The future of the pharmaceutical industry

It’s 2021, a year where technology and the internet will play an even bigger part of our lives in comparison to previous years. In order to keep up with the trends and to get a better understanding of our millennial generation, we’ve summarized a few insights and tips for you.

The power of social media

At first, social media was just a way one can express him- or herself online without putting too much effort into designing a website on your own. In the meantime, social media grew into one of the most powerful selling tools out there.

Until a few years ago, you could only find photos of friends having fun on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Today, everybody advertises their business on social media; from small local pharmacists to international pharma companies.

Those who know how to, can use this incredibly powerful and incredibly cheap force to make an impact and generate sales.

Handshake? Mouse click!

Although a good relationship will always be vital for keeping your business partners happy, handshakes are not as important anymore as they used to be for finding new customers. We’ve learned during the Covid pandemic that business can continue while working remote. Especially when you close a deal with a person on the other side of the world, it would be difficult to meet up in real life.

Besides, whilst it is almost a tradition to have your companies’ GMP certificate framed and hanging in your meeting room, the digital PDF version is the one your customers and other relations will ask for.

That’s what digital marketing is all about- it helps people do business faster and cheaper. Old school pharma selling techniques need to be adjusted to the current age we live in. Making an excellent first impression today means being on the first page of Google. That’s where millennials jump in- it’s the generation that perfectly understands how the powerful internet works. Millennials have grown up using the internet and are heavily influenced by it.

The Numbers

Do you know which keywords your potential customers are using while searching for your products on the internet? And do you know where on the Google result page they will find your company? First result or only after scrolling and scrolling?

This is a topic you should focus on this year. B2B buyers are getting younger. In the last two years alone, the percentage of B2B millennial buyers jumped from 12% to 46%. It’s a shift significant enough to change the rules of the purchasing game. Also, the statistic shows that more than 90% of B2B millennial buyers extensively use the internet to find their business partners.

While the world is steadily improving through technological development, the pharmaceutical industry isn’t taking full benefit of it yet. As a consumer, we have a strong need to compare different sellers when buying goods like a new washing machine, booking a hotel or ordering food.

We like to compare products based on the delivery time, special features, price et cetera and all of this in the blink of an eye. For a couple of years we have the ability to do so but our pharmaceutical industry still relies on their own networks.

In 2019, we saw more traditional pharma companies starting to adopt online marketing. For 2020 we are expecting an even more rapid increase in how much they will use online marketing. Companies should at least have a SEO proof, user-friendly website with only the most relevant information.

Besides having their own website, pharma companies should also be present in online marketplaces. Not only on Pharmaoffer but also other platforms. Not only will you have the benefit of getting new business from these platforms, but you’re also letting Google know that your website is relevant, which will give you a higher ranking on their result page.

According to Google’s research, the quality of a landing page, brand awareness and user experience are the three most important factors that determine how much will you sell.

Life-work balance

Millennials are not crazy about nine to five jobs. The generation isn’t willing to simply offer their time, physically being in an office building, in exchange for wages. Instead, they much prefer to directly apply their personal skills where it is necessary. The reasoning is simple- the quicker and more efficient I can do this right, the more time I’ll spend with my friends and family.

Although their approach might sound like the reasoning of lazy people, millennials are actually quite productive. They don’t waste time. A quick deal is what they strive for if you can’t communicate your offer quickly, then it’s probably not that good.

Keep it simple, casual, and quick.