The early sailors that steered their way around the Mediterranean would often do so by staying in sight of land. In this way they felt they could move most safely, but by staying within their comfort zone they also limited how far they could travel.
New approaches, like the development and refinement of celestial navigation, broadened travellers’ horizons, and then tools such as the compass – and ultimately modern ‘technology’ – allowed them to visit new and wondrous lands.
Similarly, the pharmaceutical industry’s own journeys in customer engagement can sometimes look as if it resides too securely within its comfort zones, limiting the success of its own engagement strategies. But, with the basics in place (see July/August issue of PME for how to create the right foundations for omnichannel success), new discoveries are waiting to be made by those companies that are set up to succeed with omnichannel customer engagement.
Step by step
The point articulated by the Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu about long journeys beginning with a single step is well made, if somewhat overused, but it has some application in pharma’s omnichannel engagement, where a step-by-step approach really needs to be taken. Without this being clearly set out, initiatives can be derailed or fail to bring the required value because brand teams aren’t clear on who should do what and when they should do it.
Typically, pharma companies will already be taking many of the steps needed for successful omnichannel customer engagement, but there may not be a clear and defined framework and an aligned cross function strategy in place. Even just defining the right order in which the steps should be taken, and identifying their owners, could be that proverbial first step.
Then, where cross-functional efforts are needed, as will often be the case, taking a planned, consistent approach to omnichannel engagement is important if companies are to understand the activities that need to take place and the interdependencies that exist across different functions, including medical and legal. Within the different parts of the business there should be clear roles and responsibilities that can be tied back to the desired business outcomes.
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