What Digital Media do Physicians Use?
By Rahim Shah, SVP Client Services
February 5, 2024
The importance being placed on digital media by pharma and med tech/device manufacturers has grown over the past few years as it has become apparent that relying on the sales rep alone to communicate key product related information is unlikely to result in success. In recent years, manufacturers have been investing heavily in digital and social media tools as an alternate means of providing more effective channels to promote, communicate and educate physicians on their products and therapeutic areas. However, how much time physicians are spending on the various digital and social media channels available, specifically for professional purposes, is less clear.
Which social media channels are physicians using for professional purposes, which are considered most appropriate, and most importantly through which social media channels are they most receptive to manufacturers interacting with them?
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MD Analytics interviewed 290 physicians, in the US and Canada, to better understand how physicians are currently using social media in a professional setting, which social media channels are the most popular among physicians, and which channels they feel are most appropriate for manufacturers to use to interact with physicians.
Physicians are spending on average, two hours a day using online and social media for professional purposes. As such, it has become important that manufacturers be aware of which online and social media avenues physicians are open to receiving communications from manufacturers and interacting with them regarding brand related information and education. Currently, online activity consists of physicians mainly visiting websites for professional use, with a focus on UpToDate, with only modest use of social media, podcasts and other digital media. When using social media for professional purposes, physicians most often use LinkedIn, followed by Sermo in the United States and X (formerly Twitter) in Canada. Sermo and LinkedIn are also seen as the most appropriate sites that manufacturers should be using to communicate with physicians. However, they are also open to interactions though less traditionally professional platforms including X, YouTube, and Facebook.
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