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In our last article we looked at the need for multi-channel excellence in the healthcare industry. We already know that many pharmaceutical executives are looking into adopting a multi-channel strategy for cost controls and as a top priority for future growth, but the need goes much deeper than that.

Today’s article builds off our previous discussion and reveals the benefits of using a multi-channel approach for your pharma sales and marketing communications, as well as tactics for implementing a multi-channel strategy today.

A Beginners Guide to Understanding Omni-channel Engagement

What is omni-channel engagement? When did it start? Why does it matter?

This week we take an introductory look into the somewhat new, but very relevant strategy of omni-channel communications to give you a well-rounded understanding of this topic.

In this 5th piece of our 5 part series, you'll find a lighthearted guide to enabling sales reps to close more deals.

In this section, we want to discuss the age-old debate about sales reps; are they born or are they made? You would think that the best sales reps are extroverts who are able to hold up a conversation with just about anyone. You might even go as far as to say that they show poise and confidence in any situation and become the focal point in any environment. However, are these the requisites for being able to successfully pitch to a client? Doesn’t being more concise, and saying less with more, ultimately win over lip-worship?

Behind the times,

Marketing and Sales have changed, in fact, they’ve evolved over the last generation. A lens of production volume and high quantity product movement is now marketing customer centricity and relationship selling. Yet, even with the huge shift from product/ion-centric to customer-centric, the flow of traffic has continued to be unidirectional.  

That is to say, Marketing is primarily focused on continually understanding the marketplace, refining a value proposition, and integrating communications to deliver that value. Sales receives MQLs generated from those communications, guides the leads through the sales process, and captures the final sale. End.

Now you see the problem… the two are operating like 18^th century firefighters, passing along buckets of water and showering it into the fire, hoping that more buckets will lead to more success. At no point does the information flow come full circle to let Marketing know about what is and isn’t working, leaving Sales to make do with what they receive. We call this a lack of sales and marketing alignment. 

Easier to find; harder to reach,

There was once a time when the only way to reach someone was by letter, phone, and in person. Today, finding someone has never been easier, you could throw their name into Google and probably get 2 social media hits, contact details, personal characteristics, job competencies, their network, and etc.

But with all the ease of access, it seems harder than ever to actually reach someone. Today’s buyer is significantly more fragmented, operating on several social media platforms, likely using multiple mobile devices with potentially several operating systems.

Oh, and did we forget to mention? They’re also more empowered as buyers!  Your trusted sales process is turned inside-out with the abundance of online information, allowing buyers to meet you for the first time yet be half way into your typical funnel. How can you manage this?

There has been a lot of buzz and activity in the pharma industry regarding mergers and acquisitions with most of the largest players.   It has been an incredibly active 2014 thus far and there seems to be more moves coming on the horizon.  Additionally, some of the largest players in the market have announced major staffing cutbacks.   This is an exciting time for pharma and a concerning one depending on what side of the fence you sit on.