The COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact how drug and device companies are communicating with healthcare providers. And these days, when you read how businesses are adapting, the common adage is we’ve made five years of progress in six months. MSLs speaking to key opinion leaders (KOLs) are no different. Virtual KOL conversations aren’t new to pharma companies. But the uptick in their usage has been dramatic.

It hasn’t been easy for MSLs to adapt their activities from face-to-face interactions to virtual KOL conversations. Between April and October 2020, pharmaceutical companies’ digital interactions with providers have increased by more than 700%. We may need to wait another six months to determine whether life science companies have taken a hit from the loss of face-to-face interactions. But more and more data sources point out that digital communications are here to stay.

Healthcare Professionals Prefer Digital Communications

No one should pretend that digital channels are a new form of communication for MSLs. Key opinion leaders and other healthcare providers (HCPs) were expressing their preferences for digital communications from MSLs more than a year prior to the pandemic’s global spread. Indegene’s Digital Savvy HCP Survey 2019 found that digital channels were physicians’ preferred form of communication for the first time in the four years of its study.

The reasons why physicians prefer digital conversations boil down to their lack of time. Health systems require HCPs to see more patients per day, which leads to a greater administrative burden and effectively no time for conversations with industry reps. When they do speak with industry reps, they often prefer conversations with MSLs over sales reps.

Let’s face it, physician access to industry reps is only going to decrease. That trend has been evident for much longer than any effects the pandemic has had on MSLs’ access to HCPs. Physicians’ desires to shift to digital tools means that MSLs who have quickly adopted these tools are providing greater value to HCPs as the pandemic continues. That value will, without a doubt, continue beyond the end of the COVID-19 crisis.

Maintaining Insightful Communications

Prior to the pandemic, hesitancy around shifting to virtual KOL conversations primarily centered around MSLs’ ability to continue communicating complex, nuanced medical details in a virtual setting. Face-to-face interactions provide non-verbal cues that intuitive MSLs use to further the conversations or find new opportunities to work with KOLs. But with the right training, MSLs can continue having meaningful, insightful conversations with physicians through digital channels.

We spoke with an MSL recently who has been using digital technology to his advantage. During the pandemic, he planned three Advisory boards, one “train-the-trainers” event, and doubled the number of scientific meetings he was having – all virtually.

It’s important to understand which KOLs have adapted to virtual communication technology. For MSLs, it has been hard to know whether the HCP relationships they had prior to the pandemic will be permanently altered due to the need to communicate differently. Companies need to develop creative ways to have virtual KOLs who have resisted the shift to digital tools, or those who are less technologically savvy. Microsoft Teams or Zoom meetings have become the norm for many organizations. But other, more interactive communication tools could accomplish the same communications goals as one-on-one discussions with KOLs.

For example, life sciences companies could consider implementing learning management systems to provide compliant, approved communications to physicians who don’t want to schedule calls with MSLs. Learning management systems often incorporate interactive elements to communicate information more effectively than just reading dense text on a page. Just ensure those communications meet compliance regulations.

Building New KOL Relationships through Digital Channels

Developing new KOL relationships is bound to take a hit from the lack of in-person interactions. So many of these new relationships formed at medical conferences, which have either been cancelled or shifted to virtual meetings. This has created a void that MSLs have found challenging to fill. Without a central meeting place for MSLs to make contact with large numbers of physicians at one time, liaisons will have to find other means to introduce themselves to physicians.

MSLs can continue to reach larger audiences through virtual meetings. Whether it's virtual advisory boards, speaker events, or webinars, MSLs can use these opportunities to position themselves as valuable resources for physicians. Life sciences companies can also work with virtual meeting providers to help MSLs deliver more interactive meetings for HCPs. And virtual meeting providers can handle all of the logistical hurdles needed to bring many people together from various locations. Companies that aren’t equipped to host virtual meetings will find these solutions providers particularly helpful.

MSLs need to be seen as valuable connectors between physicians and the information being presented. That will help MSLs start conversations with individual KOLs following the virtual meeting. The key is to humanize the digital interactions between MSLs and healthcare providers.

Some tips to humanize your virtual meetings include:

• Make sure the camera is close. When you’re sitting close to your camera, you’re mimicking behavior that people are used to seeing in face-to-face interactions. Also, there’s less opportunity for the healthcare provider to get distracted by items in the background.
• Dress up for the interactions. Even though you’re working at home, you should still dress for success. Look the part because you’re still representing the company.
• Make sure you have good lighting. The fastest way to remind a KOL that you’re having a virtual call is to make it hard for her to see you.

And don’t be afraid to take advantage of digital tools to provide your KOLs innovative experiences. Why not invite two KOLs to interact on one call. By facilitating this interaction, you’re providing your KOLs to interact in a setting that they otherwise may not have initiated themselves. This could be an especially valuable interaction when you connect two different types of thought leaders – a national KOL and a patient advocate within his specialty, for example. This type of interaction may be more possible through digital communication tools, especially when the two thought leaders are in different parts of the country.

Virtual KOL Conversations are Improving

The positive news is that physicians aren’t just relying on digital tools to communicate with MSLs and other company reps; telemedicine has surged since the pandemic’s onset. Patients’ reliance on digital communication is driving physician usage of these tools. The increase in telemedicine has sharpened physicians’ technical capabilities.

More healthcare providers are accustomed to communicating on digital platforms. And life science companies should be honing their communications strategies to continue delivering value to healthcare providers through digital platforms well after the COVID-19 crisis has passed.