The Power of Personas for Advanced Targeting
Insights are the key to unlock meaningful actions, without them it’s just data
Pharmaceutical marketers are increasingly looking for more nuanced approaches to digitally targeting patients, moving beyond the traditional claims-based targeting methods. By defining unique patient personas, marketers can create more personalized, meaningful digital strategies that resonate with the needs, behaviors, and concerns of specific patient groups.
M3 MI’s MARS Consumer Health Study works with brands to develop solutions to not only understand different patient personas but also to identify the most effective digital channels and platforms for reaching them. By using data and insights to create customized patient audiences, combined with an understanding of channel preferences and media consumption habits, pharmaceutical marketers can refine their strategies to be much more targeted and efficient.
For example, these types of insights can help digital pharmaceutical marketers:
- Create tailored messaging to drive action
- Build unique addressable audiences to reduce wasted impressions
- Negotiate private marketplace (PMPs) deals to surround premium content on their most used websites or streaming platforms
- And much more
To show a real-life example of the importance of customized patient audience insights, below are two example personas of patients with a dermatological condition:
Persona #1: Affordable health seeker
Who are they?
- Healthcare researchers: Three-quarters of these patients conduct research prior to meeting with the doctor
- Reliant on health insurance: 90% stated it is important their health insurance covers all their prescriptions, they are more likely to be on a plan from the insurance marketplace/exchange
What influences their healthcare decisions?
- Coupons and advertising: Both can motivate them to ask a doctor for a sample or to switch brands
- Health information on the internet: Nearly half feel the internet is a good way to confirm a diagnosis and this information gives them confidence to talk to their doctor about a medical condition
marketplace/exchange
What is their digital footprint?
- 56% of internet time is spend on social media, mainly on Meta platforms or TikTok, and 2 out 5 read about others’ experiences with conditions, medications or treatment
- Utilize health system websites such as Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic
What do they need from pharmaceutical marketers?
- Real life experiences with the treatment on the brand website or social media pages
- Doctor discussion guides, they are willing to talk to their doctor about a treatment if they have information to make them feel confident
- Messaging around financial assistance programs and health insurance coverage
Persona #2: OTC Treater
Who are they?
- More comfortable online than in-person: Nearly 2 in 5 feel more comfortable talking about health and wellness concerns online than face-to-face
- Condition is top of mind: More than half agree their condition is never far from the forefront of their mind
What influences their healthcare decisions?
- Treatment side-effects: 77% are hesitant to take prescription drugs with side effects that concern me
- Their doctor: 65% agree that they always do what the doctor tells them to do
What is their digital footprint?
- Digital video consumer: Nearly a quarter utilize free streaming services such as Tubi or Roku Channel, and nearly 2 in 5 watch online videos to learn about conditions/treatments
- 71% value online search for health information, and they are 21% more likely than Affordable Health Seekers conduct an online search after seeing a healthcare ad
What do they need from pharmaceutical marketers?
Ability to easily search for the information they need or quick information within the form of a paid search ads
Messaging on side-effects and how the benefits outweigh risks
Video advertising on the streaming services and video outlets they use dailyInformation from an HCP since they are likely to do what the doctor tells them to
In conclusion, the MARS study, with its robust dataset of over 5,000 data points, provides a powerful end-to-end solution for digital planning and activation. By leveraging this data, healthcare marketers can maximize their budgets, avoiding the inefficiencies of broad demographic buys or simple claims-based targeting, and instead, tailoring their strategies to specific target personas. MARS enables more personalized campaigns, ensuring that the messaging resonates with distinct audience segments, whether through predefined or custom addressable audiences.
Looking ahead to 2025, we are expanding our partnerships to further integrate these insights with TV planning platforms, allowing even more precise and impactful campaign executions.
Information
For more information on detailed study results from M3 MI, including at the specialty level, contact us at
info@M3-MI.com.