Using Big Data for Better Targeting: A Win-Win for MedTech Marketing & Sales Teams

It seems like almost every large MedTech company has climbed on the big data bandwagon in an effort to drive more effective and targeted marketing to physicians and sales activities.

Big data for precise targeting is, in fact, one of the most powerful tools in the arsenal of both marketing and sales teams when they have access to it and know how to mine, analyze, and use it.
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However, there are a number of challenges and inequities that separate the organizations that can track a direct, positive correlation between use of data and increased sales from the ones that can’t or don’t leverage this kind of data and analytics for more accurate targeting, such as:

Some of the challenges we observe include:

1. Companies may decide they cannot afford to purchase the access to this data. In some cases, this is a valid limitation, but at what potential cost? Alternatively, consider whether there a more focused, targeted purchase of data that could actually deliver substantial value at a lower price point.
   
   
2. Some companies don’t understand the relationship between big data and deep data. They spend too much time and effort managing big data overload and don’t know how to properly focus and drill down on deep data - a specific, smaller, prioritized group of high-value data streams that can lead to more sales at lower cost.
   
   As an example, deep data can be mined for customer behaviors that can be used to glean valuable insights, and apply that knowledge to better messaging for both the marketing and sales processes.
   
   
3. Certain organizations are simply better at analyzing the data and using it for more efficient targeting and on-point messaging.
   
   
4. The marketing and sales teams in some companies interact more proactively and effectively to leverage data and analytics for a competitive advantage in their marketing and sales efforts.

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Ideally, the marketing team enhances and supports the sales team’s efforts, and the sales team provides valuable, actionable feedback to the marketing team to help the marketing team be more on-target with strategy and messaging. Unfortunately, this ideal often fails to match up with the reality of the relationship between marketing and sales.

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Opportunity Cost

A McKinsey and Company survey of more than 1,000 sales organizations worldwide found that 53 percent of those considered to be fast-growing companies judge their use of analytics to be extremely or at least moderately effective, compared to only 37 percent for slower-growing companies.

In under-performing companies, even the best data and analysis are used primarily as the basis for a one-way communication - from marketing to sales. The real opportunity cost of one-way conversations between marketing and sales is hard to measure without a comparison of communication processes between different organizations. This definitely factors into the equation which separates companies that drive significantly more sales from use of targeting data from those that don’t enjoy the same level of success.

4 Primary Impact Areas for Use of Data Analytics

​The same McKinsey survey points to four primary areas of sales impact from the effective use of data analytics.

1. Major improvements in lead generation and lead scoring
2. Use and focus of the sales organization for: coverage planning; field productivity; talent and people management; forecasting and pipeline management
3. Increased lifetime customer value: upselling and cross-selling; reduction in customer churn
4. Nailing the pricing: dynamic pricing; dynamic deal scoring; A/B price testing

How Marketing & Sales Teams Use Data for Better Targeting

Step 1: Define Targeting Criteria

Some criteria are obvious and don’t necessarily require access to deep data. For example, if your company sells a specific medical device used for a few specific surgical procedures, you can easily identify which surgeons in the target area perform those procedures.

But how valuable would it be to your marketing and sales efforts if you could access the total number of those specific procedures performed in the last twelve months by each specialist in your target area? The same concept could apply for a pharma company based on a medication that is prescribed by only certain specialists.
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Step 2: Prioritize Prospects

For a hospital that wants to drive more surgical case referrals to their own surgeons, they might want to prioritize their targeting based on doctors who already have a relationship with those surgeons. Further, they might choose to prioritize messaging and contact based on how many referrals each of those doctors had made in the past year to their surgeons versus other surgeons.

For more, make sure to check out our How-To Guide for Data-Driven Healthcare Market Research.
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Step 3: Assign Targets to Territory Reps

Based on the information in Step 1 and Step 2, it would be easy to assign sales goals and targets by territory to the reps covering those areas. As your sales team grows bigger you will likely need to rely on CRM tools or other technologies to communicate and coordinate assignments for each rep.
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Step 4: Utilize Engaging Content That Resonates

​The marketing team can select or create engaging and customized content for the sales reps based on the knowledge about the prioritized targets and their referral or utilization patterns.
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Step 5: Measure Outcomes

In addition to measuring sales results, management could measure how frequently sales reps accessed the content and tools made available to them by the marketing team. If utilization by the sales team is lower than anticipated, sales management could drill down on a case-by-case or group basis to determine the reasons. Management can then coordinate with and provide feedback to the marketing team to strengthen the value of content and tools being utilized by the sales team.

When marketing and sales are working collaboratively to maximize the leverage of big data and deep data in their targeting and communications efforts, it’s a win-win for everyone in the organization, as well as for the customer!

Here at Carevoyance we have developed tools for every step along the way. Contact us today to schedule a call to learn more how to get your marketing and sells team collaborating around using data to sell

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About the Author

Carevoyance contributor Lonnie Hirsch is the Founder and CEO of Hirsch Healthcare Consulting, one of the premier consultants and strategists for helping medical practices and hospitals across the U.S. and in other countries achieve profitable top line and bottom line growth.