Efficiency of physician emails to patients, also referred to as on-line consultations and e-consultations.
• RelayHealth is a highlighted website for US doctors to offer online consultations
• 31 percent of family doctors are offering online consultation
• On note is the fact that all electronic transactions are stored and retrievable, generating what is refereed to as an interactive medical record

*It is important to note laws prohibiting physicians from make referrals to family or otherwise could provide financial gain. Article names are bolded with highlights bulleted.

Suggestions Based on Research

• Use the internet to target physicians and possible new patients
• Social networks
• Online consultations

• Get to know opinion leaders in the industry
• Word of mouth is a important, have a viral message and elevator speech
• Reputation is also important when using word of mouth

• Doctors do not have a lot of time. Make it easy for doctors to refer another doctor

• The internet and smart phones are becoming more and more important to doctors and their practices use these as marketing tools