Nowadays this isn’t a problem. Most sales reps are now kitted out with internet enabled smartphones or tablet PCs, which means that they can go online anywhere. Taking down this barrier has meant that those people who were initially hesitant can now see the benefits of an online system; it requires no installation or synchronisation and data can be viewed and updated in real-time.

But as we all know, there are times when it is impossible to get online, so it’s vital that reps are still able to access important information about their customers even when they are not connected. You can do this by creating a fully functional, replicated system that synchronises with the main system, but in my opinion this isn’t the best option as it can take a long take for data to be synchronised when the rep is online again.

One way to get around this problem is to setup an automatic email that provides the rep with all of the information they will need each day. If the rep loses connectivity during the day they can make notes on their smartphone or tablet PC. Their notes can then be processed automatically by the main system when the rep is able to get back online. This offline functionality means that you can have all the benefits of a tradition solution, without any of the headaches associated with the replication and synchronisation of data.

Wiard Hidding
Director Strategic Projects and Product Owner

There’s a reason for this. Some companies haven’t invested enough time in the system’s creation, or haven’t considered how workers will actually use it. To ensure success, all departments must work together on the solution’s development. Whilst this is likely to require a little more time from key members of staff initially, it will ensure that the resulting KAM solution becomes an integrated part of the solution process, saving the business time and money in the long run.

No matter what products are used to support sales staff, if the process is not well defined and well implemented the results will always disappoint. It is vital that the KAM solution is flexible enough to support not only healthcare providers, but retail and OTC customers as well. Web-based systems by definition are well-placed to do this as they can be securely accessed and updated on the go.

But even with the advent of cloud computing, and remote access using 3G and WiFi, there’s still a long road ahead. Implementing and actually getting the rewards from your KAM system are totally different. Working closely with your KAM provider can help pharmaceutical companies to make this process painless and ensure that workers can find the right information when they need it, giving customers the experience they deserve and ultimately boosting your bottom line!

Erik Carlman
Corporate Account Director

Most of the difficulties in the pharma industry are centered on regulatory changes within the market, like tougher policies on drug approvals, generic products or selling practices. But the global economic climate also directly affects the healthcare industry. Public sector spending cuts due to economic concerns are reducing the spending power of national healthcare systems and so even though the pharma market is more global than ever, expenditure per market is getting squeezed. If pharma companies don’t get global selling strategies right they could lose the opportunity to grow.

In the past, when times were tough, mergers and acquisition have been rife. This strategy isn’t working so well now because R&D departments are not producing enough patents to go around, and we also have to take into account the long term investment needed to get a new drug to market.

The old model of country by country pharmaceutical sales is dying, but not all the companies seem to be aware of it. Others are just afraid of change. But the reality is that companies should adapt their models to look for new opportunities. There is a lot of new business to be generated if companies look at the pharma economy on a global scale.

There are of course lots of difficulties associated with selling into a foreign market; language barriers as well as access problems can be tricky things to negotiate. There are a few ways of making this global market work, some contract the sales process out to local agencies, or hire an already established pharma company who will act as a selling advocate or ‘middle man’. Both are good routes to success. The most important thing to remember is to keep communication channels open throughout the business. To do that you need to change your outlook and start focussing on the global pharmaconomy!

Desirée Malfeito
Client Solutions Director

Having taken iPads along to a number of conferences to help us demonstrate our own applications, there is certainly no denying how much attention they get and there’s always genuine excitement from people when iPads are around.

So what are the benefits to Life Science companies of giving their reps iPads and why have they got everyone so excited?

We all know that time in front of doctors, physicians and surgeons etc is vital for reps and they are continually battling to get more face time with them. Closed Loop Marketing was one way that companies have managed to increase this, now add an iPad to the mix and it becomes really interesting. The moment an iPad is produced the excitement and interest levels increase and this is likely to be the same when a rep uses the iPad on a sales call.

There’s no getting away from it. The iPad is pretty, but not only that, it’s functional too. Bringing along an iPad can make the sales reps life much easier. Visual cues and illustrations help no end when explaining concepts in the boardroom – and on the road, it’s no different.

The tool enables a new level of interactivity with customers.  Reps can quickly and easily show product information, videos content or ask the doctor to fill in a questionnaire. With the easy to use interface, there’s no need for them to teach the doctor how to use it – it’s very user friendly.

When coupled with web-based CRM and Key Account Management applications, the iPad also allows the rep to make the most efficient use of his/her time by enabling them to answer emails or upload call reports directly- any place, any time.

