In this blog series, Aktana is sharing some of the lessons learned and best practices developed through our experience serving clients in China. If you missed them, be sure to read Part 1 and Part 2.
Lesson #5: Make strategic use of downtime.
Given the shifts in how and where commercial teams are working, field-based and internal marketing professionals likely have time to focus on some strategic goals: Catch up on account reviews. Conduct deeper data analysis. Consider the customer journey—and build a plan today for how prescriber interactions might look when we settle in a “new normal.” For example, specialty physicians are now seeing patients through telehealth. How might primary-care providers use this tool as well, especially with patients who have chronic conditions that require regular follow-ups and prescription refills? What information could your sales and marketing teams prepare now to help doctors identify certain patient profiles via telehealth?
Keep monitoring your customers’ challenges so you can brainstorm ideas for how you can best support them. How can you package information more effectively? How can you direct resources to them? How can you harmonize your inbound call centers with the outbound “personal touch” only sales reps can deliver? And how can you ensure that brand teams are delivering content that resonates with customers to better serve them in uncertain times?
It could be months before we can resume the usual face-to-face interactions, and no one knows which changes in the landscape will be fleeting or enduring. One safe investment: ensuring you have a platform like Aktana to guide commercial teams on how to interact with customers—including those who might still need your support with diagnoses, treatments and cost remediation programs. There should be a two-way flow of information as you provide recommendations to reps and they log activity and insights from their interactions with HCPs for brand teams. Aktana not only directs day-to-day activities but also helps in making longer-term decisions about marketing channels: which to use, when and how. After all, a global pandemic isn’t the only time for knowing how best to inform, engage and support your customers.
For additional resources and information around COVID-19, check out Part 1 and Part 2 of this series.