Lessons from the world of iPad detailing
pharmafile | October 27, 2011 | Feature | Medical Communications |
This is an article for those who have chosen the iPad as an e-detailing tool. It’s not an argument on what to do with e-detailing, it’s simply learnings from the all the iPad detail aids we have created to date.
We believe it’s all about creativity and delivering the best interactive experience for your sales reps whilst on calls with HCPs. It’s a fantastic medium to really showcase your brand!
DO DOCTORS AND NURSES LIKE IPADS?
70 percent of the doctors polled in a recent survey plan to use an iPad in their work life in some capacity during 2011, so if your rep turns up with an iPad loaded with a detail aid that is truly interactive, you’ll definitely engage with them more.
A LITTLE BIT OF PLANNING
Hold a brainstorm meeting with sales reps and ask them to list the benefits of the iPad vs tablet PC. Also ask any friendly KOLs what they think of iPads.
Get everyone’s feedback first, then create the planning cycle for the content, along with a list of all the functional requirements needed.
GIVE YOURSELF ENOUGH TIME
If your sales conference is in September, plan backwards: conference 1st September, deliver iPads to hotel 28th August, deploy on machines 20th August, user test 16th August, beta test 12th August, start coding 25th July, send copy and design for final approval 15th July, sign off design 10th July, sign off copy 5th July, have brainstorm meeting and brief ready 25th May.
One BIG tip – always remember that once you have copy and design signed off using internal approval systems, or solutions like Zinc, you’re done. You can tweak and add updates but changing the structure can get very expensive!
FIND AN AGENCY THAT UNDERSTANDS THE DEVICE
A lot of agencies either have creative sales detailing experience or technical experience, but the combined offering is hard to find. Don’t forget that it needs to be creative to be engaging, and should be written by someone with medical expertise, otherwise the product benefits may be lost. Ask your agency to talk you through what they’ve done before, and ask them to show you their Apple developers’ kit.
THE IMPORTANCE OF CLOSED LOOP MARKETING (CLM)
This is very important, as we say digital is always in beta: so build, test, launch, test and amend all the time. Setting the process of CLM will help you refine messaging, enhance interaction, gain vital feedback and ultimately improve sales. You can create tailored presentations, metrics and feedback within the iPad detail aid, without the cost of an expensive CLM system. There are also off the shelf apps that allow you to integrate all the data with CRM systems.
PLAY TO THE IPAD’S STRENGTHS
Design your detail aid specifically for the iPad. This means using an intuitive interface. Focus on making your app work fast and elegantly. Don’t retrofit an old design: it won’t be as good and the user will notice.
KEEP THINGS SIMPLE
Don’t introduce layers of complexity by adding features that aren’t important to users. Cramming in too many features is the biggest mistake, because the idea that “The more features it has the better it looks”, doesn’t work. The simplest detail aids are the most successful in terms of recall of message and prescribing intent.
BURN YOUR PAPER DETAIL AID
Yes – get rid of the previous detail aid, start from scratch and don’t allow the designer who worked on the paper detail aid anywhere near this project. Make sure that you get a designer involved who understands the user interface of the iPad, and they can work with medical writers and any brand guardians you may have.
HOW DO WE MAKE IT ENGAGING?
The benefit of iPad detailing is that it’s built for you to engage with the content. For example, a great feature might be tilting the machine and a graph appears, or how about a dose calculator to interact with the doctor? Include videos, 3D images, cost calculator, show clinical data in an engaging way, include mode of action demos, educational games, and always have profiled presentations.
TRAINING
This is where your whole investment can fall down. There have been many stories about reps who haven’t been trained on:
1) how to use the iPad
2) how to sell from a digital medium – so make sure you create separate manuals for each point, add these onto the iPad, then create videos and tips that can be viewed on the iPad too.
Once you have done this, organise a training session where you run through selling scenarios. Hire an HCP for the day to create real-life situations.
Don’t forget with iPad detailing you can always get feedback, update and release new sections regularly, without major costs.
I hope this helps. We have a handy “how-to” guide that you can keep on your desk and refer to at any time, so tweet us, email us, call us and we’ll put one in the post for you.
Expect great things, www.life-healthcare.com
By Faisal Ahmed – Head of digital, Life Healthcare
For further information contact Faisal at Faisal@life-healthcare.com or on Twitter @sickonthenet