When you add to these benefits the fact that the iPad is light (compared to a laptop), has a long battery life and is relatively cheap we believe the iPad is not just going to be a fad but in years to come will become a staple part of a reps working day.

We are currently trialling iPads with a number of our Pharmaceutical clients and will be producing a report on this over the coming months. We look forward to seeing the results!

Damien Pool

Marketing Manager

One of the problems back then was that executives in life science companies were actually being sold inflexible and basic software for recording and reporting. These older systems were too rigid and simply couldn’t cope with the dynamic commercial environment that pharmaceutical organisations have. When you add that to the rapidly changing healthcare eco system that exists today then it’s obvious that they do not have the functions required by those working in sales and marketing departments. The lack of collaboration meant that it was difficult for sales and marketing staff to work together. And this meant that the people making the business decisions further up the chain were even less in the know.

So why are so many leading pharmaceutical companies still using and investing in these antiquated systems when there is potential salvation around the corner? The problem is that CRM is now an undesirable phrase within the industry resulting from the pains of their implementations and limited usability of their systems. A lot of organisations have settled for having a system which works, but is by no means adequate for today’s market.

Despite this, businesses in 2010 accept that they need something to move their organisations into the next generation. They need a system capable of management, collaboration, and knowledge transfer, with real-time reporting and analytics. Combine this with the need for many specialist sales forces to interact with a large number of diverse customers within the health authorities then there’s no wonder that these companies are so apprehensive about investing in new CRM solutions.

It’s interesting that if you call CRM something else, such as Key Account Management (KAM), people are more willing to hear about its advantages. But what’s in a name? No matter what you call it, pharmaceutical companies need an agile, rapidly adaptable fast-moving reporting system which is easy to use and update.

If CRM has been given a bad name in the past, perhaps we can change its meaning. It’s not really a question of semantics but a question of quality. Now that there are great ways of managing your sales force and customer relationships online, why not revive the name to herald in a new breed of cloud-based applications? Long live the new CRM.

Steve Webb – Chairman

Interactive Medica

Firstly, there are the elements you would expect from a good hotel, the location, the surroundings, the room, the public areas, the reception, the food etc. Whilst these were all first rate they are exactly what you would expect from a good hotel, it was the added touches and service that really made the experience!

Added touches included free internet, mineral water and soft drinks and the hotel even provided free bikes to use on the local cycle tracks- small things in the grand scheme of things but really adding to the experience.

The service is where it all fell into place and the element that seems the hardest for any hotel to get right. At this hotel the staff were all incredibly cheerful, friendly and most importantly knowledgeable.  Every single one of them knew the answers to any question we had including setting up the internet, local attractions etc.

When all these elements were put together it translated into everyone staying in the hotel being extremely friendly with the whole hotel having a great buzz to it!

So what can companies learn from this? First of all, the experience we provide customers is crucial, everything has to be just right and if one element of the jigsaw isn’t quite right it can ruin the whole experience. How often have we experienced this when we have dealt with a company that has a great product but it is pulled down by just one negative element!?

Secondly, the experience businesses provide is not about ticking boxes it is about wowing customers with something above and beyond what they were expecting – I would challenge every business to look at what they provide their customers and how they can add the wow factor to it.

Third and finally, service is where experiences can be truly made or lost! Whilst the hardest element to get right it is the aspect of the experience businesses really provide that separates them from their rivals – when you think about your favourite airline, retail outlet, coffee shop – I would be willing to bet it’s the service that makes you favour them!

One book that I have long been a fan of and can thoroughly recommend is “The Experience Economy: Work is Theater & Every Business a Stage” which argues that services are quickly following in the footsteps of products in that they will be commoditised and that the real, future differentiator will be the experience a customer receives: my hotel experience certainly confirms some of the main tenants of this book.

For anyone wondering, the hotel was in South West France – mail me if you’d like to know more!

Richard Jenkinson – CEO

Interactive Medica

* Paraphrasing Bill Clinton c.1992

Quickly we were inundated with Companies who had come up with ingenious uses of mapping and geographical data to solve business problems:

-       A company selling solar panels for housing used aerial photography in their call centres to immediately establish if potential customers had suitable roofs for a solar panel- saving them a massive sum on the traditional method of sending a company surveyor to the property

-       A major car company was looking into installing height data into its onboard computers so that the car would automatically know how the road ahead would change and angle the headlights accordingly

-       Mobile phone companies used 3 Dimensional Geographical data to establish the signal strength and line of sight of their mobile phone masts

The list went on and on…

So when I joined Interactive Medica and began talking to Business Intelligence professionals from the Pharmaceutical industry it struck me how little geographical data was being used and I began to question why:

-       At its simplest overlaying BI data on mapping is incredibly simple and powerful, however, using the data to generate meaningful statistics upon which business decisions can be made is far harder

-       As is always the case with new technology until it becomes thoroughly established it is not immediately thought of when a business problem is faced.

