|
|
Call Centers in the Pharmaceutical Industry: Hosted and Virtual Hosted Technologies in European and US Sales EffortsProduct Type: Market Research ReportPublished by: Datamonitor Published: November 2002 Product Code: R313-5208 Description This Brief provides an overview of the general call center market and examines how such centers may be used by pharmaceutical companies to provide information and valuable services to its target audiences: patients, physicians and salesforces. A strategy is needed to use call centers as a marketing channel in providing each audience with ready access to disease and product information.Coverage: US, EuropeComparison of the hosted and virtual hosted call center marketsCase studies involving call centers for patients, physicians and salesforcesHosted and virtual hosted call center solutions are not suited for all call centers. Typically, only medium to large organizations with a large numbers of call centers should consider implementing such solutions.Pharmaceutical companies can use call centers to provide information and valuable services to its customers: patients and physicians, so as to foster corporate brand loyalty and drive sales. Both patients and physicians may be offered product information relevant to their respective needs in addition to other convenient and useful resources.In-house call centers for sales representatives can serve to enhance their knowledge, preparedness and effectiveness in communicating with physicians during drug details. Improving the success of detailing visits should act to drive product sales.Understand the scope of the general call center market and the differences between hosted and virtual hosted call centersIdentify how the pharmaceutical industry can use call centers in their marketing efforts to patients and physicians and in improving their salesforcesPlan strategies to use call centers in sales efforts considering future developments in the call center marketTable of Contents Overview Introduction This Brief provides an overview of the general call center market and examines how such centers may be used by pharmaceutical companies to provide information and valuable services to its target audiences: patients, physicians and salesforces. A strategy is needed to use call centers as a marketing channel in providing each audience with ready access to disease and product information. Scope Coverage: US, Europe Comparison of the hosted and virtual hosted call center markets Case studies involving call centers for patients, physicians and salesforces Report Highlights Hosted and virtual hosted call center solutions are not suited for all call centers. Typically, only medium to large organizations with a large numbers of call centers should consider implementing such solutions. Pharmaceutical companies can use call centers to provide information and valuable services to its customers: patients and physicians, so as to foster corporate brand loyalty and drive sales. Both patients and physicians may be offered product information relevant to their respective needs in addition to other convenient and useful resources. In-house call centers for sales representatives can serve to enhance their knowledge, preparedness and effectiveness in communicating with physicians during drug details. Improving the success of detailing visits should act to drive product sales. Reasons to Purchase Understand the scope of the general call center market and the differences between hosted and virtual hosted call centers Identify how the pharmaceutical industry can use call centers in their marketing efforts to patients and physicians and in improving their salesforces Plan strategies to use call centers in sales efforts considering future developments in the call center market Drivers and trends In order to maintain their competitiveness in sales efforts, pharmaceutical companies must assess their marketing and salesforce strategies. The use of call centers can serve to improve the effectiveness of selling efforts as well as create cost savings. If implemented correctly, call centers can support better customer relationship management and salesforce effectiveness. Many companies are moving towards or expanding their utilization of call centers in order to increase customer reach as well as cut down on selling costs. As the adoption of this technology progresses, the use of hosted and virtual hosted call centers will play a key role in overall sales and marketing strategies. This Brief examines the ways in which call centers can be used to facilitate customer relationship management as well as sales and marketing efforts: In what ways can call centers serve to improve the effectiveness of selling efforts as well as create cost savings? How can pharmaceutical companies incorporate call centers into their long-term customer relationship management and marketing plans? What are the advantages and disadvantages of hosted and virtual hosted call center solutions? How can the pharmaceutical industry provide product information to patients and physicians through call centers? What efficiencies can be created through the use of in-house call centers for sales representatives? Based on the future developments within the call center market, how will call centers be utilized in sales efforts? MARKETING TO PATIENTS AND PHYSICIANS The use of call centers can serve to advance pharmaceutical sales efforts by allowing for more effective and efficient communications with patients and physicians. Patients are a key audience for pharmaceutical companies to reach considering their involvement in the treatment decision-making process, R&D efforts and the final consumption of products. Call centers may serve to build customer brand loyalty by offering convenient access to product information and useful services. These centers can also facilitate participation in clinical trials and disease management programs. As with patients, physicians may also be provided with information on products through pharmaceutical-sponsored call centers. The convenience in obtaining useful product information should serve to drive the prescribing of the medication. In addition to providing specific information to meet the physician’s need, more detailed information about new products and updates on existing products can be offered through details via call centers. Providing physicians with relevant information in a convenient “pull” format will serve to build physician brand loyalty and potentially influence prescribing decisions. DRIVING SALEFORCE EFFECTIVENESS Call centers may be set up to provide an internal help desk to enhance salesforce knowledge and, thereby, their effectiveness in communicating with customers. These centers can offer CRM tools to sales representatives by acting as a customer knowledge management resource through data mining and analysis. They can also serve as an effective way to deal with administrative tasks such as ordering samples, detailing materials and promotional material. Call centers can provide sales representatives with more extensive training on new products or developments with existing products. The use of call centers for sales training should serve to reduce costs typically involved with live training and improve the effectiveness of the salesforce. A knowledgeable and informed salesforce is essential in maximizing their influence on physician prescribing decisions. In addition to sales training, call centers may be used to provide sales representatives with operational information. Such information may include salesforce effectiveness tools and analytical services that help representatives influence a physician’s prescribing behavior more effectively. The use of call centers offers pharmaceutical companies a cost-efficient and effective way to keep their salesforce up to date on sales and marketing issues. ACTION POINTS Three key action points for pharmaceutical companies Action point 1 - Large fragmented organizations would benefit from implementing a network call center solution Action point 2 - Pharmaceutical companies should use call centers to provide information and valuable services to its customers: patients and physicians, so as to foster corporate brand loyalty and drive sales Action point 3 - In-house call centers for sales representatives should serve to enhance their knowledge, preparedness and effectiveness in communicating with physicians during drug details DATASETS Figure 1: A simple hosted call center infrastructure Figure 2: US and European call centers, 2001 Figure 3: Who is implementing a virtual call center? |
|
||||||||
MindBranch has been the leading provider of industry and investment research from more than 550 independent research firms since 1992. With over 90,000 market research reports, MindBranch is your trusted source of competitive business intelligence. |