On the Radar Screen

From the Session: How to Do Digital Differently: The “3D”-Script for Pharma Marketing

Presenter: David Blair, Head of Industry – Health, Google

David Blair, Head of Industry – Health, Google

To inspire patients as they move through the care cycle of detection, diagnosis, treatment, and recovery, you have to first discover how to effectively engage with patients when it matters most. That means designing customer experiences that align content and media to build real relationships and deliver consistently superb experiences.

In many ways, commanding the consumer’s attention begins with intelligent use of smart phone technology. “It’s the technology consumers use — which makes you discoverable,” says David Blair, Head of Industry- Health, Google.

A view for every screen and a screen for every view.

Putting it bluntly, Blair emphasizes that smartphone technology is changing almost all industries, including healthcare. “Every single minute, four times more android devices are activated worldwide than there are babies born. People go online through their smartphone — not a laptop or computer.”

A second element in the chase to win consumer approval is about creating a remarkable digital experience, which expands its reach beyond the smartphone to include tablets, laptops, and desktops. “There’s a sea of sameness out there — particularly in our industry — so we have to deliver breakthrough creative,” Blair adds.  “We have to develop content that’s truly remarkable and deliver the right solution for each device.”

Every single minute, four times more android devices are activated worldwide than there are babies born.”

If your creativity falls flat, all the consumer has to do it ignore your online presence. Easy! However, if you can catch their attention, engagement is achieved. Success! “Customs, patients, physicians…they expect solutions where they want them, when they want them, and how they want them,” Blair says. 

Finally, Blair stresses that pharma marketers need to lean harder on data to optimize their digital spend and reimagine their business. “There’s so much capability and opportunity to quickly get a read on what’s working, what’s not working, and when it’s time to make mid-course corrections.”

Doing digital differently gives you a competitive advantage and the ability to reach consumers more effectively and efficiently, Blair says. “This is how patients and consumers expect to engage with you.”

Summing up a forward-thinking approach to digital transformation, Blair quotes Alfred North Whitehead, a British mathematician and American philosopher:“Civilization advances by extending the number of important operations which we can perform without thinking about them.”