Mapping of healthcare data including product sales, ROI, sales versus activity/effort and visual performance of territories can provide immediate results e.g. imagine the costs savings alone associated with correct and efficient routing of a large group of reps.

So am I suggesting that Pharma companies immediately rush out and put their data onto maps? Well yes but with a caveat.

Interpreting the data to make it actionable is where it becomes difficult and maps alone may not be the only solution, personally I would couple map based metrics with other statistical analysis such as heat mapping.

One thing is for certain in my mind, when carefully planned out Business Intelligence coupled with Mapping software can certainly produce some staggering results for the Pharma industry as it has other industries and I will be watching closely to see how it develops.

Damien Pool
Marketing Manager
Interactive Medica

As a consumer, I find it incredibly frustrating when companies don’t appear to know what’s going on. Not only is it a waste of my time and theirs, it can make me lose my faith in their business, as the lack of coordination can come across as incompetence. While this is quite a trivial example, the same problems exist in the Life Sciences industry. And with some drug investments amounting to many millions of pounds, there’s a lot more at stake.

The problems start when you’ve one department using one system and another department using something completely different. It makes it very difficult for staff to share information with each other. This can mean that they’re missing out on the chance to collaborate and share knowledge. For example, sales staff might not be aware that a major clinical trial is being carried out and miss out on the opportunity to make the most of it. Equally representatives could be unaware of what other people on their team are up to, and try to arrange a meeting with physicians the same day as one of their colleagues.

In international companies this problem can be even worse as you’ve got teams in different countries using different systems. And then you’ve got the issue of language as well. Today’s marketing demands that the organisation is joined up and they work in teams across the enterprise.

Smart organisations are starting to realise that it makes much more sense to integrate all of these different systems into one overarching solution that can be easily managed centrally. Having a unified system makes it a lot easier for employees to share expertise and best practices. It even paves the way for departments to learn from each other.

So why aren’t more businesses using a single system? That’s the million dollar question. As you might expect, this often boils down to money. It can be really expensive to rip out and replace all of your existing systems with a new one. But this isn’t as much of an issue now that software can be hosted in the cloud.

Software as a Service (SaaS) means that businesses aren’t required to pay a large fee upfront. Instead they can pay for the new system in smaller monthly amounts, as they would for any other subscription service. And what’s more, a single system is much easier than running several different ones, so it’s possible to achieve some significant cost efficiencies by centralising it.

But you shouldn’t get too hung up on the pricing model. What you really need to think about is who will be using the system. It’s vital that it’s personalised, right down to people’s job roles, languages, departments, markets, and even customer buying habits. This granularity will help you to get the most out of your business and ultimately keep your customers happy.

Steve Webb – Chairman

Interactive Medica

Welcome to our brand new blog. Being an advocate of web-based technologies, we thought it was about time that we got with the programme and started engaging in a new and fresh way. We’re keen to start a conversation with you about the emerging trends and developments that are impacting the Pharmaceutical and Life Sciences industry.

So what are we going to be blogging about? Everything from the increasing complexity of the environment in which pharma companies operate, through to Q&A’s with industry movers and shakers. We want this to be an interesting forum for open debate so please, do leave us your comments.

Whilst everyone within Interactive Medica will be involved in this blog, there are two of us that will be writing the majority of the Blog entries, both with very different perspectives and views from across the business. Here’s a little bit of information about us:

My name is Richard Jenkinson and I’m the CEO of Interactive Medica. Having founded the company in 2002 with Steve Webb, I’m zealous about continued innovation in Life Sciences and helping customers to use technology to their advantage. As the industry gears up to face challenges from declining R&D budgets, drug development and the opening up of markets in the Far East, IT is becoming more than just plumbing. Collaborating with companies to help them realise what tech can achieve is the reason I get out of bed in the morning.

Steve Webb is our Chairman with a passion for business improvement. He’s the commercially minded one and spends his days driving forward the business strategy that’s responsible for our year-on-year growth. He also gets to socialise quite a lot as it’s his network of contacts that ensures we work with the best partners in the business to deliver an unrivalled customer experience.

We’ll be kicking things off by offering our thoughts on the future of CRM and why we think it’s vital that sales and marketing teams work together. If you’ve got an opinion on our blog or suggestions for what you’d like us to talk about, please post a comment and let us know.